This blog is part of a series in which we will take an in depth look at the regional wine industry.
Sunday’s at Parker-Binns Vineyard in the Tryon area are known as Sunday Funday. You’ll likely find families with kids and old friends with dogs, and certainly a lot of regulars all enjoying a fun time while listening to a local talented musician, enjoying free handmade pizza, and sipping on the craft artisan award winning wines produced from estate grown fruit.
Not much thought likely goes into just how that wine got bottled. It is true, some smaller production wineries may have bottling equipment and some will hand bottle wine. Parker-Binns will sometimes bottle on their own equipment in house. However, a much more efficient process is often utilized.
Introducing the “million dollar truck.” A mobile bottling operation which is referred to as such due to the million dollar investment required for the machinery inside the trailer.
The outside is plain as a normal eighteen wheeler, nothing really gives away the complexity of the machinery inside!
The truck sets up right outside your local winery. Hoses are connected to pump the wine from the wineries tanks or barrels. With the push of a button bottles are fed down a conveyor. Wine is filled to precise levels and the bottles sent on down the line to be labeled and corked. The conveyor line circles around so that workers can load into boxes and stacked on pallets. The process takes about 7-8 individuals to keep the process moving.
The truck can bottle upwards of 1500 cases per day. Several of these trucks are now operating along the East Coast and you could pass one and not even know it. There’s the story and now you know a big secret. It’s very likely that your wine was bottled in the back of a tractor trailer!
Winemaker Justin Taylor was busy organizing the entire process, however we were able to catch his ear for a couple of questions. Justin notes the efficiency of the bottling truck helps to justify the expense. Parker-Binns on this day bottled approximately 550 cases of Petit Manseng, Muscat, and a couple of other varietals. So we have now confirmed plenty of wine has been bottled for your next outing and you now know the secret of just how that wine was bottled. Cheers!!
This July though brought even more incredible life events for us to celebrate. Our youngest son, was in boot camp at Parris Island, and completed the grueling Crucible during the first three days of July. Yes, he became a marine in the 90+ degree days of July.
Family day continues with liberty and the next morning is the graduation ceremony. The Parris Island Marine Corp Recruit Depot does an amazing job with the family day and graduation ceremonies.
NC Vines are very fruitful.
Judges at the 2019 Palmetto Wine Competition.
Sometimes we just want a little Shine! 
Enjoyed a glass at Biltmore wine club lounge. 
Peach Blueberry Sangria at Mountain Brook Vineyards. 
Sunsets at Parker-Binns Vineyard. 
Great fun with our friends Will and Pam. 
Attending the North Carolina Wine Festival. 
Loved the Rosé and the View @ Point Lookout Vineyards in Hendersonville. 
Plus we enjoyed several bottles at home including this 100% Strawberry Wine from Lazy Bear Winery in Easley, South Carolina. 
So many more but we think you get the picture…..see what I did there! We encourage you to get out and make your own memories at your local winery. Cheers!
Complementary fare of pulled pork sandwiches, au gratin potatoes, baked beans, plus cheese and crackers were served buffet style. Most of the regulars were there, along with several new soon-to-be regulars. Mercury Rising band was entertaining the crowd with great music. Yes indeed, just one big time party! 
As to the star of this party, the sunset did not disappoint. Don’t you wish you had of been there?
Just can’t think of a better way to end a week. Great food, great music, great #NCWine, great people, and a great view of an amazing mountain sunset. It just doesn’t get much better! 
The Belmont Inn today features 25 guest rooms all featuring modern conveniences and private bathrooms. Restored to maintain the Inn’s historic charm. The floors remain original, and yes they creak during the night. The furnishings are true to the Inn’s historic roots, including the Grand in the main lobby. 
The veranda is designed long and open to catch the Summer breezes and the perfect place for morning coffee or an after dinner cocktail. 
It’s true some say that The Belmont Inn is haunted. The ghost stories certainly add to the charm of this historic Inn. A stay at the Belmont Inn spiritually transports one back to a bygone era. Where hospitality remains prominent and time tends to slow to a crawl. Wether relaxing in a chair on the veranda or enjoying a cocktail in the Inn’s basement tavern, or simply strolling the charming brick paved square of Abbeville, you will enjoy a relaxing stay and will leave with clear mind and relaxed body. 
Rates from $110 per weekend night make the Belmont Inn amazingly affordable. The Inn host many events which are promoted on their Facebook page. The Belmont Inn regularly invites local wine sommelier and one of our Head Judges, Annemarie Humm, to host tasting events teaching about wines from around the world. Local musicians are often featured in Tinker’s Alley tavern. The Belmont Inn is also a perfect venue for a wedding reception or celebration. But most of all and by all means, we strongly encourage you to think about The Belmont Inn for your next get-away. You will not regret!
We left Myrtle Beach and headed towards Wilmington, NC. We stopped at a fun winery called Grapeful Sisters. They are a muscadine vineyard and have some fun wines. They also have pickles, relishes, jellies, etc. that you can sample as well. They have a lovely property and also an RV park. The sisters are really nice and we had an awesome time. If you go, make sure you have enough time to enjoy the property with a glass of wine. They have a big porch and covered patio area.
We left there and headed on towards the Wilmington area. We stayed 4 wonderful nights at Lu Mil Vineyard and Winery. They have 9 cabins on the property that are amazing! They are also a muscadine vineyard. They have 78 acres under vine. They have some cold fermented wines (amazing!) Harmony Hall and Sir Walter Raleigh, some dry muscadine and yummy slushies. They also make some non-alcoholic ciders. We got to have an amazing tour of the entire property. They have a old western town themed area, a tiny chapel, 2 gazebo areas for events/weddings. They host a HUGE light show at Christmas time that you drive through. There are geese, cows, donkeys and fish on the property as well. There’s also a small lake where you can fish. The property has been in the family for many years. They are still recovering from the recent hurricanes but unless you were told that, you wouldn’t really notice. Be sure to take quarters with you so you can feed the catfish and Koi fish in the pond outside the tasting room. 
The next day we headed over to Cape Fear Winery. The property is beautiful, they have a restaurant (that we didn’t know about until we got there) and they have some really great wines, 2 really great red blends.. The owner is also an art and memorabilia collector. They are also kid friendly as they have a mini petting zoo. There are 2 beautiful male peacocks (we were told that the female went missing after the last hurricane), several other birds, ducks, donkeys, miniature horses, swans, bunnies, llamas, a cow, and a wallaby (who lives with the wine maker and was not there the day we were). 
Our last full day in that area we went to Wilmington to the aquarium. Spent several hours there and then took the ferry over to Southport. Went to Silver Coast Winery’s Tasting and Tap Room. The main location and vineyard is on Ocean Isle so this is just a tasting room which also serves craft beer. It has that local beach pub feel. John handled our tasting and he was a lot of fun. The three calabash wines were my favorite but they have several really nice wines.
Wine Competitions and Marketing! 