A few months ago, Cheri and I took a long weekend and headed to the hub of North Carolina wine, the Yadkin Valley. From our base in Winston-Salem we headed northwest the first day, and our article on Raffaldini Vineyards will give you an idea of the quality we found there. You can read that here. On the second day we went south, and visited Childress Vineyards. Created by stock car legend Richard Childress, this winery has been around since 2004 and makes a wide range of wines from estate and purchased grapes. The facility is impressive, with a large tasting building featuring multiple areas for wine tastings as well as a club room where members can order by the glass and relax. A separate building houses the Bistro, which we took advantage of for lunch and were quite pleased with our meal. Further back is a large production facility, which serves as the Childress winery as well
as a crush pad for many other North Carlina vineyards. They have a huge production capacity here.
On this day we were all about their higher end wines. Childress has multiple lines, along with a group of specialty and sparkling wines. It starts with their Select wines, then goes up to the Reserve collection, and finally the Signature wines. To get a quick impression of how high the quality bar is here we opted for the Signature Wine Tasting, a selection of their best wines served on the terrace with views of the vineyards. Interestingly, when we visited Childress some ten years ago, the terrace was their restaruant and the Bistro building did not exist. They’ve continued to expand since that first visit.
Our host for the Signature tasting was Lori, who was very knowledgeable and a great ambassador for Childress and for North Carolina wine in general. We went through a range of their top wines, starting with a white and proceeding to their signature reds. It’s a great way to experience the best of what Childress has to offer, and we were duly impressed. Here’s a review of the wines we sampled:
NV Jewel Dry White – a very pale wine, this has apple on the nose and a quite a bit of grass. Lemon comes in on the
finish. $28
2022 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc – this has medium body, good length and a clean expression. You get some grapefruit and peach. Overall it is a very pleasing Sauvignon Blanc. $35
2021 Black Spanish – now this is different. Black Spanish is an American hybrid grape, which is believed to have occured naturally. A close relative of it is the Lenoir grape. It is totally different in profile than the European, vitus vinifera varietals, but doesn’t give you the telltale Concord grape notes most American native grapes exhibit. It spends 10 months in French oak and has a dusty, dark red color. Red fruit dominates the nose. Medium body, medium tannins and good length frame a very good and very different red wine. Lori poured it again through an aerator and it was deeper and richer, This is a fun wine for a party or wine tasting. No one will have a clue what it is. $50
2019 Reserve Sangiovese – from what Lori described as a great vintage, this is a light cherry red color with a little amber creeping in. Cherry fruit comes on the nose and the palate. It has medium body and good length as well as 13.8% alcohol. The alcohol hits you a bit at the end. It is a great food wine, and really grew on us from sip to sip. Very good overall. $40 and a wine we brought home with us.
2019 Signature Cabernet Franc – they don’t always make Signature series wines, only in years where the vintage is excellent and the grapes support a premium wine. This particular juice is medium
ruby in color and transparent. The nose is complex with cherry, plum, spice, pepper and oak. Medium tannins and brisk acid frame the medium bodied wine, which has an edge to it. I’d almost call it racy. It is very good. $60
NV Richard’s Red – this is a non-vintage blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. It is medium ruby in color. The nose is savory and herbal, with berry fruit riding underneath. It is an interesting wine, medium+ in body, with a sharp element of toasted oak, much more than any of the other wines we tried. It finishes very long. 13.9% alcohol $60
2015 Five Star Signature Meritage – this red blend was made in 2015 and it was apparently a great vintage, so they crafted this to highlight the fact that the stars were aligned that growing
season. It is medium ruby in color, with a touch of amber befitting a nine year old wine. There is lots of red berry fruit, some cherry and tobacco. It is full bodied and very long. This also carries 13.9% alcohol, and was our favorite wine in this impressive tasting. It is delicious. $60 and a good value, as it really is a superior wine.
As we wind our way through the North Carolina wineries we are regularly surprised, pleasantly, at the quality some of these producers are achieving. Not all of them do, but that’s true just about anywhere. Here at Childress, the Reserve and Signature wines offer top 
quality wines. The facility is inviting and you can spend some time here. Try a tasting, have some lunch or dinner at the Bistro or just grab a glass, or bottle, and relax on the beautiful grounds. We certainly enjoyed our visit. We suggest you drop in if you are in the area. If you’re interested in the Signature tasting we suggest you make reservations. The same suggestion holds for the Bistro.
You can learn more about Childress Vinyards at https://childressvineyards.com/.
A votre santé!
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