Shelton Vineyards

Shelton Vineyards

About

Shelton Vineyards offers tours and tastings every day of the week. Shelton Vineyards' grounds are beautifully landscaped, and we encourage you to picnic with us. Picnic supplies are available on the premises. During the summer months, Shelton Vineyards sponsors a summer concert series on our outdoor stage.

Location Description

Located in the Yadkin Valley near Dobson and Mt. Airy, North Carolina.

Features

  • One of the largest vineyards on the East Coast.

Additional Information

  • Meeting / Conference Facilities:
  • Caves:
  • Wedding Facilities:
  • Picnic Facilities:
  • Dog Friendly:
  • Winery Tours:
  • Wine Tasting:
  • Art or Architecture:
  • Organic / Biodynamic:
  • Awards:
  • Wine Club:
  • Lodging / Bed & Breakfast:

Average Bottle Price

$ 17

Winemaker

Gill Giese

With a 20 year background in viticulture and applied agricultural sciences, Gill is uniquely qualified to direct the efforts of our vineyard staff to ensure the integrity and quality of our grape production.

Gill obtained his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Agriculture at the University of Arkansas and soon after graduation joined ARCO Seed Company as a research technician. He later returned to the University of Arkansas where he conducted research for the Entomology and Enology Departments and obtained his teaching certification.

Gill joined Surry Community College as its resident instructor for viticulture in 2002. Surry Community College is located in Dobson, North Carolina about 5 miles from Shelton Vineyards and is one of only three institutions on the East Coast offering accredited academic study in the grape sciences. In the Fall of 2010, Surry Community College commemorated the opening of the Shelton-Badgett North Carolina Center for Viticulture and Enology.

History

Founded in 1999 by Brothers Charlie and Ed Shelton, Shelton Vineyards was envisioned as a new agricultural resource for an area once dependent on tobacco farming.

The Team

Charlie & Ed Shelton

Charles M. Shelton, a native of Mt. Airy, N.C. resides in Dobson with his wife Sandy. They have two children, Mandy Shelton Houser (Mrs. Todd Houser) of Charlotte and Charles M. Shelton, Jr. (Chip) of Charlotte.

Charlie Shelton attended Surry County Schools and is a graduate of Franklin High School class of 1953.

Ed Shelton, a native of Mount Airy, N.C. resides in Dobson with his wife, Dotti. They have three children, Jennifer Egues (Mrs. Michael Egues) of Charlotte, Lydia Surles (Mrs. Mark Surles), of Charlotte, and Winni Shelton of Atlanta, GA.

Ed Shelton attended Surry County Schools and is a graduate of Mount Airy High School in 1958. He also attended Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk.

Charlie and Ed have worked together in construction and real estate development for the majority of their working careers. The last company they founded was Shelco, Inc. a general construction company which they sold to a group of employees in 2004. They also founded and own The Shelton Companies, a private investment firm based in Charlotte. Other companies founded by the Shelton’s include Fortis Homes, King Sash & Door Company, and Carolinas’ Distribution Services.

Charlie and Ed were also responsible for petitioning the federal government for American Viticultural Area recognition for North Carolina’s first AVA, The Yadkin Valley that was approved in 2003. Through their hard work and dedication to their state and community they have helped to put North Carolina back on the map as one of the top wine producing states in the nation.

Michael Egues & Mandy Houser
Co-Presidents

Michael Egües.graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a Morehead Scholar with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Before joining Shelton Vineyards in 2010, he spent 22 years investing in and advising public and private Companies. He began his investment career with First Union Capital Partners making mezzanine and equity investments for the bank’s portfolio. In 2004 he co-founded Triarch Partners, LP, a boutique investment banking firm dedicated to providing mergers and acquisitions advice to middle market companies. These days you will find him either helping Miguel in the vineyard or Gill in the fermentation room.

