North Carolina's wine country steps up from the Yadkin Valley foothills to mountain vineyards around Hendersonville and in the Appalachian High Country, with muscadine wine toward the coast. Across the foothills, mountains and coast, Cruv shows who is open now.
110+ places in Cruv · 180+ upcoming events · 3 wine regions
In the Blue Ridge foothills just west of Winston-Salem, this was North Carolina's first AVA and overlaps the smaller Swan Creek AVA.
35+ places in Cruv · 55+ upcoming events
More wine regions in North Carolina
8 places in Cruv
Crest of the Blue Ridge, an AVA established in 2019, lies in Henderson County, around Hendersonville. It takes its name from the Eastern Continental Divide, which crosses it, and its average elevation is about 2,360 feet.
5 places in Cruv
The Appalachian High Country AVA (2016) spans all or part of five North Carolina counties and reaches into Tennessee and Virginia. Most vineyards sit at roughly 2,300 to 4,600 feet, with producers spread across several mountain towns.
Shared with other states: Upper Hiwassee Highlands (Georgia).
North Carolina vineyards grow mostly European vinifera, hybrid grapes and muscadines, a grape native to the South. Vinifera leads in the western Piedmont and on the Blue Ridge plateau, while muscadines lead on the coastal plain.
Red
Merlot is one of the grapes North Carolina vineyards list most often. It leads in the Yadkin Valley and the western Piedmont, and is among the leading vinifera in the eastern Piedmont and on the Blue Ridge plateau.
Red
Cabernet Franc is the vinifera that Blue Ridge plateau vineyards list most often, and the one Crest of the Blue Ridge vineyards list most. It is also grown across the Piedmont, including the Yadkin Valley.
Red
Cabernet Sauvignon is grown across the Piedmont and on the Blue Ridge plateau. It is among the vinifera listed most often in the western and eastern Piedmont, including the Yadkin Valley, and appears in Crest of the Blue Ridge vineyards.
White
Chardonnay is the white vinifera that vineyards list most often statewide. It is among the leading vinifera in the Yadkin Valley and the western Piedmont, and it also grows in the eastern Piedmont and on the Blue Ridge plateau.
White
Carlos is a white muscadine and one of the most important grapes of the coastal plain. It is also among the muscadines listed most often in the Piedmont, but muscadines are rare in the mountains.
Red
Noble is a red muscadine that NC State Extension describes as typically used for wine making. It is among the leading muscadines on the coastal plain and in both the eastern and western Piedmont.
