When we arrived at Pinehurst we checked in and kicked off the weekend at the Taste of the New South Welcome Reception. And what a welcome we received! When we entered the ballroom there were many opportunities to enjoy local beer and wine.
We started at Shelton Vineyards. We met with Christina Clark who let us sample a few of their wines. We got to try Madison Lee which is a white wine. They say it is primarily a chardonnay. We also sampled the cabernet franc. It is a bit more fruity than a cabernet sauvignon. Both were great!
After trying the wine, we moved over to our personal favorite, beer! Since we were in Pinehurst we started with the local brewery in Aberdeen, the Railhouse Brewery. This is the first time we tried their beer. I started with Ka-Bar Brown. It was great but I really loved the IPA, which was the winner of the silver medal in the International Craft Beer Awards in 2013. We had a chance to chat with Michael Bacon, the head brewer, about what was new. He will be working on a Coconut Rum Porter which I am sure will be amazing. It sounds like an excuse to visit Aberdeen in the near future.
Next stop, one of our Asheville favs, Highland Brewery. We got to chat with Toby Arnheim with Highland. They had their Gaelic Ale and their Oatmeal Porter. The porter is very dark and has yummy chocolate notes. The ale is their universal beer which is a balanced beer. As always Highland puts out a great beer!
Our final stop was Mother Earth Brewing. Travis Quinn was there sampling a few of the beers from Kinston. We got to sample the Sisters of the Moon, which is their IPA. This IPA is the perfect way to kick off the labor day weekend with a light and refreshing flavor.
It was great to sample all the terrific wines and beers that are made right here in North Carolina. This was a great welcome reception which set the tone for the weekend.
