Old Barn Winery sits on Beaver Creek School Road just outside West Jefferson, NC, on land the Sexton family has farmed for more than a hundred years. It isn’t a winery that showed up chasing a trend — it grew, almost literally, out of a Christmas tree farm, and that backstory is part of what makes an afternoon there feel different from a typical tasting-room stop. You’re drinking wine made by the same family that planted the fir trees on the ridge behind you.
From Tobacco to Christmas Trees to Wine
The Sexton family’s farming roots in Ashe County trace back to Byron Sexton, born in 1912, who started out growing tobacco like most mountain farmers of his era. In 1960 Byron made a bet that reshaped the family’s future: instead of planting a cautious one-acre trial plot of Fraser fir seedlings as advised, he planted 80 acres. That decision helped position Ashe County as what would become known nationally as the Christmas Tree Capital of the United States. Byron’s son Kenneth carried the tree business forward through the 1970s and 80s, and by the 2000s a third generation — brothers Greg and Jimbo Sexton, working alongside their mother Joann and Greg’s wife Robin — was running the farm.
The wine side of the story starts in the mid-2000s, when Greg and Robin began experimenting with homemade wine with friends, learning fermentation as a hobby before it became anything more serious. They started planting grapevines on the farm to see what the mountain soil could do. Old Barn Winery officially opened its doors on July 4, 2022, in a barn on the same property where the family’s Frosty’s choose-and-cut Christmas tree farm operates — a fourth-generation Sexton project sitting on land the family has worked since before the Great Depression. (Source: Old Barn Winery’s own “Our Story” page.)
What to Taste
Old Barn’s list is organized simply: reds, whites, sweet and fruit wines, plus a specialty lineup of ciders, meads and sangrias, and non-alcoholic options including TÖST and a non-alcoholic sangria. The winery describes its reds as ranging from easy-drinking to bold and complex, its whites as bright and citrus-forward with both dry and off-dry options, and its sweet wines as berry-driven and built for casual sipping. There’s also a rotating “previous wines” archive of bottles that get retired and occasionally brought back — a sign of a working, evolving list rather than a fixed set of six wines that never change. As with any small winery, exactly what’s pouring on a given weekend shifts with the season, so it’s worth checking their current wine menu online before you go.
The Setting and the Experience
The winery occupies a working farm with mountain views, and the property still grows Christmas trees and grapevines side by side — the same barn that anchors Frosty’s tree farm each winter is the building that now houses the winery. Old Barn also leans into live music, with a regular calendar of afternoon sets that lately has included a strong TropRock/Jimmy Buffett-inspired lineup — the kind of laid-back, beachy sound paired with a wine slushie that feels a little unexpected at 3,000 feet in the Blue Ridge. They’ve also run food collaborations with Bocca Bistro for wine-and-dine evenings. None of this is loud or produced — it’s a family farm that added a tasting room, and it still feels like one.
What Else Is Nearby
West Jefferson itself is worth building time around. The town is known locally as the “Town of Murals,” with a self-guided walking tour of more than a dozen colorful downtown murals depicting mountain life and Ashe County history, plus working artist studios and galleries in its small Arts District. If your group wants to turn a winery stop into a full afternoon, pairing Old Barn Winery with a wander through downtown West Jefferson’s murals and shops is an easy add before or after your tasting.
Planning Your Visit
Old Barn Winery is roughly 20–25 minutes from Boone by car via US-221, and a similar short hop from Jefferson. From Banner Elk or Blowing Rock, plan on more like 35–45 minutes depending on route and season — mountain roads and Blue Ridge Parkway traffic can add time in summer and fall. The winery has told visitors it’s open every day, but hours, tasting fees and live music schedules change seasonally, so confirm directly with Old Barn Winery before you go. For groups, note that a single vehicle keeps everyone together for the drive back down winding two-lane roads after a tasting — worth factoring in if your group is splitting across multiple cars.
Wine Tour Transportation to Old Barn Winery
Ashe County Livery offers private, chauffeured wine tour transportation to Old Barn Winery from Boone, Banner Elk, Blowing Rock, West Jefferson and across NC’s High Country. Our Old Barn Winery 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. Plan your Old Barn Winery tour or call (336) 484-1350.
Other High Country wineries we serve: Linville Falls Winery · Mill Camp Wines & Ciders · Eagles Nest Winery — or browse every High Country winery, cidery and meadery we provide transportation to.
Explore More from Ashe County Livery
- High Country Wine Tours — Mountain winery shuttle service
- Yadkin Valley Wine Tours — Explore NC’s premier wine region
- Wine Loop Shuttle — Hop-on hop-off winery tours
- Wedding Transportation — Luxury shuttles for your big day
- Wedding venues we serve — 40+ High Country venues
- Airport Shuttle Service — CLT, AVL, GSO & TRI transfers
- Airport shuttles by town: Boone · Blowing Rock · Banner Elk · West Jefferson · Linville · Beech Mountain
- Ashe County Livery — Premium transportation in NC’s High Country
- 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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