‘Tis a tale too unbelievable to be untrue…
You see, the ocean has always called.
I am a sixth generation Floridian–a sea breeze in my hair, sand in my shoes, and salt water in my veins.
And, while I now live in Tennessee, with farm, family, and businesses well-rooted in its red clay soil, my heart will always belong to that special strip of coastline where the mighty Atlantic meets the Caribbean.
It is where I was born, and it will always be home.
My roots extend northward as you travel further back in my family tree, all the way to a small island in North Carolina’s Outer Banks: Ocracoke. It is there where my maternal grandfather, a U.S. Coast Guardsman by calling, was born and raised. The roots run deep on that little island, and if you search perhaps another eight or nine generations back, you’ll run into a name well-worn by the ravages of time and a reputation that has grown even more fierce and mysterious over the centuries.
He was a seafarin’ man feared by many, and probably rightly so.
He was: Edward Teach.
To some, the name doesn’t ring a bell right away, but those folks may recognize his nom de guerre,
and the name under which he captained his most famous vessel, The Queen Anne’s Revenge.
That name?
Blackbeard.
And, it is after this family connection that our winery is named.
You see, Blackbeard’s ship, a frigate named La Concorde, was commandeered from the French in 1717.
And, once she was liberated from her French owners and crew, she was renamed the Queen Anne’s Revenge and renovated into an imposing pirate ship. She already had size and speed–perfect for getting about the business of looting and plundering trade vessels–but she needed something else.
So, Teach set out to turn The Queen Anne’s Revenge into the most feared vessel of its time
in the Caribbean and Atlantic seaboard by making one change.
That change, you ask?
Well, that was a change critical to his success.
He outfitted her with…
Forty Cannons.
We be a small, but mighty crew. With one main vintner (Cap’n Val) and a volunteer or two along th’ way…
‘Tis our callin’ to provide our community with wines of the highest quality, usin’ what we grow an’ then makin’ use o’ locally grown fruits when we can find ’em.
Lookin’ for more than a quick trip t’ th’ tastin’ room? Because we be a few yards away from th’ Cottage Farmstay at Stillwaters Farm, we can offer weekend–‘r weeknight–getaways t’ immerse yerself in th’ atmosphere o’ th’ winery, th’ vineyard, an’ th’ farm. Easily booked direct through our sister company’s website (Stillwaters Farm). (Errr…click th’ photo ‘r “Winery Getaways” link above t’ go t’ th’ bookin’ site.