The hillside climbing before me boastsgnarly vine and nubile leaf. To my lefttowers a turn-of-the-century gristmill.

To my right squats an American Indian teepee.I've joined a ferocious game of Wiffle ball withthe staff of a creek-side restaurant. Meanwhile,my wife, Leslie, is hiking through arhododendron forest.

It sounds like a dream sequence, but thisscene is just a sample of the surreal serendipitycoloring the Yadkin Valley wine region.Here, a river runs through the ancient Brushyand Blue Ridge mountains. This geologynurtures grape growing, wine making,and a growing agritourism industry.

Before our departure, our car is carpetedwith maps and lists and sticky notes, noneever at hand when needed most. My wife asksonly that we eat well, rest well, and meet goodfolk during our back-road jaunt through thenorthern crescent of the Yadkin River valley,traversing Surry, Wilkes, and Yadkin counties.

Grassy Creek and Black WolfFrom our home in Greensboro, it's 90

minutes west to the morning's first stop,

Wining andDining

The northern Yadkin River valleyyields a rich bouquet of vineyards

and restaurants.

B y E D WILLIAMS

Grassy Creek Vineyard and Winery, north ofElkin. Lori Rice and Cynthia Douthit welcomeus into Grassy Creek's tasting room, housed ina converted, red horse barn.

After chardonnay and merlot, we'reintroduced to Klondike Farm Guernsey Redwine, curiously clothed in a milk bottle.The antique bottles are imported from Italy,and the collectible testifies to the formerdairy farm/creamery next door where GoldenGuernsey once kick-started a chocolate milkfavored by locals.

Grassy Creek Vineyard's 200-acre estate alsohouses Klondike Cabins, once the family retreatof textile icon John Hanes of Hanes Hosiery.

Rice and her husband, Derrill, havepreserved the log cabins for business retreats,weddings, reunions, and romantic getaways.She sneaks us a quick tour, and we knowthat our next weekend getaway will bel here.The cabins' rustic, hunting-lodge ambianceincludes all modern amenities. I

Our next stop is Black Wolf Vineyards fora late lunch. The Wolf's Lair restauran I is asprawling log cabin with walls festooned withstuffed animal heads. Stuffed wolves p1ow1 a

Top: Established in 2000, Elkin CreekVineyard and Winery produces sixvarieties of wines.

Middle: Using antique bottles and aconverted horse barn, Grassy CreekVineyard and Winery honors theformer creamery located next door.

Right: Located at the highest pointof the vineyard grounds, Black Wolf'stasting room continues the log-cabinambience of the restaurant.

second floor balcony, and photographsof wolves are everywhere.

Owner Dana Theis once raised wolfhybrids in Randolph County, sellingthem through Soldier of Fortunemagazine. He bought the vineyardproperty in 1991, inheriting 3,000 vinesfrom a home winemaker. Theis choseto save the vineyard and expand it toservice a restaurant he hoped mightdraw food and wine enthusiasts.

In that, Theis has succeeded. Leslieand I sample flights of three reds andthree whites. I came for the heraldedBlack Wolf Chambourcin but leavewith the Blue Moon White, a semi-sweet white for summer's humidity.

At home on Elkin CreekAt 3:40 p.m., we climb a gravel drive

to Elkin Creek Vineyard, a mile outsideElkin. If you weren't looking hard,you might miss it. Nonetheless, thisvineyard-winery-restaurant has tongueswagging, so folks look hard.

We arrive at the vineyard with a fewhours to relax before our dinner at theon-site restaurant, The Kitchen at ElkinCreek Restaurant, and it's here that thesurreal game of Wiffle ball takes place.After the game, we leave Elkin Creek tolocate our lodging - Frog HollerCabins, two minutes away across BigElkin Creek.

At the cabins, we enjoy wine on thedeck overlooking the swirling eddies

202 Our State September 2007

Following a delicious dinnerprepared by Jesse Williams (below)at The Kitchen (left), just walk acrossthe footbridge to spend a peacefulnight at Frog Holler Cabins (bottom).

and waterfalls below. There's a hot tubhere, but if we get in, we'll never getout for dinner.

