Follow in a forty-five-year tradition and drink to your health at Natchez’s landmark Old South Winery. Started shortly after the end of Prohibition, the family-owned business blossomed from Natchez’s best-kept secret to one of the finest muscadine wineries in the country. Today, visitors to Old South Winery can tour the operation and choose from nine muscadine wines in red, white, and rosé and one blueberry wine to taste test and take home.
The winery traces its roots to Dr. Scott Galbreath Jr. (Doc) and his wife, Edeen. At an early age, Doc was taught how to make muscadine wine by his German grandmother, who would bring her homemade wine to parties and holiday events. Later in life, when Doc desired to drink wine for its health benefits, he set out to make his own. The wine press started running in 1979, but Mississippi law at the time prevented Old South from advertising or even spreading the word around. It was six years before they could start letting the world know about their new venture.
The muscadines (which are native to the coastal southeastern United States) and blueberries are locally sourced from Mississippi farms and crushed and pressed within hours of harvest to maintain the fruit’s freshness. Old South’s wines are known for their distinctive fruity flavor notes, the result of aging in stainless steel rather than wooden barrels, and are available in dry to lightly sweetened varieties.
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Photo courtesy of Visit Natchez CVB
Try muscadine wines at Natchez's Old South Winery
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Photo courtesy of Visit Natchez CVB
Today, visitors to Old South Winery can tour the operation and choose from nine muscadine wines in red, white, and rosé and one blueberry wine to taste test and take home.
“We do everything here [at Old South] except the growing,” said Scotty Galbreath IV, grandson of Doc. “We buy around 100 tons of muscadines a year and 15,000-20,000 pounds of blueberries. Once they arrive, we press the fruit, and then ferment it for six to eight weeks. After that, it ages for six months and settles out before we bottle it.” Once the process is over, the family begins looking toward the next harvesting season, when the process will begin all over again.
Doc and Edeen’s son, Scott III, now owns the winery and serves as chief winemaker, creating wine using the same methods he learned from his dad. Alongside his sister, Diane, and his four children, Scott keeps the operation thriving and growing, offering the country’s largest selection of muscadine wines. They have exciting plans in store for the future, including moving to a new location and expanding to host events.
Old South Winery is open Monday-Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm, for tours and wine tastings. No appointments are needed. oldsouthwinery.com