Amanda “Mandy” Shelton Houser is Charlie Shelton’s daughter and Co-President of Shelton Vineyards. Mandy is a 1990 graduate of Meredith College with a degree in Interior Design and owns her own design firm. With her design knowledge Mandy has helped to create many of the interesting and creative design ideas that you will see at Shelton Vineyards and all of our surrounding entities. Mandy also serves a dual role as Co-President of our operation and has been actively involved in all aspects of our business since its inception. Mandy brings a lot of passion to our business and is really focused on all the small details that make our experience unique. When not at the winery or working on a design project Mandy enjoys spending her free time with her husband and their two daughters.

Miguel Sanchez
Vineyard Foreman

Miguel and his staff of vineyard workers are responsible for the planting, maintenance, and upkeep of our vineyard and winery grounds. Miguel, originally from Mexico, is now a naturalized citizen of the U.S. He started his career in agriculture with the Monroe Tree Farm in Monroe, Oregon in the early 1990’s growing and pruning Christmas Trees. In 1994 he joined the vineyard crew at Benton Lane Vineyards also in Monroe and, in short order, became a key component of their vineyard staff. Joining Shelton Vineyards in 1998, he is one of our first employees and has been involved with each and every phase of vineyard development.

John Gillespie
Vice President of Operations

A native of Surry County, John grew up on a tobacco farm and learned the value of hard work early in life. John has said the lessons learned working in the field with his family carry on into all aspects of his life; such as respecting those who traveled the road before, treating everyone the same and never taking anything for granted. After high school, John attended Appalachian State University where he earned a degree in drafting and design. John spent several years working in the construction industry and for Shelton Vineyards part-time on weekends before he joined our staff full-time in December of 2009. With his knowledge of farming and industry, he is well prepared to help keep our operation on track.

When not at the vineyard, John enjoys sports, music, home projects and spending time with family and friends.

Crystal Branch
Vice President of Finance

Crystal was born and raised right here in Dobson, NC just a few miles across town from what would eventually become Shelton Vineyards. Crystal attended Surry Community College where she received her degree in Business Computer Programming and Accounting. Crystal has been with Shelton Vineyards since the beginning, having joined the company in January of 2000 as Controller. Although usually behind the scenes Crystal has been involved in all aspects of the company operations from accounting to public relations. She now resides in nearby Elkin with her husband and two children.

Christina Clark
Vice President of Sales

A Charlotte native and graduate of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Christina has nearly 10 years of sales experience in the wine industry. She helps to direct the sales efforts of the Shelton Brand via our distributors across a multi-state territory.

In 2008, Christina obtained her level one and two Sommelier certifications from the International Sommelier Guild and has been able to couple her passion for wine with her thirst for knowledge. She has traveled to wine regions across the globe including, California, France, Italy, and Australia smelling, tasting and learning about the wine making process.

When she is not at the winery, Christina enjoys snow skiing, playing disc golf, and spending time with friends and family.

Angela Hooker
Retail Manager

Through hard work and dedication Angela has attained the tools necessary for excellent customer service. During her time here she has acquired knowledge of both our wine and the wine making process. Angela handles all details for large tour groups from booking tours and tastings to coordinating group reservations at the Harvest Grill. Please contact Anglea to plan your next group tour or to coordinate any special request that you may have on your next visit.

Our Retail Staff

Our friendly and knowledgeable retail staff eagerly awaits your arrival. They will guide you through our wine making process offering tours and tastings daily. The staff consists of local retired school teachers and buisness professionals, many of whom have been with us since opening. We welcome you to come and enjoy!! At your next visit, please let us know how we may enhance your experience.

