40 is the Greatest Birthday (Mt. Airy, NC)

Author: Michelle Stacy
Date of Trip: November 2006

For my 40th birthday, my boyfriend (now my husband) booked a surprise weekend at Sobotta Manor in Mt Airy, NC. I had no idea of our destination and when we stopped in front of this beautiful house, I knew I was in trouble. The house and grounds were breathtaking enough from the outside, but walking in and seeing the historical architecture and wonderful furnishings was even better.

We were escorted up to our room and walked into heaven. The satin and silk with hardwood and antique wool rugs were a perfect setting for the chilled wine and chocolate strawberries waiting for us. (The strawberries wore dark and white chocolate tuxedos!)

We unpacked and toured all 3 floors of the house. There were snacks and candy everywhere, plus books and music choices in every room. There is even a bar and big screen TV on the ground floor with leather couches and bookcases. It was so comfortable through out. Breakfast was a thing to behold with fresh fruit parfaits and stuffed french toast made from scratch. Yum!!

Rod had scheduled wine tours for us at Shelton Vineyards, Black Wolf, and Old North State. Shelton’s is a beautiful property and operation. It is obvious that a huge amount of care and pride went into the construction and design. The wines are very good and all of the staff is extremely knowledgeable about wine making and NC wines. Highly recommend this tour!

Black Wolf was not nearly as enjoyable. The wines were marginal at best and the staff was more interested in the fact this is a 5 star establishment than keeping that rating. We had reservations for dinner and stopped by for the tour at lunch. In speaking to the hostess on our way out, we mentioned our reservations and the first things she said was to expect a 45 to 60 minute wait to get our dinner as this is customary in 5 star restaurants. Hmmm.

Our last tour was Old North State Winery in downtown Mt. Airy. What a wonderful place to be. We tasted all of their wines and could not find ONE that we did not like. The atmosphere and staff were so impressive that we canceled our dinner at Black Wolf and made one for Scuppernong’s at Old North State. Best decision we could have made! The food was wonderful and very well prepared. They had live entertainment during the meal. We enjoyed wine and cheese before and after and the prices were very reasonable and much lower than we would have expected for the quality of food and service we received. Overall, we blame the weekend and Old North State for our engagement 3 days later! I loved my 40th birthday!!