The Winery at Seven Springs Farm hosted a special guest May 3, as Tennessee USDA Director Jim Tracy dropped in to meet the Riddle family and celebrate their success.

Tracy has been Tennessee's USDA director since November 2017, and since then he's been touring the state to meet farmers and farm businesses. A former District 14 state Senator with a degree in agriculture education, Tracy was complimentary of the farm, the winery, and the family's contribution to Union County's economy.

Randy Boyd is running for Tennessee Governor. Literally. Boyd, a self-described "serial entrepreneur" and former Tennessee commissioner of economic development, has committed to run 537 miles and visit all 95 counties in Tennessee. And on August 16, his run brought him to Union County for a lunch with Union Countians at the Winery at Seven Springs Farm.

Out Highway 61 between Maynardville and Luttrell, there's a small farm winery founded on a big dream. That dream belongs to Nicole "Nikki" Riddle, owner of The Winery at Seven Springs Farm. She leased 44 acres for a vineyard and winery from her parents, Donna and Rick Riddle, and opened the winery in 2015. Her fiance, Michael Coombs, is part of the winery as well.