Bluegrass, wine make beautiful music together at tasting

Perhaps a mug of beer or even a jar of moonshine may have been a more fitting beverage for the concert.

But folks who gathered at Daveste Vineyards in Troutman Saturday afternoon sipped wine as the Coffee House Gang strummed, picked and sang in unmistakable bluegrass style.

Carlton Miller was among the 200 or so who attended the event. Miller and his wife Sandy were in town from State College, Pa., to visit their daughter, Ilisa Howell, who now lives in Mooresville.
He said he had been to bluegrass shows and wine tasting soirees.

"But never at the same time," he said.

"This is just delightful," Sandy said.

Added Howell: "This is big time for Iredell County."

The seemingly incongruous event was staged by Daveste owners Dave and Este DeFehr.

Dave Defehr said he likes to mix things up, music-wise, at his wine-tasting gatherings.

"We like to try different things," he said. "The goal is to appeal to a wide variety of people, not just the so-called wine connoisseurs."

Defehr had a harp player in for a Valentine's Day event and a solo guitarist played last month.

But the seven-piece Coffee House Gang seemed to be a hit, as much for their music as the banter in between songs.

"What's the difference between a road-kill squirrel and a road-kill banjo player?" asked Tony Hoover, the band's mandolin player.

"With the squirrel there were probably some skid marks."

Hoover then introduced the the next number.

"This is our classical song," he said, "for all those of you out there who like classical music."

But Beethoven and Bach and the like are not in the repertoire of most bluegrass bands and the Coffee House Gang is no exception.

The song's chorus was "Find me a place to lay down." And it included the line "Just a little ways ahead/There is a farm and a shed/And that's where I wish I was born."

But such rural numbers did not detract from those who were there to get an eclectic view of culture and there were no complaints from the wine tasters.

"This is the charm of Troutman," said Bruce Cox, who made the trip up from Denver with his wife, Barbara.

"We're here for the wine and the music," he said.

And so was Steve Rimmer, whose property abuts Daveste.

"It's amazing what they've done here," Rimmer said. "I remember when I used to ride horses in this area, butthey have really worked hard on this and it's really nice."

The Defehrs planted their first crop of grapes four years ago.

They opened the winery on the Daveste property in 2006 and since then have used grapes from another vineyard to produce their wine. The rustic tasting room chateau opened last September.

Defehr explained that grapes at his vineyard have thus far been too immature to be used for quality wine making. He said that changes with the next crop.

"We are hoping to have our first real, usable harvest this year," he said.

If it is, the first fully Iredell County wine — from vine to bottle to tasting room — will be produced and sampled at Daveste.

And it's anyone's guess what kind of music will be playing in the background when the first bottle is produced.

But next up at Daveste is the Part Time Blues Band, which will be performing on the vineyard grounds on June 27.