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Articles in regional publications that pertain to a wide range of North Carolina-related topics.

The Vine of North Carolina

Record #:
10665
Author(s):
Abstract:
Lemuel Sawyer, an early 19th-century congressman, wrote this article concerning wine production in North Carolina in the 1840s. Sawyer notes that white grapes, such as the scuppernong, grow well in the sandy soils of Currituck County, Roanoke Island, and the Albemarle Sound regions. While most homes in this area had vines and produced wine in a \"rude\" way, with little filtration, no time for fermentation and the product being mixed with five gallons of apple brandy per barrel of wine, the results were, according to Sawyer, little more than preserved grape juice. Sawyer recounts his own experiment in which he attempted to produce a high quality wine and champagne from the scuppernong grape, the results of which he called \"fully equal to the celebrated product of France.\" He also notes that, given the wide availability of scuppernong grapes in the region, wine production in the area could be more profitable than farming or grazing.
Source:
The State (NoCar F 251 S77), Vol. 37 Issue 1, June 1969, p18-19