Summer Fridays at Wedgewood: Free Wine & Cheese Tastings in Yadkin Valley

Nothing kicks off a Friday afternoon in wine country quite like free wine and cheese. As listed on Eventbrite, Wedgewood Cheese Bar is bringing back their Summer Fridays tradition: free drop-in wine and cheese tastings every Friday from 3 to 5PM, Memorial Day through Labor Day. No reservations, no formal schedule. Just show up.

The Perfect Friday Wind-Down

What I like about this one is the simplicity. You're not committing to a ticketed event or blocking out your whole afternoon. Anytime between 3 and 5PM, you walk in, pour a glass, and let someone who actually knows cheese walk you through why it works with what's in your hand. That's a good Friday.

For visitors building out a Yadkin Valley weekend, this is a natural anchor point. Most winery experiences are centered on production and estate pours, which is great. Wedgewood brings something different: a curated tasting that puts the food pairing front and center. It's low-pressure and genuinely educational without feeling like a class.

What to Expect

The format is casual by design. Staff will walk you through the day's selections and explain what's going on between the wine and the cheese on your plate. That kind of one-on-one guidance is useful whether you're just getting into wine or you've been tasting for years and want to sharpen your pairing instincts.

The 3PM start also gives you real scheduling flexibility. You could use this as a midday reset between morning and evening winery visits, or as the final stop before dinner. Either way, you're done by 5PM and your evening is still yours.

More Than Just a Tasting

While you're there, it's worth looking around at what Wedgewood carries beyond the Friday event. If you're planning a vineyard picnic or want to bring something home from the trip, their cheese and wine selection makes for a solid stop on its own. It's the kind of place that fits naturally into what this region is becoming on the food and wine side.

The weekly cadence also means repeat visits actually make sense. The selections shift, so you're not walking into the same tasting twice. Locals have made it a ritual. If you're visiting for the first time, it's an easy, no-stakes way to get your bearings before diving into full winery tours.

Planning Around It

Friday afternoons in wine country can see some traffic, especially once summer is in full swing. If you're pairing this with winery visits, think about your route before you leave. Coming from the north or east, build in a little buffer.

A straightforward way to structure your Friday: morning winery visit, lunch somewhere with a view, then Wedgewood from 3 to 5PM before checking into wherever you're staying for the weekend. That's a day that works.

The Summer Schedule

These tastings run Memorial Day through Labor Day, which covers the heart of the visiting season here. That's roughly 14 to 15 Fridays. Same time every week, same no-reservation format. For anyone who spends multiple weekends in the valley over the summer, it becomes an easy constant.

If you're just starting to plan, the schedule is simple enough that you don't need to overthink it. Pick a Friday that works, build your day around it, and go.

Explore More of Yadkin Valley Wine Country

If Wedgewood is your easy entry point into a Yadkin Valley weekend, my first-timer's guide to Yadkin Valley is the natural next read for how the rest of the days come together. The reservation guide covers which tasting rooms to call ahead for, and the lodging guide has the spots worth knowing about for an overnight.

Use the ValleySomm trip planner to build a full day or weekend around the event.

Plan Your Yadkin Valley Weekend

If you want to build a full itinerary around Summer Fridays and the wineries nearby, use the ValleySomm trip planner. It takes the guesswork out of sequencing your stops and helps you get the most out of your time in the valley.