Carolina’s wine industry is growing stronger every harvest. Wine growers are experimenting with blends and growing techniques. Visit any one of our almost 200 wineries and you will find them alive with people, music, and food. The North Carolina wine-growing community has a website, NCwine.org, that is dedicated to supporting our wine industry. North Carolina is divided into 6 American Vinicultural Areas (AVA). These areas are approved by the Alcohol & Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau (TTB). The TTB regulates labels, production, advertising, and AVAs. To be granted such a designation takes many years, but the advantages are worth the process. One advantage of becoming an AVA is the potential to better market wines and wine products to consumers. A wine label’s information must follow strict guidelines for accuracy and consistency and must be approved for each wine each year. Additionally, marketing as a group helps all the wineries in the same AVA. Wineries must all adhere to North Carolina’s Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) which governs and disperses permits. The Commission also controls the sale of alcohol. There are 6 AVAs within North Carolina.
Yadkin Valley
1st recognized AVA in North Carolina
Established 2003
Counties include Yadkin, Surry, Wilkes, Davie, Davidson, Forsyth, and Stokes
Charlie and Ed Shelton lead the effort to form the AVA
As of December 2022, there are 44 wineries
Establish wineries include:
Swan Creek
Established 2008
Located near the Brushy Mountains and includes Yadkin, Wilkes, and Iredell counties.
Named after the Swan Creek community and located within the Yadkin Valley AVA
Established wineries include:
Haw River Valley
Established 2009
Located in the northern and central part of the state and include Alamance, Guilford, Chatham, Rockingham, and Caswell counties
Established wineries include
Upper Hiwassee Highlands
Established 2014
Located 3 counties in Georgia and 2 counties in North Carolina
54 acres of vines
Established wineries include:
Appalachian High Country
Established 2016
Spans across 8 counties and 3 states
Vines grow at an elevation between 2,290 and 4.630 feet
Focus on cold weather grapes of Vidal Blanc, Marquette, and Traminette
Established wineries include
Crest of the Blue Ridge
Established 2019
Located entirely in Henderson County
Named after the Eastern Continental Divide
Established wineries include
Tryon Foothills (in progress).
Will cover Polk County
Established wineries include:
Aside from the federally recognized regions, North Carolina is also geographically divided into 3 wine regions. They are the mountains, piedmont, and coastal regions. You can make your way across our great state tasting wine and enjoying some unique winery experiences. Each region produces different wines due to a variety of growing techniques and the adaptability of the grapes themselves. Even the same grape grown in different regions will take on the terroir of the area. We encourage you to use NCwine.org to discover the great wine made right here in the great state of North Carolina.
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