RayLen Vineyards & Winery

Very nice winery. It was our first time visiting a winery and Same was our host. He was very nice and informative, gave us a tour of the facilities and overview of the process. Another coworker offered to give us a taste of grapes ripening for later harvest. Very good service! Every wine we tasted was great, even wines I don’t typically enjoy. Only purchased 3 bottles as we were on vacation. We are excited to enjoy RayLen wine again in the future.

We have spent multiple outings and bought multiple cases of wine from this winery and customer service has gone downhill within the past months. They have events that are at inconvenient times and kick people out at 7:45 on Friday nights when most people cannot attend an event until at least 7. We will not be returning to this vineyard and we encourage others to spend their money elsewhere.

Let me say first that I do not in any way consider myself to be a wine drinker. Next let me say that I loved my visit to RayLen Vineyard and Winery! What a great place to spend some time on a beautiful North Carolina day! So many wines to taste and such nice scenery to enjoy. I sampled the whites and the sweet wines. This has never happened to me before but I actually enjoyed almost every single wine I tasted. I left with 4 bottles: 2 of the sangria that’s available for a limited time, 1 Yadkin Gold, and 1 Pale Red. Each was better than the last. Our host was great as well. Her name is slipping my mind, but since we were the only guests at the time she shared a ton of information and we all had great conversation. The case club is a great option for local wine drinkers. You get a free tasting or glass of wine on each visit you make to RayLen. I don’t see how you can beat that. Come up here, get a glass of their delicious wine and enjoy the North Carolina weather out on one of their patios. Also look out for some of the cool events they do. Wish I lived closer so I could come here more often.

Loved this winery, visited on Friday with family. Sara made the visit extra fun and special, even gave us a great lunch recommendation!!! A must visit, great wine.

Ok, now my tastebuds may have been affected by the young girl doing our tasting. We arrive at 530Pm as we saw the place was open to 6PM. I was then told she could not do a full flight because of the time. By that time it was 531 and she said the last full flight has to be started by 530. FIne, we picked the reds as we had wanted to stop here several times but its always closed on Sundays. We told her «come on, its only a minute and she said she understood but sorry» so we started out tasting. Then after the third sip she is gone, no where to be seen. Comes back… oh her name was Sarah but the way, and I said, wow, I thought we lost you. No sorry or anything. She was gone for almost 15 minutes. She was I guess working the cash register but the polite thing to say is excuse me we are short on staff, do you mind if I leave? No, nothing, not even a sorry when she returned. then she give us another drink and is gone again. This time it was so long two of our party went to the ladies room and returned before she did. She then tells us she will let us try a wine no on the red list not thinking we read the wines on the flight list since we were standing there so long. May I point out that the party who was there half into the full flight was still there by the time we left. First, there is something to be said about customer service. If I walked into Raffaldinis 10 minutes after they closed they would serve me. But to deny guests a full tasting when the place is still open and then leave them standing there and then not even apologize. She only gave an excuse after I asked her name. In my opinion you serve your guests or anyone who walks in before 6PM. Then lock the door if you want but you should not say you are open until 6pm and then say you will not serve your guests after 530PM. We would have went somewhere else. So was the wine good?. It might have been. My fiancée was so looking forward to this tasting. ME, it left a bad taste in my mouth and I paid for it as well. If you listening RayLen, fire Sarah and give the others a course in customer service. It is poor business to be rude to those who visit and hand over money for a sip of your wine. I spent 30.00 and feel like she should have paid me since she did not even tell us the name of the wines she poured except for one hurricane wine. The other men doing the tastings we spouting out stories and the guests who where still there when we left seemed to be having a good olé time. Sarah should have paid us. Now I know why your staff does not wear name tags. But in the event her name was not Sarah we came on March 21^st and she was the only girl working there when we were in the tasting room.
Me, I feel like I an due a whole new full flight tasting to get the bad taste out of my mouth

Very nice winery in the Yadkin Valley! Visited yesterday and had an enjoyable tasting with Katie, and tried just about everything RayLen had to offer. Our wine guide was John and he took time to explain everything they offered and the subtleties that made them different from one another. We even liked a couple of them so much that we decided to take them home with us!
We’ll definitely be back and will look forward to returning. The only reason they’ve gotten dinged a star is that the fruit flies were a bit overwhelming here. Overall, reasonably priced wine in a great setting.

