GOLD HILL — Amie and Tommy Baudoin of Morgan Ridge Vineyards in Gold Hill have won the 2012 Wine Growers of Excellence Award, given at the N.C. Winegrowers Association Conference held last week in Winston-Salem.
The award recognized their leadership and dedication to the production of quality wine grapes.
A state panel visits up to 450 vineyards throughout the state, and N.C. State University viticulture experts vote on the award, considering canopy management, quality of fruit and overall condition.
The award is one of several Morgan Ridge has received recently.
Their 2010 vintage was grown and produced on the property, becoming their totally estate-grown and made wines.
Morgan Ridge’s 2010 cabernet sauvignon won a gold medal at the Mid-Atlantic Southeastern Wine Competition, held at the Dixie Classic Fair. It was one of only three golds for cabernet sauvignon out of hundreds of entries.
The same cabernet sauvignon won a double gold at the N.C. State Fair before a large panel of judges.
The vineyard also won a double gold on its syrah, a gold on merlot and a silver in chambourcin.
Morgan Ridge built the winery in 2010 with a tasting room and production area and added a pavilion for special events in 2012.