Smokeless

Well... Seems like North Carolina has decided to quit the smoking business!

"The state now boasts 300 commercial vineyards and 40 wineries. Half the wineries were established in the past two years, according to the N.C. Grape Council in Raleigh.

The number of commercial vineyards may increase if Congress passes a bill to buy out farmers' tobacco allotments, said Larry Somers, a Reidsville grower who helped start the N.C. Winegrowers Association in 1985."

You can read the article, "BOTTOM LINE: Industry bearing fruit, jobs in Piedmont" from The Miami Herald.

It is interesting that so many states have been getting into the winemaking.