There was a time when you’d be find olive groves and wine grapes exclusively in Southern Europe or Northern California, where plentiful sunshine, cool air, and well-drained soil yield bountiful harvests and exquisite olive oils and wines. Now, North Florida and South Georgia are entering the fray with a growing number of producers committed to growing olives and grapes that yield products pleasing to any gastronome’s palate.

The growing is not without its challenges. Both crops are susceptible to bacterial diseases. Both crops struggle in prolonged heat and humidity and need well-drained soil and a bit of cool air to thrive. But local growers are partnering with researchers at places like the University of Florida and Florida A&M University to create hybrids that can overcome these conditions and, perhaps, create new and thriving industries in the region. 

“It’s a tough business to be in,” says Clayton Moss, co-founder of Farmer’s Daughter Vineyards in Pelham, Georgia. “But you can do it if you’re patient and willing to put your neck out there.”

WINE

The first Florida settlers attempted to make wine with vines they brought from Europe. Those grapes didn’t fare well in the heat and humidity, so the newcomers turned to local muscadine grapes instead. Though Florida has had a large muscadine grape industry today, the market for muscadine wine is small compared to wine created from the Vitis Vinifera grapes behind bottles such as Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Recently, University of Florida researchers grew five Vitis Vinifera varieties in Citra, Florida that yielded 13 cases of wine, signaling that other vineyards could pursue this crop.

In the meantime, there are wineries in the region trying to see if they can make fruit-based wines and muscadine wines that aren’t sickly sweet. Whatever your taste may be, here are a few destinations worth the trip.

Photo Courtesy of Farmer’s Daughter Vineyard

Farmer’s Daughter

Clayton and Renee Moss are a third-generation farming family who own 2,000 acres in Pelham, Georgia, where they grow cotton, peanuts, and pecans. When beetles infested the property’s timberland, the Moores cut down the forest and in 2014 planted Blanc du Bois grapes instead. 

After all, Clayton had studied grapes and olives as alternative crops in college and wanted to make the most of his research. In 2015, the couple built a winery on the property, naming it Farmer’s Daughter to honor their then 2-year-old daughter, who helped them plant the grapes. The following year, they opened a tasting room in Thomasville, Georgia that also serves charcuterie, cheese, and sweets.

stompedingeorgia.com

Photo Courtesy of Chateau Le Couer

Chateau Le Coeur

About a two-hour drive from Tallahassee sits Chateau Le Coeur, which has been working closely with the University of Florida to develop the state’s first Vinifera vineyard. In 2025, Chateau Le Coeur created two wines from this partnership, one of them a dark, fruity red called Genial, which is French for great. The owners also grow lavender and craft chocolates that they sell on-site. Eventually, they hope to turn the vineyard into an agritourism site and wedding venue. 

chateaulecoeur.com

Photo by Lindsey Masterson

Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards

The Clermont-based vintner grows its own muscadine grapes and partners with other growers throughout the state and in California that contribute to its acclaimed wines, among them a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Chablis blend that each won five awards in 2025. The winery offers guided tours and tastings every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It also sells glassware, culinary items, and gift baskets in its wine shop. On weekends, Lakeridge features food, live entertainment, and wines on its vineyard green. And in December 2026, it will host a two-night interactive drone show on its grounds along with live music and food.

lakeridgewinery.com

OLIVES

In Florida, hurricanes and disease have been unkind to citrus farmers in recent years, leading to financial losses and substantial declines in production. Some researchers believe that olives may prove to be a good crop option in the Sunshine State. Meanwhile, in Georgia, olives haven’t been widely grown since the Civil War, but a group of ambitious farmers are working to change that.

Photo Courtesy of Georgia Olive Farms

Congaree and Penn

The Jacksonville-based restaurant boasts a 330-acre farm that grows Arbequina olives, which the restaurant presses into its own extra virgin olive oil. You can stock up on the Congaree and Penn website, which also sells pecan oil, jelly, jam, honey, brown and white rice, and several rice-based products like rice grits and fish fry. Or you can buy a farm pass and purchase goods on-site after a day of hiking, birdwatching, and wildflower-picking. The farm also hosts oyster socials with live music and a six-course tasting menu experience amid the muscadine vines. This year, the farm will begin offering overnight stays.

congareeandpenn.com

Photo Courtesy of Georgia Olive Farms

Georgia Olive Farms

During the Civil War, William T. Sherman burned down every olive grove—except for one outside of a monastery—in Savannah. In 2009, five farmers in the southern part of the state banded together to bring the crop back. They got a grant, planted a grove in Lakeland, Georgia, and set up a mill. A few years later, they harvested the first olives grown east of the Mississippi River since the nineteenth century. Since that moment, they’ve grown the industry in the South both by expanding their groves and showing others how they can create their own. Georgia Olive Farms also produces extra virgin olive oil collected from a first press of their fruit. Esquire magazine called it a smooth oil that tickles the back of your throat “with a faint peppery kick, the way it should.”

georgiaolivefarms.com

Photo by Lindsey Masterson

Fresh Press Farms

This Iron City, Georgia farm creates cold-pressed cooking oils from sunflower seeds and olives.
It grows, harvests, presses, bottles, and distributes its products in Georgia to ensure the best possible quality. And it chooses to use recyclable aluminum bottles to protect the quality of the oil and safeguard the environment. Another popular product is its Peach Cider Vinegar, rich in probiotics, prebiotics, and other enzymes that support digestion, blood sugar levels, and overall wellness. 

freshpressfarms.com