Clark Gas & Oil

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WE VALUE OUR CUSTOMERS AND WHAT THEY OFFER OUR COMMUNITY

WR I T T EN B Y: H E AT H E R J AC K SON

W inding down the bends of the Blue Ridge parkway between milepost #170 & #171, lies a food and libation sensation. Past breathtaking mountaintop overlooks and rolling hills of idyllic rural farmhouses on properties as far as the eye can see, you’ll find yourself veering off the parkway and onto a nostalgic gravel farm road toward Villa Appalachia Winery. Rock Castle Gorge Road feels less like a pretentious cookie cutter estate and more like driving over to a good friend’s house. Even before arrival the intrigue of what hidden gem may be around the corner bubbles inside. As you pass through the gates of this verdant Italian Villa, one could easily believe they’ve been teleported straight into a hilltop of Tuscany. Villa Appalachia is a family operated, Virginia farm winery, producing wine in an established local vineyard since 1989. The original root stock vines they harvest their grapes from came straight from Italy. Notes of its historical origin whisper onto your lips with every sip. Their tasting room is open Wednesday-Friday from 11-5:00. Saturdays 11-6 and Sundays 12-4:30 where you can sample all their unique varieties of Italian inspired wines, to which each one may very well end up being more impressive than the last. Owners, Tim and Julie Block, originally from Wisconsin, along with their two children and their children’s spouses, ventured here to fabulous Floyd from Lake Norman, North Carolina. They wanted to hop off the hampster wheel of city life and embrace a small town lifestyle that lines up more closely with what their family values really are: quality over quantity and better- not bigger. Tim comes from more than

40 years in the restaurant business while Julie continues to work in the healthcare profession (in addition to making our wine!). Consequently, all those years of experience have now funneled into an enthusiastic passion to not only create the absolute best wine possible, but to also pour back into the community. Tim and Julie have a refreshing gift of hospitality that offers guests permission to slow down. Their family has created an atmosphere at the villa that leaves you absolutely rejuvenated and inspired. Saturdays in their courtyard, guests enjoy being serenaded by local musicians while sipping sangrias and snacking on warm paninis slathered with pesto made with basil picked straight from their garden. Visitors appreciate lazy Sunday afternoons spent playing bocce ball while waiting on the legendary Hayward Smith, son-in law and winery manager, to finish cooking a brick oven wood

fire pizza. Almost everything you are served here is house made, home grown or from just down the road, which makes a difference you can taste. To get the entire experience you can’t leave without capping the night off with a crisp cannoli loaded with traditional Italian ricotta filling and chocolate chips. The quality of Villa Appalachia wines is unmatched, but the experience you will receive here will be sincerely unforgettable.

F LOYD , V I RG I N I A 752 Rock Castle Gorge

@villaappalaccia www.villaappalacia.com