It’s Friday at 2 pm and you’re looking to start the weekend early only to find yourself sittin’ in that infamous Atlanta traffic (ranked 4th worst in 2009) unable to go just a few miles without gridlock.  Arghh!  Oh, and if there’s any kind of precipitation then you’re in for a real treat!  It comes with the territory of being a hustling and bustling metropolis and international hub where you must trade the misery of such daily trials and tribulations with many wonderful benefits including a fairly healthy job market, choice arts & entertainment venues as well as every type of food & dining experience you can dream of.  So, what is an Atlien to do in order to slow things down a bit and re-charge the mental well-being before tackling the rat race come Monday?  Look no further than the north Georgia mountains just one hour north of the city where there was once gold in them thar hills.  Only now, the gold is in country lifestyle getaways, hiking, cycling and other tourist activities, including wine tours.

The mountains of north Georgia form the southernmost tip of the Blue Ridge mountain chain and is the start of the Appalachian mountain trail.  When most think about Georgia they may envision southern hospitality (Hey, Y’all!), the “backwoods” (can you hear the banjos, Ned?), peaches, peanuts, pickup trucks and camouflage.  And when it comes to wine, folks may think more about Scuppernong, a species of the bronze and musky Muscadine family of vines, which is definitely an acquired taste, or even fruit wines.  Now, while some of these still hold true, especially the Southern hospitality, the wine country is blossoming with fine wines made from European Vitis Vinifera as well as some French-American hybrids bringing local and regional tourists alike.  Only Savannah had more visitors than Dahlonega-Lumpkin County in the state, which sits at the heart of the North Georgia Wine Trail. 

At the beginning of the 20th century Georgia was #6 in wine production until Prohibition went and messed things up and the vineyards were removed to make way for other crops, such as peaches and tomatoes.  In 2006, Georgia was #24 with approximately 136,000 gallons produced compared to a mere 713 Million gallons produced in California.  There are currently about 25 bonded wineries which is up from about 15 just five years prior and many are producing fine wine from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Viognier, Sangiovese, Chardonnay, Vidal and Seyval among others.  A few of our favorite wineries that we often visit and write about include Montaluce Winery & Estates, BlackStock Vineyards, and Wolf Mountain.  The elevation in the Dahlonega area is approximately 1,500 feet, which helps aid against disease, like Pierce’s disease, and pests and often produces excellent airflow dynamics to many vineyards.  Most of the soils are well-aerated and contain iron and other metals that oxidize to give it the renowned Georgia clay red coloring, similar to that of Italy’s “terra rossa.”

That’s a great segue to the discussion of Montaluce Winery & Estateswhich is the dream of Rob Beecham, who is trying to “bring home Tuscany” and the wine country experience without requiring a week-long expensive vacation to Europe or California.  Complete with Tuscan villa communities, cottages and a state-of-the-art winery, Rob is trying to bring an eco-friendly, sustainable, all-in-one luxury resort experience to those who love wine, food and the lifestyle it accompanies.  Many Atlanta retirees end up residing in the Dahlonega area to begin their second life.  And, by keeping with the European lifestyle theme, the wine is meant and developed to accompany the food, not necessarily to stand on its own or be all-powerful.  Montaluce celebrated their inaugural releasethis year which included a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Risata(Sangiovese Rose’), Viognier and Chardonnay.

Wolf Mountain is the first winery we ever visited after moving to Atlanta.  The views are just spectacular and their brunches, accompanied with accomplished bluegrass musicians, are infamous to those in the region.  Oh, and their award-winning winesare, well, worthy of their awards!  My favorite is the Instinct, which is a Rhone style blend of Syrah, Mourvedre, Cabernet Sauvignon and Touriga, followed closely by the Coupage, but there is something I like in each and every wine that they make.  Wolf Mountain’s wines showed well at this year’s Georgia Fine Wine Festival, which was well-represented by the owner’s son and Assistant Winemaker, Brannon Boegner.

Finally, Blackstock Vineyards, was a catalyst in the area back in the late 1990′s for showing that many varieties of Vitis Vinifera grapes could be grown and succeed in the region.  David Harris, owner of BlackStock, is also a lover of Viognier and has produced a very aromatic, crisp and satisfying version.  Additionally, BSV produces a Sangiovese Rose’ that makes a nice summertime sipper to enjoy on their deck with BBQ and local musicians overlooking the mountains as well as the ACE Family Reserve for those looking for a jammier, black fruit and herbaceous blend.

There are many other wonderful wineries in the area that are worthy of your patronage when you are in the Atlanta area.  Just check out the list linked HERE for wineries in the area and enjoy a little of the South in your mouth!

Y’all come back now, ya’hear!  And check out more local and regional wineries at DrinkLocalWine.com!

Taking this title from a new found friend on Twitter and host of the The Other 46 wine blog, I bring to you some notes from 4 wineries I visited today in the Yadkin Valley, North Carolina.  I hope he doesn’t mind and I have given him props including a link to his site above as well as in my blogroll  ; )  I just thought it was very appropriate and he was kind enough to reach out me via Twitter to see what I had learned.  Due to space on the blog and to give each place the focus it deserves so you, the reader, can get a feel for each, I will post about each one at a time.

We started off at Elkin Creek Vineyard, which was suggested to us by our new friends, Marty and Chris, who recently moved to Atlanta from NC.  We met them back around New Year’s at a Brookhaven Sherlock’s tasting, recent site of a heralded wine funkmaster Hardy Wallace, of GoodeToBeFirst fame, tasting event.  Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating with us today as the rain came pouring down, but it added some beautiful tranquility to an already peaceful place in the mountains.  Mark Greene, the winemaker, started his vineyard in 2001 further up the mountain from his creekside home next to an old 18th century mill that makes you just ready to retire, which is what he thought he was ready to do.  Mark caught the bug and learned viti- and viniculture from a local college, one of few (if any) on the east coast with such a program.  This gives those aspiring winemakers out there, like me, some confidence that it actually can be done and if you have the fire in your belly and the conviction, you can make it.

Mark also built their wine tasting room/restaurant … himself… back in 2004.  It’s made of huge solid wood beams angling skyward to a central portal in the roof, that gives the room a very natural and spacious feel.  We ate lunch in the dining room and the menu included mostly Italian style dishes like Panini’s and pastas, as well as a good cheese dish and fresh salads.  My father-in-law and I had the Penne pasta with Lamb Ragu which paired well with their Rossa, which is an interesting blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah… yes, not one muscadine grape to be found! 

The Rossa had a brick, orangish hue and had a peppery herb nose.  The taste was full of soft, velvety red fruits that was very even to the finish.  This was not one of my favorites during the tasting, but with the Lamb Ragu, it flourished!  Definitely a food wine.

The 2007 Family Reserve is a Merlot and Syrah blend with just a splash of Viognier.  I got some heat on the nose, but enjoyed the light oak, earth, and red fruits.  It had a good bit of spice on the palate and a lasting finish.

But, it was their 2007 Chardonnay that I really enjoyed the most.  It presented apples and pears on the nose and was very light and crisp as it was solely aged in stainless steel.

Ultimately, it is good to see that you don’t have to always catch a flight to the west coast to visit beautiful wine country scenery or taste good vinifera wines… many of these are winning regional and national awards, too, so don’t just take my word for it.