Local Winery Holds Vine Planting Celebration

By Charlie Bauder, WNEG Radio, Toccoa

 

A winery in Stephens County is expanding.

Last Friday, state and local officials came together to celebrate the expansion of Curahee Vineyard and Winery, which held a planting of the vines celebration.

Owner Marvin Dunson says they planted new vines that will produce three types of grapes.

“Three of the vines are not in north Georgia,” said Dunson. “We are getting ready to clean five more acres off and sometime in December, we will start our planting operation.”

Dunson has been growing wine since 2008 on the family farm at the base of Curahee Mountain, that was originally an apple orchard.

According to his Web site, the first wine Dunson produced was a sweet red muscadine wine, in memory of his wife who died of cancer before ever seeing the vineyards and winery.

The next three to be produced were also muscadine wines—3 Mile White, Golden Harvest, and Curahee Rose.

The vineyard now produces ten muscadine wine varieties.

Among the officials on hand for the occasion was Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black.

Black says that agribusiness and agritourism, like that which takes place at Curahee Vineyard, is very important to the state’s economy.

“People are taking blocks of land like Marvin and turning them into a productive hillside,” said Black. “Then they are welcoming visitors that stay in the community. They might stay a night and go to dinner. Those are the types of things we have to do.”

Black said it is also exciting to promote the growth of local agriculture in Georgia.

He says that is something the state works to do all the time through its “Georgia Grown” initiative.

“We now have over 600 businesses and farms licensed to use the logo and our major retailers are buying in,” said Black. “What is driving that is the 10 million Georgians who want to buy from their friends, from farmers in the state.”

Also on hand were leaders from Toccoa and Stephens County, along with 28th District State Representative Dan Gasaway and 50th District State Senator John Wilkinson.

Wilkinson, who serves as the Chair of the State Senate Agriculture Committee, said Curahee Vineyard is a great example of agribusiness.

“I think a lot of people that agriculture and agribusiness is the number one business in the state,” said Wilkinson. “I am glad we are expanding that part of our state.”

This year, Dunson unveiled three more wine varieties.

Three of the wines Dunson sells have won INDY (Indy International Wine Competition) medals.

For more information, visit their Web site at www.curaheevineyards.com.