North Fulton's award-winning farm winery has much to celebrate

MILTON, Ga. - April 20, 2021 - PRLog -- A hidden North Fulton treasure for almost 30 years, The Painted Horse Winery & Vineyards, may be Milton, Georgia's best kept secret, but a secret no more thanks to the Georgia Department of Agriculture's recent Agritourism signage installed on Georgia 400 and at several other North Fulton locations leading to the winery.

Vineyard owner and resident sommelier Pamela Jackson transformed a family residence into a thriving 25-acre farm and vineyard. "It's truly been a labor of love," said Jackson. The awards and successes we've enjoyed can't compare to the joy I get from preserving my farm's equestrian roots, and sharing this agricultural treasure with my community and our vineyard guests."

The Painted Horse is set to celebrate its 10,000th bottling, a Pedro Red Blend. That's not all they have to celebrate either––a leading British wine reviewer recently named The Painted Horse among its top piquette producers, a select list with producers hailing from countries such as Australia, Austria, Canada, France, and New Zealand. Included among the US designees, and the only Georgia recognized producer, was The Painted Horse.

It's not surprising that an award-winning vineyard and winery would attract the award-winning Winemaker and Vineyard Manager KJ Bell, who has been growing grapes and making wine in North Georgia for more than 10 years. Bell, whose wines have won numerous awards from competitions across the country including gold, silver, and bronze medals, most recently served as the head winemaker and vineyard manager for Kaya, one of North Georgia's most prestigious and largest vineyard and winery operations.

"Making the decision to join Pamela and The Painted Horse team was easy," said Bell. "Sure, making great wine is a passion we share, but maybe more importantly, is our shared commitment to growing Georgia's small farm winery market."

That commitment is what led to Jackson's February 2021 election to secretary of the Georgia Wine Producers board, where she is the only serving female executive-level board member.

"To think that we started with only 300 vines in 2018, and just a few weeks ago KJ helped us add another 800 vines," said Jackson. "I'm so proud of the business we've built, but I'm most proud of what we've preserved!"

"Pamela is on a mission," said Marketing Director Laura Jesseph. "She's not just looking to grow her personal business; she wants to help other small farms grow their vineyard opportunities and find Agritourism resources that help prevent treasured community farms from becoming just another subdivision."