Georgia on My Mind (5)

There’s gold (and wine!) in them thar hills!

Another day and on our way to Amicalola Falls in the northern part of the state. I am a waterfalls aficionado (more enthusiast than knowledgeable), so, when an interesting waterfall presents itself, I must go. Amicalola Falls is 729 feet high and the highest in Georgia. It cascades to a reflecting pool at the bottom. A steep path ran along the falls to a stairway of 175 steps, which led to the top. Needing to get to a vineyard, there was not time to climb the steps (or so I told myself).

This part of northern Georgia is in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which translates to being a beautiful region. It is also where the Georgia wine region thrives and has for years. This was our first visit to Georgian (state) vineyards and wineries as we admit to knowing nothing about the Georgia wine region nor even that it existed. Our first stop was at Montaluce Winery & Vineyard. One would have thought we had been dropped in the Tuscan wine region of Italy; the winery looked out over the vineyards and mountains. . .breathtaking. Our wine tasting was minimal as we were driving. From there we went to the Wolf Mountain Vineyards & Winery, not for more tasting but for their brunch, with reservations in advance required. Again, the setting was spectacular but with more of a California Napa Valley feel. Wolf Mountain has won more than 150 medals in major US competitions, including winning Georgia’s first ever gold medals at the prestigious San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles International Wine Competitions. If they gave out gold medals for brunches, we would have awarded them one as well!

Then on to Dahlonega for the evening. Dahlonega was the other town on the historic towns list. However, I have to believe this was more for its historical value rather than the town itself, which consists basically of a square with the Dahlonega Gold Museum State Historic Site in the middle, which was the former county courthouse. Dahlonega was actually America’s first gold-rush town. Gold was discovered in 1828, beating California’s gold rush by 20 years and was mined as recently as the 1920s. Something quite touching was that into, in and out of town were crosses along the sides of the roads/streets with flowers with each cross bearing the name of a soldier killed in war along with which war.