By MATTHEW WILSON, Marketing Coordinator at Dynamis Estate Wines
September in the Blue Ridge Foothills is a time for new things. A season when the weather begins to shake off summer’s warm embrace, as if turning a page to something new yet deeply familiar. One of the first places to feel that shift sits atop a lone mountain in the foothills. The winding road to Dynamis Estate Wines curves past acres of ripening Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot, their clusters heavy on the vine, their colors deepening from pale green to rich purple. The vineyard leaves are beginning to blush with amber at the edges as autumn quietly seeps into the landscape.
Guests arriving at the tasting lodge are welcomed onto the open terrace. With views stretching across vine-covered hills into the distance. At this point the Estate Wine Tasting begins. It is a curated flight of five current releases; each poured with thoughtful commentary about the land and the craft behind each wine from a wine ambassador. The first in the lineup is the 2022 Sauvignon Blanc, opening with aromas of apricot, and peach while the palate moves from creamy lemon curd to honeydew melon and stone fruit, finishing crisp and clean. The 2024 Rosé is a Bordeaux-inspired blend of Merlot and Malbec, with fragrant notes of strawberry, guava, kiwi, and melon, offering bright acidity and a bone-dry finish.
Moving into the reds starts with the 2021 Alpha. The blend leans heavily on Cabernet Sauvignon and offers silky tannins under layers of black cherry, cassis, vanilla bean, and spice. The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon is the second vintage of varietal cabernet. Crafted only from the best rows in the vineyard. It shows black cherry, currant, cedar, herbs de Provence, spearmint, and a hint of clove. Its medium-plus body and integrated tannins lead into a rich, juicy finish. At the end of the flight the flagship 2021 The Mountain presents intense blackcurrant, cherry, and plum supported by eucalyptus, spearmint, forest floor, cocoa, espresso, and vanilla aromas. It is big and concentrated with balanced acidity and a long, complex finish.
For those seeking more than a tasting, The Dynamis Experience offers a guided look into the heart of the estate. Guides describe the unique schist and gneiss soils; the same types found in renowned winemaking regions across the world. They explain how the elevation of 1,640 feet shapes the vines, giving the wines their structure and character. The tour moves through vineyard rows and orchards, past weathered fences that speak to the land’s long agricultural history, before climbing to the estate house at the very top of the mountain.
From the overlook, the Blue Ridge Mountains rise softly in the distance, their peaks muted by the haze of late-summer light. Below, the Yadkin Valley spreads wide, dotted with farms, country houses, and patchwork fields that have been tended for generations. The scene feels unhurried and calm. Visitors pause here, taking in the stillness and the sense that the seasons are always shifting, quietly shaping the stories that will eventually be poured into every glass of wine.
By late afternoon the terrace again becomes the ideal place to linger. Glasses catch the fading sun and turn amber as the foothills take on the early fall glow. September at Dynamis is more than the start of harvest. It is the moment when fruit turns to promise, and promise begins its transformation into wine. The season writes itself in light and flavor, and every sip feels like the start of a new chapter.
