Divine Llama Vineyards: Where Wine Meets a Working Llama Farm
Michael and Patricia West started Divine Llama Vineyards in 2007, planting vines on their rolling 91-acre farm in East Bend, in the heart of the Yadkin Valley AVA. In 2019, friends Leslie Messick and Paul Baumbach joined the operation, and today the property is two businesses in one: a working vineyard and tasting room, and Four Ladies & Me Farm, the largest llama farm in the Southeast. It is an unusual pairing, and it is exactly why Divine Llama shows up on so many Yadkin Valley “must visit” lists — you can taste an estate red blend and then go meet the animals it is named after.
The winery describes its wines as nationally recognized and award-winning, and between the setting along Miller Creek, the view toward Pilot Mountain, and the llamas grazing just past the tasting room deck, it is one of the more distinctive stops we take guests to anywhere in the valley.
The Wines of Divine Llama Vineyards
The vines went into the ground in spring 2007, and the estate now grows four grape varieties — Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Chardonel and Traminette — across the property’s 91 acres. From those four grapes, Divine Llama produces eleven wines spanning five dry reds and whites, two semi-dry reds and whites, a sweeter white, a sweeter rosé, a semi-sweet peach-blended white, and a semi-sweet blackberry-blended red.
Several of the wines carry llama names as a nod to the farm side of the property. “In a Heartbeat” — named for one of the West family’s more decorated show llamas — is an off-dry blend of 2007 Cabernet Franc and Merlot, aged 18 months in a mix of new American, new Hungarian and used French oak. Merlina, named for Merlot’s “female companion” on the farm, is roughly 95% Merlot. Their single-varietal Merlot and Cabernet Franc are also aged 18 months in the same combination of French, Hungarian and American oak, giving the reds a distinctive coffee-and-chocolate character.
Planning Your Visit
Address: 4126 Divine Llama Lane, East Bend, NC 27018
Tasting Room Hours: Thursday, Friday & Saturday 12pm – 6pm, Sunday 1pm – 6pm (open year-round, including January and February)
There is no admission fee to visit. Rather than formal tastings, Divine Llama currently pours flights — four 2 oz. pours of your choice for $16 — on the tasting room deck. Food trucks show up periodically (check their Facebook page), and you are also welcome to bring your own food. Dogs are welcome around the tasting room and deck, though not down on the working farm around the llamas, and children are allowed as long as an adult over 21 supervises them throughout the visit. The winery is not currently renting its facilities for weddings or private events.
The signature experience here is llama trekking: a roughly two-mile guided hike with a llama companion along Miller Creek, with a break at the creek for photos, running most Saturdays and Sundays in spring, fall and winter, starting around 1pm and lasting two to three hours. Treks require advance reservations, participants must be at least 10 years old, and pricing is $50 per person for 2025 (rising to $60 in 2026). A few practical notes we have learned from bringing groups here: book the trek well before your visit since spots are limited, and build your tasting around the trek schedule rather than the other way around. Between the tasting flight and a llama trek, plan on budgeting at least two to three hours at this stop — it is not a quick tasting-room pour-and-go.
Where Divine Llama Fits in Your Tour Route
Divine Llama sits in East Bend, on the Yadkin County side of the river, within easy reach of several other Yadkin Valley wineries in the same corner of the AVA — including RagApple Lassie Vineyards in Boonville, Shadow Springs Vineyard in Hamptonville, and Medaloni Cellars in Yadkinville. That makes this cluster a natural half-day loop rather than a single isolated stop.
Plan on roughly 1.5 hours per winery plus drive time, and add extra time if a llama trek is on the agenda for this stop. Because Divine Llama doesn’t open until noon (1pm on Sundays), it pairs best as a midday or afternoon visit on your route rather than the first stop of the morning.
Wine Tour Transportation to Divine Llama Vineyards
Ashe County Livery provides private, chauffeured wine tour transportation to Divine Llama Vineyards from Ashe County, Boone, Blowing Rock, West Jefferson and across NC’s High Country. Our Divine Llama Vineyards trip-planning page covers drive times, tasting-room hours, group sizes and pricing.
Travel in a luxury SUV, sedan, or Sprinter van with a professional chauffeur — everyone in your group gets to taste, nobody has to drive. We only charge from pickup to your last drop-off, and every tour includes a complimentary cooler with ice and water. Plan your Divine Llama Vineyards tour or call (336) 484-1350.
Nearby wineries we also serve: RagApple Lassie Vineyards · Shadow Springs Vineyard · Medaloni Cellars — or browse all 54 Yadkin Valley wineries we provide transportation to.
Explore More from Ashe County Livery
- Yadkin Valley Wine Tours — Explore NC’s premier wine region
- High Country Wine Tours — Mountain winery service
- Wedding Transportation — Luxury transportation for your big day
- Airport Transfers — CLT, AVL, GSO & TRI
- Request a free quote — or call (336) 484-1350
🍷 Planning a Wine Tour in the NC High Country?
Ashe County Livery offers private, luxury wine tour transportation throughout the Blue Ridge Mountains. Skip the driving and let our professional chauffeurs take you from winery to winery in comfort and style.
Serving Banner Elk, Blowing Rock, Boone, and all NC High Country destinations • (336) 484-1350
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