Posts Tagged Bed and Breakfast

http://www.messinahof.com/mhhillcountry

Messina Hof Winery and Resort located in Bryan and owned by Paul and Merrill Bonarrigo opened an extension to their fabulous winery in Fredericksburg on October 20, 2011. The new winery is called Messina Hof Hill Country.

In our last trip to Fredericksburg we made a point to visit the winery. It was very easy to find right on the stretch of highway 290 near Fredericksburg with the large castle tower in front of the winery.

Messina Hof Hill Country has ten acres which includes a Wine Garten, Manor Haus Bed and Breakfast, VIP Room, and Guest Center. The tastings are done in the large open Guest Center. You can also enjoy a glass of wine or flights of wine in the Wine Garten, an outside patio with seating. The Manor Haus at the rear of the winery and away from the highway has four individual retreats individually themed and decorated. Each Haus has its own private patio.

We parked and entered the winery through the tower’s front doors. We learned previously that VIP members at Messina Hof Winery and Resort in Bryan would get the same VIP benefits in Fredericksburg.

It was a Thursday night so fortunately there was a light turnout. We surveyed the large room we had entered. The large room, the Guest Center, is designed like a family room with a white grapevine carved Italian marble gazebo in the rear of the room. Tasting bars are on each side of the room with a nicely stocked gift shop at the front entrance. The VIP Room is to one side and can be reserved for a private occasion such as a dinner, private tasting, or a wedding.

Marisa greeted us to handle our tasting. She directed us to one of the tasting bars and for our tasting fee, handed us five wooden nickels. This was new to us so Marisa explained. She said since it can get busy, instead of trying to remember how many wines a person may have tasted, the taster gets five wooden nickels. One nickel can be used for one Messina Hof wine tasting or two nickels for one Paulo wine tasting. Since each wooden nickel has a $2 value, they can be used for flights of wine. The tasting fee also includes a Messina Hof etched wine glass.

As in Bryan at Messina Hof Winery and Resort, the tastings are poured from the bottle. Crackers are available to cleanse your palate between tastings.

It was nice to learn that Messina Hof Hill Country only serves 100% Texas wine. There are also some special wines made specifically for Messina Hof Hill Country which you cannot get in Bryan. The special wines have different labels from the normal Messina Hof labels and are special blends of some of their most popular wines. At the time of our visit, there were 45 wines available for buying or tasting.

Since the Houston Rodeo’s International Wine Competition had recently been held and Messina Hof’s 2004 Solera was declared the best Texas wine, that was one wine we immediately wanted to taste. It was a delicious wine and a bottle found its way to our car.

Free tours are available of the facilities including the four villas. Live music is available on Saturdays in the Wine Garten.

We were told that a vineyard would be planted in early 2012. Recently I made a one day road trip to Fredericksburg and stopped by the winery to pick up some more wine. Sure enough, a vineyard had been planted in front of the winery. It doesn’t look like much now since it is brand new, but when it grows more it will look fantastic in front of the winery. Marisa was working and even though it had been a couple months since our last visit, it was a pleasant surprise when she recognized me and wondered where Gloria was. The friendly and welcoming staff that is always present at the Bryan location of Messina Hof has definitely extended itself into Fredericksburg too.

There is no doubt Messina Hof has another winner at their Fredericksburg location and we highly recommend you stop by to visit when you are touring the Fredericksburg wineries.

When visiting Texas wineries, one of the most fun things to do is actually stay overnight at a winery. A lot of times the winery may have live music at night which lets you enjoy the music with a bottle of wine and not have to worry about driving home or to the local hotel. How nice it is to just walk to the winery’s lodging to stay the night.

We have stayed overnight at a couple winery’s and have enjoyed every minute. In our last trip to Fredericksburg we were considering staying at a winery, but the ones we were aware of were already booked. Hence the birth of this post which is what Texas wineries actually have lodging.

Doing a little research of websites and knowledge from visiting wineries, we found the Texas wineries which have lodging. If we have missed one, please let us know and we will gladly add it to the list so everyone will know it is available. The following are listed in alphabetical order within each region we have on the website of hopefully all the wineries in Texas.

