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Bull City Ciderworks

Within Lexington’s historic Depot District, Bull City Ciderworks welcomes guests to their family-friendly outdoor lawn complete with fire pits and picnic tables, and inside their spacious tasting room and production facility, recently relocated from Durham.

Each of Bull City’s unique cider flavors (strawberry and habanero, tart cherry, blueberry and lemon, and ginger and tahini, to name a few) starts with the same base cider recipe, free from artificial flavors and colors, sweetened naturally by apples.

“You can mix any flavors together because the base is all the same,” says Manager Tish Smith, who recommends combining Sweet Carolina (infused with local honey) and Cardinal Cin (infused with cinnamon), when available, to create a Snickerdoodle cookie-esque flavor.

“We have our own honeybees and make our own honey for flavoring,” says Smith.

Weekly events such as karaoke, live music, and food trucks draw frequent crowds. bullcityciderworks.com

Goose And The Monkey Brewhouse

Take a short stroll from Bull City Ciderworks to another popular Depot District destination, Goose and the Monkey Brewhouse, which offers a 3-for-1 punch on local collaborations — serving Perfect Blend Cafe coffee, roasted in-house, brick oven fired pizzas from Pour Folk Provision Co., local wines, and their own inventive craft beer (Cheerwine Lime Lager, anyone?). gooseandthemonkeybrewhouse.com

Childress Vineyards

For an expected taste of Italy, visit the Tuscan-style buildings and grounds at Childress Vineyards, framed by gorgeous rolling hills lined with grape vines.

Owned by Richard Childress of NASCAR’s Richard Childress Racing, Childress Vineyards focuses primarily on European grapes and produces 80,000 cases of wine per year, which is likely to increase with the opening of a new production facility this fall.

Enjoy the on-site restaurant, a wine flight, and frequent live music under the gazebo.

“It’s everybody’s happy place,” says Chelsea Manring, communications manager.

Experience the best that Childress has to offer through the Signature Wine & Food Tasting Experience, which pairs six courses of sophisticated small plates with the winery’s elite wines. childressvineyards.com

Elevated Wake Park

“It’s a great way to get into the sport (of wakeboarding),” says Clark Davis, instructor and jack-of-all-trades at Elevated Wake Park. “And easier than a boat.”

A suspended cable pulls up to seven riders at a time through a circular course, which Davis describes as a floating skate park, on a small lake — the only one of its kind in North Carolina.