Surry Wineries

It’s that time of year again, when the Surry Wineries host the Winter Wine Passport. Brian and I have attended this event since it was Deck the Halls. A few years ago our pictures were taken at a winery and we have been the poster couple ever since.

After a busy weekend of celebrating Thanksgiving and decorating for Christmas, we looked forward to an afternoon relaxing at two wineries near Elkin. I had purchased the Winter Wine Passport online and arranged to pick it up at Elkin Creek Vineyard. We planned our visit to the winery on a Sunday, so we could enjoy their delicious hand-made-to-order pizza, baked in a wood-fire brick oven.

Elkin Creek Vineyard was established by Mark Greene and his wife in 2001, and transitioned to new owners, the Jeroslows and the Whites, in 2011. The two couples met while working for the Blue Man Group in Las Vegas. They discovered the winery when the Whites were married there in 2008. A couple of years later both couples were interested in relocating to North Carolina, and Mark Greene was looking for someone to take over at Elkin Creek.

Elkin Creek Vineyard

A gravel road leads to grape vines on a hillside with six acres of Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Viognier varietals. The brick and wood tasting room looks like an old schoolhouse with a cast-iron bell on top. Jennifer White greeted us, as she was hanging lights on a pine tree near the front door. Her husband Nick, vineyard manager and chef, was in the kitchen making wood-fired pizzas and sourdough bread from scratch. Co-owner Louis Jaroslow is the winemaker, and his wife Carrie offered us wine tastings. I selected Mistela, a refreshing blend of Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Viognier. Brian enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvignon with our pizza. We ate on the deck overlooking a special spot where the Elkin Creek and Grassy Creek join together, becoming one at the site of an historic grist mill dating back to 1896.

The Yadkin Valley’s unique soil and climate conditions are ideal for wine production. Louis Jaroslow says, “We live in an area that has the latitude of Sicily, the climate of Bordeaux, and the soil of Tuscany”.

Elkin Creek Vineyard would be a wonderful venue for special events and weddings. The Elkin Creek Cabins offer a rustic get-away with modern conveniences. A walking path along the creek leads to the historic grist mill, vineyard, and winery.

We also visited Grassy Creek Vineyard & Winery, to get started on our Passport visits. We enjoyed a wine tasting of all their wines and finished with a new dessert wine. Brian enjoyed the dry wines, and I preferred the sweeter wines. We purchased the Klondike Farm Golden Guernsey and Klondike Farm Guernsey Red, which are both bottled in milk bottles.

Grassy Creek Vineyard Vineyard & Winery

In the early 1920s, John Hanes of Hanes Hosiery bought a one-room cabin overlooking 1000 acres of land outside Elkin on a small stream called Grassy Creek. When Thurman Chatham of Chatham Manufacturing Company married Hanes’ sister, Lucy, he started a dairy farm on the site, raising polo ponies and prize herds of Golden Guernsey cattle.

The two wealthy families converted the property into a stylish retreat for vacationing and hunting, and the cabin became the Klondike Cabins. The Chatham family later purchased the Klondike Farm, and it became a working dairy farm.

Fast forward to 2003, when Derrill and Lori Rice and Jim and Cynthia Douthit combined their love of local history with a passion for wine, buying the land and planting the first vineyard. The Nycum and Clark families also joined the Grassy Creek team.

In addition to the historic cabins, the grounds host an old red horse barn, a classic farm building which was renovated into Grassy Creek’s tasting room. A majestic white barn was converted into the Grassy Creek winery, where winemaker Jim Douthit presides.

Jim, the son of a Navy commander who was a also a winemaker, had longed for his own vineyard since childhood. During years of frequent moves, Douthit vintages were created from local grapes. Although Jim pursued a career in textiles, his interest in wine continued. He made wine in his basement, his bathtub, his garage, wherever he had room. Purchasing ten acres of land in Troutman, he planted grapes and launched Holloway Vineyards there, later accepting invitations to participate in vineyard work at Hanover Park.

Grassy Creek Vineyards has become a popular destination for retreats, reunions, weddings, and get-aways. The meandering creek was dammed to create a small lake, and the Grassy Creek Walking and Hiking Trail recently opened. The Klondike Cabins offer a main log cabin with 4-bedrooms and 2.5 baths, a large entertainment area, a fully equipped kitchen, a dining room that can seat over 50 people, and a covered porch overlooking the lake. There are also 2 log cabins configured as 2-bedroom and 2 bath duplexes.

We are looking forward to visiting the other 8 Surry Wineries that are participating in the Winter Wine Passport. For more information, see the
Surry Wineries – Winter Winter Passport article.