Childress Vineyards

Welcome to Childress Vineyards located in Lexington, NC!  Our friend Heather had the great idea of taking a tour at the vineyards and spend the afternoon enjoying its beauty.  You can see the grapevines in the distance.  At the end of each row, you find a delicate rose bush.  What a beautiful idea!  

The two love birds standing at the front fountain.  It was a gorgeous sunny day! 
When we signed up for he tour, we didn't know what to expect.  However, we were pleasantly surprised!  Our tour guide knew her stuff and had tons of information to share.  She had a great personality and that made the trip even more fun! So, I'm going to try to share a little of what the guide shared with us.  I'm going to apologize in advance for my lack of knowing the appropriate names for things.  To begin... here is the grape smasher. (like I said, don't get your hopes up on my terminology)  Trucks will come with literally tons of grapes and this is the first stop.  The juice is separated from the pulp.  
The next stop for the juice is in one of these stainless steel vats.  The first row are 500 gallon containers, then 1,000 gallon containers, then 3,000 gallons, and then the final row holds 6,000 gallons each.  This is where the fermentation process begins.  
We made a quick stop and she showed us the machine that they use to make their sparkling wine... they are not allowed to call it champagne.   
These wooden barrels are responsible for some of the amazing flavors found in their wines.  The higher the quality of wine, the longer it stays in one of these oak barrels.  
This was the last stop on our journey.  In the back right corner you can see a stone wall.  The wall is actually a waterfall.  People can come and pay lots of money to rent this area to have a fancy dinner an elegant wood table under the rows of chandeliers and with the sound of the waterfall.  Sounds good to me!   This room also leads into their wine vault where they do scientific tests on each type of wine that they have ever bottled. The test for flavor and to find out how long the wine stays full of flavor.  
Next, we took part in a fun wine tasting.  We tried a total of 11 of their wines (only tiny sips though) and we tried everything from a sweet dessert wine to a classic merlot, a tasty chardonnay, to a sauvignon blanc.  I usually don't like wine, but it was fun for all of us to taste a variety of different things.  The best part is that their wines are extremely affordable!  So, we came home with a few bottles as a keepsake of the occasion.  
It was wonderful spending time with Heather! She was my roommate at Southern Wesleyan University for two years. During those years, Brett and I had a blast with her. We did some of the silliest things together, but hey, it's college right?  Heather has grown into an amazing woman and a successful teacher!  I'm so proud of her!  
In closing, if you are ever in the Lexington area, make a point to stop by Childress Vineyards.  The tours are free, the landscape is beautiful, and the wine is amazing.  It makes for the perfect afternoon!