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Article published November 12, 2006
NASCAR teams up with vintners in North Carolina
By KATHIE SMITH
BLADE FOOD EDITOR
LEXINGTON, N.C. - The marriage of NASCAR and wine country may seem strange, but in the Yadkin Valley of North Carolina, bucolic vineyards and auto racing are perfect partners.
Even though the sport has long been associated with another alcoholic beverage, drivers and fans are racing to local North Carolina vineyards in the heart of NASCAR country for tours, tastings, and to buy bottles of the state's vintage.
NASCAR and the state's wine industry stands side-by-side at Childress Winery at the crossroads of highways 52 and 64 in Lexington. NASCAR team owner Richard Childress became a vintner in North Carolina's growing wine industry when he opened Childress Vineyards on Nov. 11, 2004.
The winery is at the gateway to the Yadkin Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA), North Carolina's only federally designated region for grape-growing.
The 45,000-square-foot Italian Renaissance-styled winery has a tasting room, a bistro restaurant, and a 10,000-square-foot warehouse. Five miles from RCR Racing race operations, the winery is surrounded by vineyards on gently sloping hillsides. Mr. Childress has invested "double-digit millions" in the privately held winery.
With the style and aura of many of the wineries in California's Napa and Sonoma valleys, the Tuscan-style villa at Childress Vineyards is a mecca for racing fans discovering a taste for wine.
Most of the winery's production facilities can be seen from open-air walkways or viewing platforms. Tours and wine tastings are conducted daily and visitors can browse the gift shop.
"We are truly supported by the NASCAR family and the NASCAR fans," says Kathleen Watson, spokesman for the Childress Vineyards. "We are the site of many NASCAR-related events, such as Victory Junction Gang Camp for children with terminal illnesses."
When race day comes at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte about 46 miles from Lexington twice a year in May and October, "the weeks preceding and following, many NASCAR fans are at the winery," says Ms. Watson in a phone interview. She estimates that 50 percent of the visitors are either going to or coming from the races.
Childress Vineyards has the RCR Racing Collector's Edition of wines, celebrating each of Richard Childress's numbered cars - No. 29, No. 31, No. 21, and No. 2 - with its own label. A special bottling, called Legendary for No. 3 is dedicated to Dale Earnhardt, who died in a racing accident in 2001 at Daytona International Speedway.
Serious winemaking is under the guidance of winemaker Mark Friszolowski.
"Half of the people who come here are NASCAR fans and have not been wine drinkers," he told members of the Association of Food Journalists when they met in September. "We have wines for the introductory drinkers and the connoisseurs."
The Childress Vineyards Classic wines are proprietary blends that retail under $10. Varietals are aged in French oak barrels and continue to soften with age once bottled. Using state-of-the-art winemaking techniques with Old World methods, these improve with cellaring for two to four years and sell for between $14.99 and $16.99. Reserve labeled wines at Childress Vineyards will never exceed 5 percent of total production and are priced at $17.99 to $24.99. The Childress Vineyards Signature Reserve Wine collection is created with only the most select grapes from vintage years. Properly cellared, the wines will continue to age until they peak 8 to 10 years after bottling and range in price from $39.99 to $59.99.
With more than 400 commercial vineyards and 59 wineries and wine producers in 34 counties, the state ranks tenth nationwide in both grape production and 12th in wine production. Grape production has provided crop diversification and farmland preservation as many tobacco farmers and others have converted to vineyards.
"Since the Childress Winery opened in 2004, 14 more wineries have opened," says Margo Knight, executive director of the North Carolina Wine & Grape Council. These wineries are open to the public, have been approved by the federal government, are bonded, and have state permits.
You could say that the eyes of NASCAR are on the North Carolina industry. Randy Lynch, a NASCAR West owner, has a winery in California called Bennett Lane. Benny Parsons (former driver and now TV commentator for NASCAR racing) plans to grow grapes and produce wine in North Wilksboro, says Ms. Watson. NASCAR's Jeff Gordon lent his name to an August Briggs winery (California) vintage to produce Jeff Gordon Chardonnay. Ravenswood in (Sonoma) California sponsored a car in several Busch series races.
Childress Vineyards
Auto racing is the vehicle that took Richard Childress to wine-making. "Back in the 1970s, Richard as a race car driver would travel to California to race," says Ms.Watson. "After the race, he went to wineries who were not charging for a taste. He developed his palate and thought if the money was ever there, he would like to have a winery."
In the 1980s, Mr. Childress built Hampton Road Estate and put in an irrigation system because he wanted to grow grapes. Today there are 40 acres of grapes grown around the estate plus 45 acres at Vineyard Crossing at the winery site, and 5 acres at Gianni Vineyards in Summerfield, N.C. The area has a humid climate, a long growing season, and gravelly red clay soil.
Varietals include white Viognier, Chardonnay, Pinto Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, and Riesling and the red varieties of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec (the five grapes blended in the red wines of Bordeaux) plus Syrah and Sangiovese.
"We have a commitment to fine wine that complements food," says the winemaker, who is from eastern Long Island, N.Y.
The grapevines grow vertically using a high trellis system that trains vines to grow higher, which allows the grapes to hang longer on the vine. A pond is located in back of the winery which allows for "a sink" for cold or wet air to collect and not linger around the vines.
Temperature probes are located throughout the vineyard. Netting is placed on the vines so that the birds can't eat the grapes. "We are on a migratory path," explains Mr. Friszolowski. Wind machines are also used to dry out the dew.
North Carolina wine country is as unpretentious as auto racing. "You can wear jeans or shorts," says Ms. Knight. "We have Southern hospitality."
Childress Vineyards, 1000 Childress Vineyards Rd., Lexington, N.C., 336-236-9463. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon until 6 p.m. on Sunday. Richard Childress Racing Museum and Team Store, 236 Industrial Drive, Welcome, N.C., 336-731-3389. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, and closed on Sunday. Or visit www.ncwine.org.
Contact Kathie Smith at: food@theblade.com or 419-724-6155.
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FILE: ARTICLE TOLEDO BLADE WINE N WHEELS 11-12-06
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