Nine vineyards and wineries spread out across the Northeast Georgia mountain landscape provide multiple destinations for a driving and tasting tour of Georgia burgeoning wine industry. View an interactive map showing the locations of all nine wineries on the tour. Photo by Blackstock Vineyards.

A driving tour of Georgia wine country is the perfect way to explore the Northeast Georgia mountains while at the same time sampling the award-winning wines at the nine Georgia vineyards and wineries that are members of the Wine Growers Association of Georgia.

The Northeast Georgia Mountains combine the perfect terrain, soil, drainage, and elevation necessary for vineyards to produce wines that reveal a “sense of place,” or terroir, which separates the wines of the region from those made in other geographically diverse regions. The soil composition is very much like that of Italy’s Piedmont region, which produces some of the most prestigious wines in the world.

All of the wineries on the tour are members of the Winegrowers Association of Georgia, a non-profit corporation organized to promote and market Georgia wines, to improve the market environment for Georgia wines, to increase public awareness of Georgia wines, and to facilitate research in Georgia viticultural and vinification techniques to improve already noteworthy Georgia wines. Annual members must qualify with a minimum of five acres in Georgia of vinifera or French-American grapes in production, or with a minimum of 1,000 cases of wine produced annually from Georgia-grown vinifera or French-American grapes.

Links:

• Read a feature blog about Habersham Vineyards and Winery.
• View profiles of all nine vineyards and wineries on the tour, as well as other Georgia vineyards and wineries.
• View an interactive map showing the locations of all nine wineries on the driving tour.
• Download a copy of the 2009 Georgia Wine Association Brochure.
• Read more about the Winegrowers Association of Georgia.
• Find places to eat in Northeast Georgia.
• Find places to stay in Northeast Georgia.

Habersham’s Stonepile Vineyard. Located north of Clarkesville, Stonepile is Habersham’s original and oldest vineyard with plantings dating to 1980. Current plantings of about 30 acres yield 125 tones yearly on average. 

Producing Georgia wines since 1983, Habersham is one of Georgia’s oldest and largest wineries.

Some of the finest award-winning Georgia Wines have been produced at Habersham Vineyards and Winery since 1983. Over 150 medals have been awarded to Habersham Wines in both national and international competitions. The Winery was located in Baldwin, Georgia until November 1998 when construction on a new facility was completed at Nacoochee Village in Helen, Georgia.

Complimentary Tastings and Self-Guided Tours
The winery is open daily for complimentary tastings and self guided tours. In addition to a large selection of Georgia grown and produced wines, the tasting room also features a gift shop with gourmet foods and wine specialty gift items.

Tour Nacoochee Village
The winery is located one half mile south of Alpine Helen in the Nacoochee Village (pictured at right with Habersham Winery in the foreground). In addition to being the home of Habersham Winery, the Village is home to an historic grist mill, antiques, shopping, dining, cabin rental, and flyfishing. At Nacoochee Village, not only will your family enjoy a visit of the winery, but the other unique shops that are part of the Village.

Links:
Read more about Habersham Vineyards and Winery.
Read more about Nacoochee Village.

Georgia > Northeast > White County > Sautee-Nacoochee

Yonah Mountain Vineyards new tasting room in Sautee-Nacoochee is open and welcoming the public.

Yonah Mountain Vineyards is located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains at Yonah Mountain between Cleveland and Helen. While the vineyard itself is not open to the public, the tasting room in Sautee-Nacoochee is.

Combine a visit to the new Yonah Mountain Vineyard tasting room with a driving tour of other North Georgia mountain vineyards.

Links

• Read more about Yonah Mountain Vineyards
• Take a driving tour of North Georgia mountains vineyards.

The Vineyard at Frogtown Cellars. Frogtown Cellars is one of 10 wineries and vineyards on this do-it-yourself driving, tasting and shopping tour of northeast Georgia wine country.

Georgia has a long and colorful history of vineyards and wineries dating back to the 1800s and before. But state and national prohibition laws shut down the industry in the early 1900s, and it’s only in recent years that it has started to make a comeback.

The Wine Growers Association of Georgia produces a Georgia Wine Highway map available on the Georgia Wine Country website that inlcudes wineries and vineyards all over the state. It allows you to create your own driving tour to 10 or more wineries in the scenic northeast corner, including Blackstock Vineyards, Chateau Elan, Crane Creek Vineyards, Frogtown Cellars, Habersham Winery, Montaluce Winery, Persimmon Creek Winery, Sharp Mountain Vineyards, Tiger Mountain Vineyards and Wolf Mountain Vineyards.

Links

• If you like this Georgia Wine Country Tour, chances are you’ll want to read about the driving tour of Folk Potters of Northeast Georgia in the same Georgia Travel Region.