March 4, 2025
Arabia Mountain Winery hopes to provide its first batch of wines this yr
Inside Metro Atlanta lies an institution distinctive to its suburban footprint, a Black-owned winery that honors its historical past.
The present proprietor of Arabia Mountain Winery, Tim Starks, purchased the land three many years in the past. Stark’s new property, situated throughout the Georgia metropolis of Stonecrest, was initially deliberate for rising grapes.
As a substitute, Starks planted bushes on the grounds. It was not till after a visit to Napa Valley that he determined to make use of the realm for a winery. Regardless of the transition, his love for cultivating the land by no means wavered.
“I developed a ardour for the outside, I developed a ardour for rising, and I’ve embraced that zeal,” the Georgia native informed WSB-TV.
Starks grew up round farmers and needs to pay homage to his communal and cultural historical past. He believes Black folks have a particular connection to the soil they as soon as picked crops like cotton or tobacco from, particularly through the time of enslavement.
Nevertheless, a lesser-known historical past is that Black folks additionally picked grapes. Starks desires to reclaim this side of Black agricultural historical past and now does so via his personal winery.
“That is what we used to do. It’s not solely choosing cotton or rice in these Savannah areas, it was grapes. We grew grapes,” Starks stated.
Regardless of this, Black folks stay marginalized throughout the wine-making trade. Black homeowners make up lower than 1% of all wineries inside the US, as confirmed by the Affiliation of African American Vintners via NapaValley.com. Nevertheless, Arabia Mountain Winery hopes to make method for Black possession of a crop they as soon as grew.
“We’re standing at a spot that’s not nearly historical past, however we’re at present making present-day historical past,” shared Hakemia Jackson, a member of the family of the winery.
Stark plans to provide his first batch of wines this yr, whereas his whole household honors those that paved the way in which earlier than them.
“We’re strolling within the footprints of our ancestors, cultivators of the land,” Jackson added.
RELATED CONTENT: Feds, Lies, And Payola: 3 Males Plead Responsible In ‘Soprano-esque’ Fraud & Bribery Scandal Uncovered At Newark Worldwide Airport