Wilkes Women in Wine - Carrie Jeroslow and Jennifer White of Elkin Creek Vineyards

Women in Wine: Carrie Jeroslow and Jennifer White
by: Jennifer Primrose and Dathan Kazsuk  

Jennifer White and Carrie Jeroslow waved goodbye to their heart so blue and traded it in for the color purple.

Or, so the story goes.

And is it ever a story, for the two, who met each other, as well as their significant others, all while working for the infamous performance act: Blue Man Group.

Blue Man Group originally formed in 1987, but the White and Jeroslow connection started years later. “I started with the company in 1993,” says Jeroslow. “The casting director I worked with got the job to cast the original 3 Blue Men/creators replacements. When they decided to open a Boston show, I got brought in house and became the fulltime casting and training director.” That eventually led to the title of associate director in 1996 and moving to Las Vegas as the shows resident director in 2000.

White came into the picture in 1988 as a stage manager in Chicago, and eventually moved to Las Vegas in 2000 as the production stage manager.

During these adventures of blue suede shoes and blue eyes, White and Jeroslow found their partners in life: Nick and Louis. Nick started in 1999 and was hired as a drummer for the Vegas show, and Louis originally started out as a lobby jack in 1997, eventually making his way to working with the lighting crew.

But how do you go from putting together performances every night in Las Vegas for hundreds of people to owning a winery in North Carolina?

The answer lies in the marriage of Jennifer and Nick back in 2008.

“They were looking for a place near Nick’s grandmother in Dobson,” says Jeroslow. “They love wine and were looking at wineries. Jennifer found Elkin Creek on the internet and fell in love with the idea of the confluence of the Big Elkin Creek and The Grassy Creek.”

A bug was starting to form. Maybe this was a chance for a once in a blue moon opportunity. The idea arose about a great place with wine and beautiful surroundings. Was it now going to lead them down a path from blue to purple?

“We used manifesting techniques by visioning the kind of life we wanted to live – the environment, the business and the town,” says Jeroslow. “It was from our experience with Elkin Creek Vineyards.” But the foursome didn’t want to build a winery from the ground up. But faith was on their side. A year after completing their vision, written down so they wouldn’t forget a thing – the stars just aligned.

“Mark Greene (the current owner of Elkin Creek at the time), contacted Jennifer from a random Facebook comment she made on the Elkin Creek page – and the rest was history.

Greene was ready to sell and told the group that they were exactly the kind of people he wanted to take over because they respected what he did, and at the same time, take Elkin Creek to the next level.

Which they did.

A typical week inside the winery one might catch a glimpse of Nick in the kitchen, who caters Elkin Creek’s weddings and special events, as well as baking the artisan bread and those delicious wood-fire pizzas you’ve seen on tables on Sunday afternoons. As for Louis, he’s the winemaker and an avid promoter of the Yadkin Valley AVA.

As for Jeroslow and White, they’ve taken over more of the administrative operations that keep the money flowing into Elkin Creek. “I take care of all the cabin reservations, do all the book keeping, work the tasting room, officiate many weddings and answer all general and wedding inquiry emails,” says Jeroslow.

White, after being married at the winery years back, has a soft spot in her heart, and now coordinates all weddings and special events held at the winery.

The winery overlooks The Big Elkin Creek and upon taking a walk along the property you’ll witness four acres of vines growing ripe with Merlot, Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon. And stepping inside its tasting room you’ll find a plethora of European-styled wines ready to satisfy your taste buds.

Expect to taste wine varietals in the likes of Chardonnay and Viognier as well as the soft white and Mistela, both blends. And for those red wine fans out there, Elkin Creek has you covered with Sangiovese, Chambourcin, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah as well as few blends.

With all these things going on, you’d think that White and Jeroslow have no time to relax and smell the blue flowers. And that might be correct, as Jeroslow responds, “Relax? What is that? I have about 4 projects going on: I am writing books and creating spiritual coaching programs. My one sacred self-care practice that I do daily is yoga. I love to get massages and listen to music.”

Elkin Creek has made a name for itself. From being established back in 2001, and going through an ownership change, the winery has always been on the forefront of the vinifera wine scene. Through time, the winery has seen thousands of guests come and go, but Jeroslow would like to see just a little more mouths from outside of the Tar Heel State.

“I think I would like for more people outside of North Carolina to become aware of the kinds of wine we make in the Yadkin Valley. We are making really nice European wines here.”