Raffaldini Vineyards and Winery

What a beautiful last day of September we're having!  I've just come in from walking Himself, Mr. Duncan, and he was feeling his oats.  :)  The sky is so blue and the sunlight is clear and warm...and thank goodness for retractable leashes.  ;)  Duncan was able to dash all about, and I could walk at a (mostly) sensible pace without having to run to keep up with him.

Back on the very first day of this month, we visited a local winery called Raffaldini.  It was a gorgeous day, just like today, and we had a great time walking around snapping pictures and enjoying the amazing views there.  It was crowded that day, so obviously, a lot of other people had the same idea we did.  :)

Hal and I first visited this winery back in 2003 or 2004, and I thought it was pretty then.  I was even more impressed on this visit.  The building and surrounding gardens and walkways are beautiful, and the views are spectacular.

Chateau Morrisette Winery

Hi everyone!  We're having a cool snap here, how about you?  It's been bright and sunny, so all in all, a really nice fall day.

Do you like to take day trips?  We almost always go to the mountains for our day trips, but we haven't gotten to do that in quite a while.  This is our favorite time of the year to go to the mountains and drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Technically, the Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Park, so I wonder if it will be blocked off with barricades?  Hmmm -- sure hope not.

All the pictures in this post are from fall of 2011.  We have several local wineries near us in North Carolina that we like to visit, but Chateau Morrisette is actually in Virginia.  It's further for us to drive, but we enjoy spending an afternoon there in the fall if we have a free day.  It's right off the Blue Ridge Parkway in a little community called Meadows of Dan.

October Note Card Party

Hi everyone!  I love the monthly Note Card Party hosted by Vee at A Haven For Vee.  We always get to see the prettiest pictures submitted by bloggers with an eye for a good photo.  Mr. Forest Manor and I were watching the presidential debate last night, so I'm linking on a bit late.  This is my favorite time of year, so I didn't want to miss the party.

This month, I titled my note cards "Sunday Drive".  The pictures were taken on two separate afternoons when we took a Sunday drive to enjoy the beauty all around us.  You can find the posts for these pictures Here and Here.

Wednesday's Words

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Nature's first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold,

Her early leaf's a flower,

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

                  Robert Frost

(This poem was written in 1923 and published in October of the same year)

We are into the month of October now, and I've been looking around the web to find interesting words relating to October.  October is derived from the Latin "octo", meaning eight, because October was the eighth month in the old Roman calendar.  It is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars.

My word for this week is "vendange",  and it's the French word for grape harvest.  Nowadays, wineries have automated presses to crush the grapes and get the precious juices for wine.  But a few centuries ago, the grapes were crushed by dumping them in a huge container and the people of the village would take off their shoes and stomp the grapes with their bare feet.  That always makes me think of the old "I Love Lucy" episode. ;)  Does anyone remember that?

When I first started my blog, I had several ideas of things I wanted to write about and photograph. I knew I definitely wanted to blog about our local wineries here in North Carolina.  We live in the Yadkin Valley region -- the Yadkin River is about three miles from our home (as the crow flies).  We've visited these wineries many times over the years, and we're always amazed at how they've grown and multiplied.  The first winery to open in the Yadkin Valley was West Bend Winery, and it's about half an hour's drive from where we live.  I actually did a post on it back in the winter; you can read about it here.  Unfortunately, that's the only winery we've had a chance to visit this year, what with all of our other traveling here and there. :-)  I'm hoping we'll be able to do some winery tours before winter arrives.

Mary at Home Is Where The Boat Is has done some recent posts on North Carolina wineries, so if you get a chance, you should stop by and see her blog.  Her pictures are always gorgeous!  Mary's "Celebrating The Grape" posts are about Wine Appreciation Month (actually designated for September) in North Carolina.  Even though it's now October, I think it's still a prime time of the year to visit the vineyards.  We've probably missed the actual "vendange", or grape harvest, but you can still enjoy visiting your local winery.

Image Source: Rodsbot.com

Thanks for stopping by House at Forest Manor!  Your visits are always appreciated!

Denise

Sunday Afternoon Drive to West Bend Vineyards

Sunday in North Carolina we had what convertible owners like to call a "top down" day.  Our chariot was waiting, and we couldn't resist because who knew when the weather would turn back to the yucky stuff.  So we headed out into the countryside, enjoyed the fresh air, and wound up at a nearby winery. On our way there, we passed this mill house, which is neat but, unfortunately, a little too close to the road.  It is a private residence and has been for many years.