Georgia Traveler: City of Blue Ridge

Plan a romantic escape to rejuvenate with brews, bites and beautiful scenery

Plan a romantic escape to rejuvenate–with brews, bites and beautiful scenery. Get away as a couple to Blue Ridge, Georgia, about 90 minutes north of Atlanta via I-575. Start with a toast, sharing a local brew beneath the stars on the deck of a cabin designed for two–or choose from a variety of other accommodations, each designed to make for an unforgettable North Georgia Mountain getaway. Choose your own adventure and reconnect while making memories that last.

Start your North Georgia Mountain adventure with sips and shopping. Established in 2017, Bear Claw Vineyard’s beautiful backdrop sets the scene for relaxation, overlooking the vineyards. Outdoor seating offers the ideal ambiance for sipping chardonnay, Vidal blanc, cabernet sauvignon, white Riesling and Cayuga. BearClawVineyards.com

Shop souvenirs with grown up style. Blue Ridge has been named one of the “Top Ten Towns for Craft Lovers” in the country. Visit specialty shops, boutiques and galleries for fine furnishings, art, antiques and unique crafted items. Don’t miss Canoe’swearable art–leather bags, totes, jewelry and accessories, all of which are handmade in Blue Ridge. Just over the river in Copperhill, Tennessee, find The Vault, a treasure trove of antiques. Stop into the Blue Ridge Olive Oil Companyand treat yourself to a gourmet selection of more than 65 varieties of olive oil and balsamic vinegars–such as roasted walnut or blood orange infused oil–and the opportunity to taste these remarkable innovations from around the world. Hunt treasure at High Country Art and Antiques. Peruse this gallery for traditional and impressionist fine art, folk art, photography, pottery, jewelry, sculptures, antiques and collectibles. Find more treasures at Mitzi’s on Main, featuring hand-painted furniture, accessories and antiques. At Turning Leaf Wood Artsee works of more than 50 exclusively American artists. Top off a visit to Blue Ridge with a visit to Multitudes Gallery, owned by Michael Lacey and featuring high-end glass work, art and jewelry. Inside, also find Fishbone Studios–home to Betty Wassmer Ceramics, showcasing the original creations of this noted ceramicist.

Drink local! Mercier Orchards is the only apple orchard in Georgia that grows, presses, ferments and bottles their own hard apple cider and farm wines. Mercier Orchards is also the first producer of hard cider in the state. Visit their 400-acre farm and enjoy a round of tasting; hard ciders include Grumpy Granny, Rock Steady Red, Adele’s Choice, Pearody, Black Bee, Lone Tree, Old #3 and Just Peachy. Their farm wines include Fall Harvest Apple, Blackberry Winter and Summer Sweet Peach wines. Mercier Orchards also has tastings of regional wines produced in the Georgia Mountains. 706-632-3411 or www.Mercier-Orchards.com.

Relax at Serenberry, a charming farm winery just a few country miles from downtown Blue Ridge. The farm winery has several wines in the bottle, including Railroad Red and Blue Ridge Red. Relax on the open air patio in a beautiful setting while savoring sips. Call 706-623-8463; www.SerenberryVineyards.com.

Grumpy Old Men Brewing was founded in 2012 by a couple of retired beer enthusiast that went from brewing in an outdoor shower to opening their own microbrewery. In 2018, the guys decided to pass over their tap handles to another Grumpy Old Man and his Crabby Old Tap Lady. Call 706-946-2739; www.GrumpyOldMenBrewing.com.

Blue Ridge Brewery, “The Brewery,” is Blue Ridge’s brewpub, with the capacity to pour six house brews and eight beers from other craft breweries. The Brewery also serves food and offers live acoustic music on Friday and Saturday nights starting at 6 p.m. Open Wednesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner.

Fannin Brewing Company’s Tom Fennell brought his brewing skills to Fannin County for two simple reasons: Fresh air and fresh water make for fresh beer. Being local is important to Fannin Brewing; it’s in the name of their beers: Hiawassee Golden Ale, Toccoa Brown and Blue Ridge Lager. The brewery often features live music and also sources local ingredients for many of their beers. Call 706-258-2762; www.FanninBrewingCompany.com.

Try local brews at these restaurants:

Relax and unwind at Black Sheep, serving Southern comfort food–including cocktails featuring their house-produced moonshine and desserts like the bread pudding–in a historic residence once visited by Margaret Mitchell, author of “Gone with the Wind.” 480 W. Main Street

Savor bites at Masseria Kitchen & Bar which embodies a Mediterranean concept, serving fresh vegetables, seafood, handmade pastas and pizza alongside cocktails made with crafted syrups.

Head to Treo for outdoor ambiance, a Southern take on seafood, steaks and pasta, as well as live music Fridays and Saturdays. You’ll also find a beautiful wine and tapas bar section within the restaurant. 588 East Main Street

TIP: Not into DIY when it comes to a pub crawl? Book a guided three hour Blue Ridge Mountain Food Tour or Brew House Tour at 706-851-7565.

Be sure to drink responsibly. Always have a designated driver or call one of Blue Ridge’s local cab and transportation companies like A2B Transit, Howard Jabaley Taxi Service, or Mountain Transportation, LLC.

Where to stay

At the end of the day, rest easy in a cabin, with options for mountain and lake views, or choose from cottage-like accommodations nearer to downtown, www.BlueRidgeMountains.com/where-to-stay. If you prefer a spa setting, splurge on soothing massage therapy, holistic facials or therapeutic body treatments during a spa day at Teatrees Boutique Spa. When it’s time to turn in, trade up to luxury. Serenity in the Mountains offers spa and suite packages that may seem like a splurge, but are actually a bargain.

Up for more?

Blue Ridge is known as the capital of North Georgia fly-fishing. Splurge on a fine fly-fishing masterpiece (upwards of$2,500), or make your own custom bamboo fly rod ($1,750 with expert instruction) at Oyster Fine Bamboo Fly Rods, an internationally-recognized source for custom and semi-custom fishing rods prized by generations.

When temps cool, grab your special someone and hit the hills of Blue Ridge to get your heart pounding along the collection of trails which make the destination a true hiker’s paradise. Fannin County includes some of the most notable hiking trails in the United States. Find a hiking map here. For waterfall-seekers, local trail favorites include Fall Branch Falls and Long Creek Falls. Another scenic option, the Aska Trail system, with four points of entry off Aska Road and six interconnecting loops varying in distance for a total of 30 miles of trails, meets up with the Benton-MacKaye Trail at certain points. www.BlueRidgeMountains.com/outdoor_adventure.html