Our reservations are for 6:30 p.m.,but Elkin Creek's owner, Mark Greene,has other plans for us when we arrive.He whisks us to a private tastingin a cool barrel room to samplewines influenced by Italian heritage.

We top off with Sangiovese - andoff we go to Jolly Mill upon Greene'sinvitation.

Jolly Mill, an early 1900s grain mill,today sits silent. Greene can point

Built in 1848 and located in the heartof the Yadkin valley wine region, theRockford Inn is the perfect place tospend a restful night after a day ofwine tasting.

204 OUf State September 2007

fondly to the spot where a dam oncecorralled the surging Big Elkin Creekwaters heaving life into the mill.Photographs in this rambling hauntshow kids frolicking in the waters thatmoved the mill that ground the grainthat fed a hungry countryside.

Greene may be one of thc lastRenaissance men - a former bankerand restaurant owner turned farmer-carpenter-entrepreneur, turned who-knows-what-else-next. He passionatelyembraces a today - and a yesteryear- he might trap, if not in a bottle, then

in this dusty, musky, cobwebbed mill,where machines are lovingly labeled totell how it all once shook, rattled, androlled. One day, I'll ask why he Staysin that teepee under animal-skin rugswith his rom-torn and single-maltscotch. But that's a tale for another day.

Returning to The Kitchen, weencounter an elderly woman sitting onthe restaurant's steps, gazing into thehillside vineyard. "You made the worlda prettier place," she tells Greene.

"That," he confides, "is the greatestcompliment I've ever been paid."

The Kitchen's menu is wildly eclectic.Usually, I'm embarrassinglyun-adventuresome, but tonight Iimpulsively order honey-lacqueredrabbit, with a starter of seafood ceviche.

Leslie waggles an eyebrow: "Rawshrimp? And then Thumper?" Shestarts with asparagus-truffle risotto,finishing with brick-oven chickenand succotash.

Chefs Jesse Williams and RobertSchriver are craftsmen. Waiter HughHampton's banter adds to a revelrylubricated by Elkin Creek's PinotGrigio. When I look up, it's 10 p.m.,and I'm not sure where the time's gone.

Armed with a flashlight, we trekacross the creek, the crisp night airinviting us to fire up our hot tub.

Frog songsI awake at 7 a.m. and return to

that hot tub. A breeze sings throughthe tree line, creek crashes rock, andbirds are in symphony. I could soak

Grassy Creek Vineyards and Wineryand Klondike Cabins

235 Chatham College CircleElkin, N.C. 28621(336) 835-4230

Black Wolf Vineyard andWolfs Lair Restaurant

283 Vineyard LaneDobson, N.C. 27017(336) 374-2532

Elkin Creek Vineyard andThe Kitchen at Elkin Creek Restaurant

318 Elkin Creek Mill RoadElkin, N.C. 28621(336) 526-5119

Frog Holler Cabins564 East Walker RoadElkin, N.C. 28621(336) 526-2661

Shelton Vineyards and Harvest Grill286 Cabernet LaneDobson. N.C. 27017(336) 366-4724

The Rockford Inn4872 Rockford RoadDobson, N.C. 27017(800) 561-6652

Stony Knoll Vineyards1143 Stony Knoll RoadDobson, N.C. 27017(336) 374-5752

For links to the websites of thebusinesses featured in this story. go towww.ourstate.com. and click on "ThisMonth's Issue."

206 Our State September 2007

After tasting the chardonnay at Shelton Vineyards (top), enjoy a light lunchoutdoors at the Harvest Grill (above).

in the hot tu b forever, but I've gotmaps to read and lists to check off.

At the appointed hour, John Litschke,owner of Frog Holler cabins, pops in."How was your night?" he asks.

