Winston Salem Visitor Guide 2017 - 50

WINE

With
pedigrees in the booming
Oregon and California wine industries,

Yadkin Valley
Pioneers
Sean and Patricia McRitchie celebrate
their adopted home state through
standout wines and hard ciders.
50

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it might seem surprising that Sean and
Patricia McRitchie own and operate a
vineyard in North Carolina. They say it's
no surprise at all. "I saw a new pioneering
area," Sean says. "This is a burgeoning
wine area, a new growing experience,
and we wanted to be a part of that."
It's an intrepid spirit he comes by
honestly. Sean grew up in both California
and Oregon with a winemaker father, Bob
McRitchie, who primed Sean's vintner
appetite from a young age. Bob moved his
family from Napa Valley to the Willamette
Valley in Oregon because he saw an
opportunity for impact on the industry
he loved - indeed, the Willamette Valley
is now well-regarded among American
wine buffs. Similarly, Sean moved his family to North Carolina to help start Shelton
Vineyards in 1998. Patricia left a lucrative
law career to also work at Shelton.
As soon as the couple arrived in the
Yadkin Valley, they were smitten with
the terroir and the culture. Eventually,
they left Shelton to ultimately purchase
a plot of land for their own vineyard
about an hour northwest of WinstonSalem. McRitchie Winery and Ciderworks
opened in 2007.
The McRitchies' approach stands out
as easygoing, celebratory ingenuity. The
vineyard, for instance, was previously
home to a cabinet shop and other
buildings. Rather than tear down the
property's existing structures for a
grandiose winery operation, they simply
repurposed them. "We wanted the whole
winery to be integrated with the landscape
and environment," Patricia explains.
Then there's the Ciderworks, their hard
cider operation. The McRitchies were
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apple cider, but they didn't set out to do
it for the sake of record-setting. Patricia
already had a penchant for cider-making
and, again, the couple saw an opportunity
here in the Yadkin Valley. "I grew up in
Washington state, where there are tons of
apples," Patricia says. "North Carolina has
story continued on page 52



Winston Salem Visitor Guide 2017

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