Haze Gray Vineyards: A Navy Flight Officer’s Estate Winery in Dobson, NC
The name Haze Gray comes from the color of U.S. Navy ships — a fitting tribute from owners Deane and Becky Muhlenberg, whose family has long-standing military ties, including Deane’s three-decade career as a Navy flight officer. In 2015 the couple bought an 85-acre former corn and tobacco farm just outside Dobson, and that May planted their first five acres of grapes. A second phase followed in April 2016 with four more acres. The vineyard produced its first small harvest in 2017, and the winery and tasting room officially opened on December 19, 2019 — just months before COVID hit, a timing Deane and Becky have talked about candidly in the years since.
Haze Gray has built its identity around hiring and supporting veterans, earning the national HIRE Vets Medallion Award multiple times as the business has grown — a mission that’s as central to the winery’s story as the wine itself.
The Wines of Haze Gray
The estate farms nine acres of grapes across nine varieties on its 85-acre foothills property, and all of its wines are estate-bottled. The lineup runs from dry to sweet, with award-winning entries across the board — the winery’s Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Traminette, Chambourcin, Petit Verdot, Pinot Grigio, Rose and Cabernet Sauvignon have each medaled in competition in various vintages. A standout is Two Bells, a red blend of Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that placed in the North Carolina Fine Wine Society’s Fine Wine Case among the state’s top winners.
Being estate-bottled matters to the Muhlenbergs: rather than sourcing bulk juice or finished wine to round out the portfolio, everything poured in the Haze Gray tasting room started as fruit grown on their own nine acres. For a winery not yet a decade removed from its first harvest, that kind of full control over the process — grape to glass, on one piece of ground — is still relatively rare in the Yadkin Valley, where many newer producers lean on purchased fruit while their own vines mature.
Planning Your Visit
Address: 761 Stony Knoll Rd., Dobson, NC 27017
Phone: (336) 374-1072
Tasting Room Hours: Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 10am – 6pm; Sunday, 12pm – 6pm; Monday – Wednesday by appointment
Haze Gray’s tasting room sits on a rise with a view of the Blue Ridge Escarpment from the front porch — a detail visitors mention often:
- Tastings — five wines, one-ounce pours, served in a crystal HGV glass, $18.
- Flights — five wines, two-ounce pours, with a red wine tasting glass loaned for the visit, also $18.
- Reservations — not required for smaller parties, but recommended for groups of six or more, or if you’ve arranged a driving service for your visit.
A few practical notes we’ve learned from bringing groups here: Haze Gray offers a military discount for veterans (just let the tasting room know ahead of your order), and the porch views of the Blue Ridge Escarpment are one of the better vantage points in this part of Surry County — it’s also pet-friendly, so bring the dog if you’ve got one along. We recommend budgeting at least 90 minutes, particularly if you’re working through the full flight and want time on the porch.
Where Haze Gray Fits in Your Tour Route
Haze Gray sits on Stony Knoll Road just outside Dobson, in the same immediate cluster as Stony Knoll Vineyards and Shelton Vineyards, with Round Peak Vineyards a short drive away near Mount Airy. This corner of Surry County is one of the more tightly packed winery clusters in the Yadkin Valley AVA, making it easy to visit two or three tasting rooms without much time lost to driving.
Plan on roughly 1.5 hours per winery plus drive time. Haze Gray’s 10am opening on Thursdays through Saturdays makes it a strong first stop of the day in this cluster.
Because this pocket of Surry County has one of the highest concentrations of tasting rooms per mile in the whole Yadkin Valley AVA, it is also one of the easier areas to build a flexible route in — if one tasting room is busy or the wait is longer than expected, there is almost always another within a five- or ten-minute drive.
Wine Tour Transportation to Haze Gray Vineyards
Ashe County Livery provides private, chauffeured wine tour transportation to Haze Gray Vineyards from Ashe County, Boone, Blowing Rock, West Jefferson and across NC’s High Country. Our Haze Gray 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 Haze Gray Vineyards tour or call (336) 484-1350.
Nearby wineries we also serve: Stony Knoll Vineyards · Shelton Vineyards · Round Peak Vineyards — 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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