Litschke and his wife, Teresa, haveday jobs shooting documentaries forthe likes of HGTV and UNC-TV.Frog Holler is their year-old, sidelinebusiness: two 20-foot by 20-footcabins, quaintly appointed with gasfireplaces and kitchenettes.

The cabins are just minutes fromwineries, the Blue Ridge Parkway, andStone Mountain State Park. I love thatit's only yards from a fishing pond,walking trails, a swift creek, and arestaurant.

So how, I ask, did Frog Holler Cabinsget their name?

"I'm surprised you didn't hear them,"Litschke says. The frogs enjoy riotousnights down by the fishing pond.I must have been sleeping so hardthat I missed the festivities.

People today, Litschke muses,somehow miss "just sitting around,doing nothing. We're not a B&B. Wedon't cater; we just leave key in door.We provide peace and quiet. Peopleneed to re-educate themselves howto slow down."

After a relaxing morning, we head forlunch at Shelton Vineyards, a stunningestate on former dairy land thatimpresses from its front gate to its back

crush pad. We grab a light meal hereat the Harvest Grill Restaurant-French onion soup and crab cakeswith Shelton's Riesling and Syrah.Intimate outdoor patio seating overlooksvineyards and immaculate gardens andpicnic grounds. What I like most is thatat the Harvest Grill - as at Wolf's Lairat Black Wolf and at The Kitchen atElkin Creek - the menus are expansive,the food is artfully prepared, and theprices are a bargain.

Wine and weddingsWe head east, crossing the rippling,

rocky Yadkin River. Our next stop isHannah and Doug Holyfield's porch atthe Rockford Inn. This 1848 countryhome near the tiny historic town ofRockford opened to guests in 2004.Locals bragged so much that westopped to snoop. The Holyfieldsgraciously invite us in. Their three guestrooms are romantic, and I particularlylike how a chardonnay vineyardbeckons outside.

Soon we're off to see an old friend,Van Coe, owner of Stony KnollVineyards. His farmland has beenin his family since 1896. Once hometo tobacco, five acres of chardonnay,cabernet sauvignon, Syrah, cabernetfranc, and Niagara now grow here"to preserve the land [and] keep itin agriculture," Coe explains.

I'm awed by Coe's meticulousvineyard, not just row by row, but vineby vine. From a beautiful tasting room,inspiring symmetry outside greets me.

Stony Knoll Vineyards has becomea hot spot for wedding photographers.So Coe finds himself growing grapes,making wine, and, on the side, hostingwedding parties. "Our economy neededdiversification. This is good land use,"he says.

That kind of thinking is breathingnew life into the Yadkin Valley's ruralcountryside. This is true at GrassyCreek, Black Wolf, Elkin Creek,Shelton, and at Stony Knoll vineyards- all within 10 to 30 minutes of eachother in the Elkin-Dobson area.

Inching onto Interstate 40 and battlingthe bustle into my city, 1think of howeach of the vineyards we've visitedmakes the world a prettier place.c-::J

Ed Williams lives in Greensboro.

Senior discounts for 62 and older. Kids 2·15 ride half price. Seats are limited. Other restrictions may apply. Carolinianwand PiedmontS'" are operated as apartnership between Amtrak and the NC Department of Transportation. Amtrak is a registered service mark of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.

Cooper-PayneTree Farms,lnc.

• Cold-hardy palms suitable for the Piedmont

and coastal areas

• Specimen quality Japanese Maples, shade

and ornamental trees and shrubs

• Large evergreens including Norway Spruce,

Deodor Cedar, Cryptomeria, etc.

• Historic property landscape restorations

Landscape Design and Installation avaUablo.Sat. 9am-5pm, Sun. Noon-5pm & by appointment919-801-0%1 t cooper-paynetreefanns.com

1-40to Hillsborough exit 2&1 • Go south for about 1/8 mileTurn righton Davis Rd. Approximately 3 miles take a left

into Brirttney Creek subdivision on Remingtion Run.2400 Davis Road is the first driveway on the left. The

property is surrounded by white rail fencing.

September 2007 Our State 207