TRAVERSE Issue 29 - April 2022 | Page 102

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Cabernet Sauvignon , Malbec , Cabernet Franc , Tannat -- as well as Bordeaux blends . Next year sparkling Moscato and Rosé will join the list .
Serre Vineyards , a boutique winery with a small footprint and a handful of wines , just started pouring in 2020 . Owners , married couple Melissa Hayes and Christian Krobisch , work with local growers to source varietal grapes for wines while their own vineyards mature . Their specialties are dry reds such as a bourbon-barrel Cabernet Sauvignon and two blends .
Round Peak Vineyards is operated by winemaker Ken Gulaian and his wife Kari Heerdt who had a mid-life aspiration shift from corporate life to entrepreneurial life . In 2008 , they bought Round Peak and Gulaian studied enology and viticulture . As they got to know the breadth of their customers , they expanded to a second brand , Skull Camp , of sweeter , more playful wines as well as craft beer .
Currently , they grow 12 acres of grapes for a variety of 100 percent estate wines . These include European varietals like Chardonnay , Cabernet Franc , and Tannat as well as French-American hybrid grapes like Vidal Blanc and Norton .
All three wineries offer lodging for overnight guests from a small cottage to a four-bedroom “ cabin ” to the only Hampton Inn & Suites in America with its own wine bar .
After the third winery , the rain hit us . With Tropical Storm Fred promising 95 percent chance of rain for three days we abandon the Yadkin Valley and the rest of the Parkway . We plan to resume the journey another time . PW
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