About Us

A Name With a Wink and a Whole Lot of Heart

Every winery has a story, but ours begins with a cow — a spirited black‑and‑white beauty named RagApple Lassie. She was the pride of the farm, the kind of animal with enough personality to earn her own fan club. When it came time to name the winery, we didn’t have to look far. Her legacy was already written across the land.

Rooted in Family, Grown With Purpose

RagApple Lassie Winery sits on land that has been in our family for generations — soil that has raised crops, cattle, and children, and now nurtures rows of grapes that soak up the North Carolina sun. We didn’t set out to build a grand empire. We simply wanted to create something honest, something handcrafted, something that felt like home.

A Vineyard With a Personality All Its Own

The Yadkin Valley has a way of shaping everything that grows here. The rolling foothills, the steady breezes, the rich soil — they all lend their character to our grapes. And just like Lassie herself, our wines have a little spark, a little charm, and a whole lot of individuality.

Crafted With Care, Shared With Joy

We believe wine should be enjoyed, not over‑explained. It should bring people together, spark conversation, and make an ordinary afternoon feel a little more special. Every bottle we produce carries the warmth of our family, the spirit of our land, and the playful nod to the cow who started it all.

A Tradition of Hospitality

From the beginning, RagApple Lassie has been about more than wine. It’s about welcoming people in — whether they’re seasoned wine lovers or simply curious wanderers. Visitors often tell us they arrive as guests and leave as friends, and we take that to heart. Hospitality isn’t a feature here; it’s a way of life.

RagApple Lassie's Story

 My namesake, The RagApple Lassie Vineyard, happily grows in the small Yadkin County town of Boonville, North Carolina, located about 25 miles northwest of Winston-Salem, North Carolina and just under the western gaze of Pilot Mountain (to you Andy Griffith fans, this is Mount Pilot). Vineyards are not new to North Carolina, in fact, 150 years ago,  North Carolina produced more grapes than all other states combined.   However, the grapes grown at the time were Concords and they did not survive the interruptions caused by World War I and Prohibition.   Once again vineyards are flourishing in North Carolina, particularly in Yadkin and surrounding counties. This is no surprise because elevations of approximately 1,200 feet, soil composition and microclimates of the protected river basin make this area one of the best for producing quality wine grapes.

Many hundreds of years ago, the Yadkin River Valley, located in the fertile foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, was home to thousands of Indians including the Saura, Cheraw, Catawba and Cherokee Tribes.  Water from the Yadkin River and its many tributaries was plentiful, game was abundant, crop land was rich, and the weather was mild compared to the higher elevations of the Appalachian Mountain chain. To this day, following a heavy rain, the bottom lands of the river valley are filled with people looking for arrowheads and other artifacts left by the first Yadkin Valley dwellers.

It is in this beautiful river basin that in addition to Indian treasures, the land offers some of the finest, full-bodied, appealing wine grapes grown on the eastern seaboard.  And, it is in this fertile area that the RagApple Lassie Vineyard is located.

And, how did my humans come to call  their vineyard "RagApple Lassie?"

Well, fifty or so years ago, when the farmer/owner of this vineyard was just a little tyke, he, like most young boys who grew up on farms, was given his own calf to love, groom and teach how to stand "just so" so he could participate in the calf shows.  For boys raised on farms this was de rigueur and very competitive.  The calf he came to own,  a pretty little black and white Holstein, was me - RagApple Lassie!  Immediately, my human and I forged a very special bond. I loved to be washed and brushed and paraded in shows and I won the title of  Grand Champion at the North Carolina State Calf Show.  But even more special to me was the whistle of my human, Frank, Jr.  When I heard his whistle,  I came trotting from any location because it meant there would be alfalfa pellets in his pocket for me to nuzzle out.  Later, when Frank was courting his wife, Lenna, he told her so much about me and all the things we did that she instinctively knew the affection we shared.  So, when the search began for a special name for their new vineyard, my name, RagApple Lassie, was the obvious choice.

Because I was used to wearing Grand Champion Ribbons and such, I now get to wear the treasured arrowhead pendant that my human, Frank Jr., designed and gave to his wife, Lenna.  This now famous pendant was Lenna's Valentine present several years ago and showcases a very rare Clovis point arrowhead found on the Hobson farm.  The arrowhead, chiseled from jasper over 12,000 years ago, is held by a 14K-gold bezel surrounded by diamonds.  Everywhere Lenna wears this pendant, people comment on its unique beauty so I am excited to get to wear it when I get all dressed up for the photo shoots advertising the vineyard!