October 2022
Best of Show NC State Fair 🍷🎉
We’re excited to announce that Shadow Springs has won the NC State Fair wine competition for the second year in a row! Our new 2019 Petit Verdot took home the “best of show” trophy, and three of our other wines were awarded double-gold medals: 2019 Meritage, 2021 Cellar Select (wine club exclusive), and Sparkles (our new sparkling Valvin Muscat).
Our whole team puts in so much effort year-round to make these great wines, and we’re happy to see all of their hard work recognized. North Carolina wine has come a long way in the past decade, and we’re honored to be acknowledged as a top producer.
Our 2019 Petit Verdot, as well as our other award winners, are available online at the link below if you’d like to order a bottle. Cheers!
A New Still 🥃
Christmas came early for WRC Distillery this year, as Santa brought us a new still! This shiny toy was manufactured by Still Dragon out of Florida and represents a huge step forward from our previous equipment. Our new “Double-Dragon” still allows us to produce spirits much more efficiently than before, while giving us the flexibility to create whatever products we like.
The “Double-Dragon” gets its name from the two distillation elements that sit atop the kettle. The copper helmet on the left is the primary distillation piece that creates rich and flavorful liquor, but we also have the tall column which can be activated to boost our liquor up to 190 proof (perfect for making fortified wines)! We added a gin-basket to our configuration too (the piece beside Dana’s left leg) that can be filled with fruits and spices to infuse even more character into the spirits.
We’ve been running our new still quite a bit this month and can’t wait for you all to try some of the products it creates. If you’d like to come see the dragon in person, we do distillery tours & tastings every Saturday on the hour at Windsor Run, signup online!
Final Days of Harvest 🍂🍇
As October comes to an end, we’re picking the last of our grapes. We decided to take the risk and let several of our varieties hang on the vine longer this year to fully develop their deep and complex flavors. Hurricane Ian gave us quite the scare, but in the end the grapes were spared any significant damage.
Our Petit Manseng (pictured above) is the rare white variety that ripens deep into the season, alongside reds like Cabernet Sauvignon and Chambourcin. Sometimes we lose track of the days during harvest, and when the season stretches over two full months you can understand why!
2022 turned out to be a great year for growing grapes. After the past two years’ spring frosts, it’s relieving to see a full crop that will replenish our wine inventory, especially one with such high quality. We can’t wait to taste these young wines and are excited to see what they will become!
