Duplin Winery

History of Duplin Winery:

Duplin’s roots trace back to the 1970s when Muscadine grapes were considered a “wonder crop,” and a large winery out of New York was paying $350 per ton for North Carolina’s native grapes. D.J. Fussell, Sr. and his two sons, David and Dan, decided to grow grapes. Within three years, the price fell to $150 per ton and the Fussells were looking for a way to salvage their livelihoods.

In the early 1970s, the family decided to create a market for their grapes and started making wine. In-laws, grandchildren, aunts, and uncles all pitched in, helping to stomp grapes and bottle wine. While larger wineries flew their sales executives across the country in corporate jets, the Fussells traveled with their wines in a converted hog trailer. “We pulled up to this sophisticated wine distributor in Raleigh … it was the first time they had seen anyone deliver wine loaded in a hog trailer,” says David G. Fussell.

Duplin Winery grew rapidly. By 1983, production levels reached 200,000 gallons per year. However, the rest of the decade would prove disastrous for the winery. Changes in tax laws and new legislation resulted in plummeting sales, and the banks took everything but the winery itself. In order to meet payrolls, equipment was sold off and David Sr. took a full-time job teaching. He lost his house and admits that during these years he often thought about quitting. His wife, Ann, kept saying, “We make the best Muscadine wines in America. Let’s give it one more day and see what happens.” The Fussells’ resilience and commitment sustained Duplin Winery until customers across the state discovered its delicious Muscadine wines and spread the word.