I enjoyed my 21^st birthday during a Mardi Gras event here a few years ago. The scenery is absolutely beautiful, the shelters are nice, the wine is wonderful, and the employees are personable. I took home a bottle of Riesling and will surely stop by for more when I visit Mocksville again.

I’m a big fan of RayLen. I bought some of their wines in the past at local grocery stores but did not gain a full appreciation for RayLen until I visited the winery during a festival. I have lived here eleven years and cannot believe I haven’t visited this place until just a few weeks ago. BTW, shout out to Unilocal for alerting me to the RayLen festival.
RayLen is between Bermuda Run and Mocksville (Davie County) off highway 158. Easy to find and you can get there via I40 as well (Farmington Road or Bermuda Run exits). Your GPS should have no problem getting you there.
The vineyards and grounds are nice. It is not as picturesque as some other wineries around (say one by a certain race car driver), but the quality of the wine is better. Highly recommend the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Category 5 (blend). Also like the Yadkin Gold.
They are well known for their Category 5 so be sure to get a glass or bottle. It is on the expensive side ($ 18 — $ 21 per bottle), depending on where you buy it.
Highly recommend stopping by RayLen to sample their wines. They have normal business hours and you don’t need an appointment. Buy a bottle and enjoy it on the grounds. Also check out their website for upcoming festivals. I have already been back to pick up a case of wine.
Just to let you know, they don’t have a restaurant but do have food for sell during the festivals.

We really enjoyed our visit to Raylen Winery. The wines we sampled were good for the region. We purchased a bottle and enjoyed another glass out on the patio. Tastings were $ 6 per person and included several different wines as well as a souvenir wine glass.
All in all, a very pleasant experience.

RayLen has been our first stop on our 2011 and 2012 wine tours. Both times I have gotten the Complete Flight which includes 16 – 17 tastings for $ 10. If you prefer to try just reds or whites — you can for $ 6.
RayLen has something for everyone. On our last visit they had 3 different Chardonnays, a Brut-​style sparkling wine, a Viognier, a Pinot Grigio, a Rose, a Riesling, a white blend (Yadkin Gold) of Vidal Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, and Riesling; a Shiraz, a Merlot, a Cab Franc, a Cab Sav, 2 Cab blends, a Meritage blend, and a Pale Red described as Welch’s with a kick.
The Rose of Cabernet Franc was new this year and one of my favorites — their description «clear and bright with no hard edges» is right on.
Yadkin Gold was my favorite white at this winery and one of the best of this years tour — it’s a delightful white blend — not too sweet.
Carolinius — a light bodied Cab blend is my favorite red — smooth and easy to enjoy.
The Shiraz is smokey and peppery and I am looking forward to enjoying a glass with some BBQ.
The tasting room is large enough to cater to several groups and if it’s busy — take advantage and enjoy the rocking chairs and charm of the vineyard outside or browse through their small shop.
A lot of information is provided about the grapes, the winery, and the varieties during the tasting — it’s personable and you are not rushed. They do ask that you make a reservation if you have a large group — we had ⁸⁄₉ in our party — didn’t make a reservation and they were able to accommodate us.
If RayLen is one of several stops for you in a day and you get a complete flight, you may just want to take a sip or two of each wine.
This year, I decided to get a case of wine and they shipped it to me in NC via Fed Ex and did not charge for shipping. I ordered Saturday, it arrived Tuesday — can’t get any better than that!