Amy Dotson
Special Events Coordinator & Wine Club Administrator

Amy grew up on a tobacco farm in nearby Siloam and has been a lifelong resident of our area. In fact she now lives on part of the very farm that her grandparents and parents owned, worked and raised her and her brothers on. It is this heritage that Amy attributes to her strong work ethic, determination and grit. After Amy graduated from high school she furthered her education through various business courses and soon moved into a position in Health Services management and customer relations where she spent the next several years. Looking for a new challenge Amy took a part time weekend job with Shelton Vineyards in the spring of 2013 and our management team quickly realized that Amy would be a great full time addition and she was hired as Wine Club and Shipping Administrator shortly after. After showing a great understanding of customer care and helping to grow our Wine Club , Amy was offered her next opportunity, to become our new Special Events Coordinator. Not one to shy away from a challenge, Amy has met this new position head on and works hard every day to build relationships and to create unique experiences for our many couples, groups and corporations looking to hold special events on our grounds. Please contact Amy for questions about or to start planning your Wedding, Anniversary Party, Reception or Corporate Retreat.

When not at work Amy enjoys reading, hiking, horseback riding and taking care of the many animals she has on her part of the farm.

Chef Paul Lange
Executive Chef of Harvest Grill

Since joining us as Executive Chef in May of 2006,Chef Paul S. Lange has already received many accolades; most recently being featured in the Triad Business Journal. Chef Paul is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has over ten years of experience in food service management. He has a thorough understanding of what is needed to develop a strong relationship among management, kitchen personnel, and the services staff. Chef Paul's understanding provides our customers with the ultimate dining experience.

Before joining the Harvest Grill at Shelton Vineyards, Chef Paul worked at Beekman Arms 1766 Tavern in upstate New York, the Oceanic at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, and Ryan's Steaks, Chops, and Seafood in Winston-Salem, NC.

Our Wait Staff
Harvest Grill

One of the things that makes the Harvest Grill so great is the wait staff. Always prompt and ready to serve you Chef Pauls delicious dishes with a smile, you can ensure that this knowledgeable staff will provide a superior dining experience.

Practices & Techniques

Shelton Vineyards uses a combination of French, American and Hungarian oak barrels. Oak barrels give flavor and structure to the wine; that is, they enhance the wine as a spice enhances fine food. The winemaker's skill and experience will determine the manner in which barrel aging is employed.

The winery has a total of three barrel rooms, which are at the same elevation as the fermentation room. The barrel rooms are temperature controlled and a large portion of each is built underground. Having separate rooms enables the operation to be more efficient and flexible: if necessary one room can be warm for malo-lactic fermentation, while the other can be cool.

The barrel cave evokes old-world charm and is the place where visitors can see theiradopted barrel. Climate control is provided by its underground location, and a waterfall at the back of the room adds to its allure and humidity level. After aging in barrels, the wine is bottled.

The technologically advanced bottling equipment bottles 52 bottles per minute, or over 2000 cases per day. Wines are released for sale after a period of bottle aging appropriate to the wine.

Estate Vineyards / AVA

On the estate, several varieties of vitis vinifera grapes are grown: Cabernet Franc,Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Malbec, Tannat, Petit Verdot, Riesling,Sauvignon Blanc, and Viognier. Interestingly, all varieties of vitis vinifera grown at Shelton Vineyards–and throughout the world for that matter–utilize bud wood of European origin grafted onto Native American rootstocks to create a more disease resistant vine.

Shelton Vineyards' belief is that fine wine begins in the vineyard. The location, in the heart of North Carolina's Yadkin Valley, provides the ideal climate and soil conditions. Shelton Vineyards' commitment to sustainable farming practices and hands-on attention enables the vineyard to produce the highest possible quality of grapes. The Shelton Vineyards' wines are reflective of the terroir of the Yadkin Valley. Along with expert winemaking techniques, enhancing what our land has given us, Shelton Vineyards has produced many award-winning wines.

Awards

Our 2008 Merlot won a silver medal at the Charlotte Wine Festival in a blind judging!

Be the first to review this item!

Hours

Mon - Sat: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Sun: 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Address

286 Cabernet Lane
Dobson, North Carolina 27017
United States

Get Directions

Advertisement
Newsletter