I have found a wonderful Alabama hidden gem that is in the process of making a big
name for itself. Whippoorwill Vineyards,
located in Notasulga, Alabama is a family owned and operated vineyard where every
part of the operation is done by hand; from harvesting, bottling, corking and
sealing, to putting the bottle in the box. The southern hospitality is second
to none. I spent two and a half hours with Amy Ledbetter, one of the owners and
enjoyed every second.
Whippoorwill is the only
vineyard in southeastern Alabama
and is very easy to get to. It’s just 40 minutes from Montgomery and 20 minutes from Auburn . While I was there, a couple from Texas called for directions, which were passing through our
state and there were visits from several locals. My favorite visitor had to be
the guy that knew nothing about wine but wanted to do something nice for his
wife who is a stay at home mom. For you guys out there, this is a great place
to send your wife for a ladies day out. In addition to the great wines, they
also sell local cheeses. One they make themselves that is loaded with wonderful
flavors and a goat cheese that is made just up the road, in addition to jewelry,
displays for your wine bottles and other unique items. The lady from Texas bought a cute wire high heeled shoe as a gift for a friend
back home to display her wine.
There is still more to the Whippoorwill’
story. Whippoorwill is under a new pilot program with the Alabama state-owned
liquor stores (ABC). ABC stores normally do not sell wine. You do have some new
Skinny Girl wines that are owned by the Beam Company that are making their way
to some shelves. Alabama has a three-tiered system required for alcoholic
beverages – manufacturer – state - seller. Our local wineries have only been
able to sell their wine to people who visit the wineries and most do not
generate enough volume for a distributor to work with them. There is a bill in
the Legislature that would allow the vineyards to self-distribute, but Mac
Gibson, administrator with the ABC Board, is against this, saying that it
protects the consumer. Under this pilot program Whippoorwill Vineyards is the
only winery selling their products through ABC at 15 liquor stores, temporarily,
as a way to build demand for their wines. In my opinion, if we can see this as
a successful program and build that demand, it will open up a new line of
distribution for other wineries in our state.
I’ll keep an eye on the
progress of this program for you and keep you up to date. In the mean time,
click this link for a list of the ABC stores that are selling the wine or better
yet, go on down and see Amy, Vicky, Chad and Tim for your very own wine and
cheese tasting. It is well worth the trip.
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