Category 5 all the way! Had a large group (10) and they told us to call ahead next time, but it was a bit slow that Saturday so luckily they were able to accommodate us. Nice, no frills tasting room (really makes the wine the star). Instead of oyster crackers, they had animal crackers which was very playful and unique.
The tasting room also displayed some local artist crafts. It reminded me of an upscale cracker barrel with a lot of charm.
My favorite wine from here was the Category 5, but they had a ton of other offerings that any wino would appreciate.

I visited Raylen a couple of months ago with some friends and friends of friends that I had just been introduced to. I brought my daughter who is 18 months because like most vineyards I have been to with her are very kid friendly. She usually makes a few friends and they play while I have a glass of wine or tasting. Well… much to my disappointment Raylen is NOT kid friendly. A lady from the staff called me out in front of friends and people I had just met to tell me that she thought my daughter had a stinky diaper. I had just changed her before I got there but I checked to be sure and she did not have a messy diaper. She said I was the only one there with a baby so I should just check. Come to find out it was a veggie tray someone had brought and as everyone knows broccoli smells bad if kept at room temperature in a closed container. I was so embarrassed!!! We left and went to another vineyard down the road. We will not be going back to Raylen.

Good wine, beautiful location, well educated staff… They know their wine!

I was visiting from Napa, and am also in the industry. I called ahead of time to see if they had any special times for industry tastings, and they informed me that anytime would be just fine. So we jumped in the car and headed over.
To start with, the location is gorgeous and the views are beautiful at sunset. When we entered there was no one behind the tasting bar or even in sight. We milled around for about five minutes before i took it upon myself to pop my head in the office in the back to find the staff i was looking for, who indeed greeted us cheerfully and promptly came to serve us.
We started with the whites which were hit and miss as all wineries are. Listed are my palatable favorites.
08 Pinot Grigio– Very traditional in style, Compliments to the wine maker
08 Barrel Chardonnay– Light and creamy which was quite unique, nice hint of the buttery flavor yet not overpowering. When asked about this Chard and the Malolactic fermentation on this, the staff was sure that it was done, but unsure of the percentages, which should be simply memorized.
08 Riesling– Now i was pleasantly surprised due to the fact that i do not typically enjoy this varietal. It was not overly sweet, which i enjoyed and i could see myself having with a great big bowl of phở’
After the Riesling was finished we were joined by what was to be believed to be more patrons of the winery. Come to find out, they were relatives to one of the employees and were greeted graciously and offered tastings, and all of a sudden my friend and I were obsolete. I understand I am in the business and that you might not think of giving as strong of service or trying to sell to me as much. But, when I am disregarded to this extent I am lightly offended. Luckily the other tasting room attendant was off stocking shelves and also keeping an eye since they swooped in and made sure that we were properly cared for and even spent the time discussing each of the varietals and the terroir surrounding the winery. Then the reds commenced.
07 Carolinius ($ 14) — Wonderful blend of Cab Sauv, Syrah, Merlot, Cab Franc. At first i was skeptical, but it grew on me the floral, lighter body of this red was one of utter enjoyment and would pair off beautifully.
08 Category Five ($ 18) — OK, to start with the label was really cool with a Doppler map of a Category five blowing down from the top of it. It was a wonderful Cabernet blend that shocked me by being so bold and beautiful and at $ 18 a bottles, a steal.
The only wine we were unable to taste was the sparkling and I purchased a bottle that is chilling in the fridge as i type and is soon to be tasted and hopefully enjoyed.
Definitely worth the stop on your travels through the Yadkin Valley. Also, a huge THANK YOU to Steve Shepard for being such an incredible wine maker. We truly enjoyed your work.
Truly changed my view on wines from the North Carolina Region.

Just bought a case of their latest Cab Franc and I love it. I have been a fan for several years now. They put on some great parties/​cookouts and are doing a great job putting NC and the Yadkin Valley growers on the map. I highly recommend a visit and tasting. Very friendly.

If you are touring the Yadkin Valley Wine Trail, this is a MUST SEE! The wines are a bargain. The staff makes it fun! This is one of my favorite wineries in the entire country!