As Alley Twenty Six owner Shannon Healy said, North Carolina is full of great bars, but what makes his stand out? Alley makes its juices in-house and makes an effort to curate drinks based on guests’ preferences. The attention to customer service, fresh-made spirits and a picturesque alleyway outdoor setting have made the bar a finalist for a James Beard Award. Since its opening in 2012, Alley Twenty Six has helped get Durham patrons better acquainted with the craft cocktail concept and enjoyed critical and commercial success.

That Station puts music and community first. Those aren't empty words or just some corporate tagline. That Station is a genre-bending radio station in Raleigh, NC that lifts up local artists, highlights the good in the community, and brings listeners together with music. (It also happens to be part of Capitol Broadcasting Company, the parent company of WRAL.) That Music Fest is a two-day music festival featuring 25 North Carolina artists, including The Mountain Goats, Steep Canyon Rangers, Mipso, American Aquarium and Delta Rae. Program Director Chris Edge sits down with the WRAL Out & About podcast to preview the festival.

Farmers and vineyard owners are already seeing the effects that climate change will have on the wine industry. Grapes that make up favorite wines like Merlot and Pinot Noir are becoming harder and harder to grow. These grapes -- which have been around for centuries -- are being threatened by our changing climate. In this episode, we talk with Preston Williams, who owns a winery and event space in Norlina, NC. He just started a winery using muscadine grapes. Preston has been farming all his life and says that climate change is one of the challenges farmers just have to be prepared for.

Seven Springs Farm and Vineyard

This week, we go aboard the Battleship North Carolina in Wilmington with local paranormal investigators, The Ghost Guild. 

Learn more about The Ghost Guild - https://theghostguild.weebly.com/

It might be hard to believe but 61 years ago, history in North Carolina was almost irreparably changed when two nuclear bombs fell from a crashing military airplane, landing in a field near Goldsboro. Go with WRAL Tar Heel Traveler Scott Mason and Hidden History reporter Heather Leah on a trip to the site.

This week, we take a trip to Juniper Level Botanical Gardens in Raleigh to find out about this 28-acre campus. Tony Avent and his wife started Juniper Level Botanical Gardens in 1988. It is a nonprofit botanical garden in southern Wake County. In this episode, Tony speaks with WRAL multi-platform reporter Maggie Brown about sustainable gardening, the effects climate change has on North Carolina's biodiversity, and what's kept Juniper Level Gardens in business all these years.

This podcast was recorded LIVE at the Earfluence podcast studio at American Underground in Durham on March 16, 2022. During this episode, WRAL lifestyle editor Kathy Hanrahan talks with Durham Performing Arts Center's Community Engagement Manager Megan Rindoks.

We started working on this episode last month, weeks before Sola Coffee co-owner Jeanne Luther passed away. WRAL multi-platform producer Maggie Brown interviewed her husband and Sola co-owner John Luther at the cafe. He talked a little about Jeanne's health - words that are even more poignant since her passing last week.

We are "out and about" a lot and when we come home we just want to relax and not step on LEGO bricks. For tips to help us declutter our lives, WRAL contributor Tara Lynn turned to Sarah Valeri with Hello Clutter. She has some great tips, especially for our closets!

This week, WRAL contributor Sloane Heffernan takes us on a trip into the world of anti-aging products and treatments. It's time to take care of yourself, but how do you know what products will actually work?