Central:

Flat Creek Estate – http://www.flatcreekestate.com

Flat Creek Estate does not advertise they have a bed and breakfast on the website because it is one room and is booked a lot for weddings. It can be reserved for up to 6 people. There is a full kitchen and patio with grill. They also book their Vintner’s Quarters often on the nights of their special dinners which is done on the first Saturday of every month plus a few additional “theme dinners” throughout the year.

Grape Creek Vineyards – http://www.grapecreek.com

The Villa has two bedrooms and two baths and can accommodate up to 4 adults (no children). Included in staying at the Villa is a complimentary bottle of one of Grape Creek’s fine white label wines and a continental breakfast each morning.

Messina Hof – Fredericksburg – http://www.messinahof.com/mhhillcountry/manor_haus.htm

Messina Hof’s new location in Fredericksburg includes four separate buildings for staying overnight. Staying there also includes a basket which includes breakfast breads, fruit, juice, and a bottle of Messina Hof sparkling wine.

The Vineyard at Florence – http://www.thevineyardatflorence.com/luxury-rental-villas

The Vineyard at Florence has luxury rental villas available for a night or weekend. The vineyard or hill country views are magnificent from their villas and inns. Breakfast is included at some of the villas. If you stay on a Saturday night, the Vineyard at Florence has a very nice Sunday brunch.

Northern:

Enoch’s Stomp Vineyard & Winery – http://www.enochsstomp.com

The log home next to the winery is usually used as a retreat and conference center and includes several bedrooms, a kitchen, and several areas to meet in large or small groups. The entire home is required to be rented.

Enoch's Stomp Lodge

Kiepersol Estates – http://www.kiepersol.com/bed_and_breakfast/index.shtml

Kiepersol Estates Bed & Breakfast has five luxurious rooms. Three rooms have private porches and hot tubs. The Bed & Breakfast is adjacent to the restaurant which is open for dinner and provides fine dining, and also includes your choice of a breakfast.

Los Pinos Ranch Vineyards – http://www.lospinosranchvineyards.com/#/cottage-rentals/4532262596

Two cottages are available at Los Pinos Ranch Vineyards for either two or six people. Los Pinos has live jazz music on Saturday nights with dinner available, so a Saturday night stay is perfect for enjoying the music and retiring to a cottage in walking distance.

Tara Vineyard & Winery – http://www.tarawinery.com/wp/rooms

The Inn at Tara is a mini-mansion located among Tara Vineyard & Winery’s vineyards. A complementary winery tour and tasting is given to guests and dining is available at the Cellar Door which is located at the winery. Also available is a cottage for up to six guests.

Tara Vineyard & Winery Bed & Breakfast

Southeastern:

Bernhardt Winery – http://www.bernhardtwinery.com/bb.asp

The loft at Bernhardt Winery is located above the winery and overlooks the countryside. Enjoy the quiet of the country in their Tuscan style guest room. A bottle of wine is included along with wine and hors d’oeuvres at sunset and a continental breakfast in the morning.

Clear Creek Winery, Vineyard, & Resort – http://www.clearcreekvineyard.com

New winery Clear Creek Winery has a luxury bed and breakfast called the Clipper House Inn. The property has seven antique filled cottages located steps away from the winery.

Messina Hof Winery & Resort – Bryan – http://messinahof.com/villa_bed_breakfast_bryan.php

The Villa at Messina Hof Winery & Resort hosts 11 beautifully appointed rooms richly decorated with timeless antiques and furnishings from different romantic eras. Included with your stay is a winery tour and tasting, evening wine and cheese reception, and a European-style champagne breakfast.

Messina Hof Villa Bed and Breakfast

Western:

Unfortunately we could not find any wineries located in the Western region which include overnight lodging.

Day 2 arrived in Fredericksburg and the weather was rainy and a little cold. The weather couldn’t decide what to do while we were there. One morning it was near 70 and the next it would be in the 40′s and rain in between. I had previously made an appointment with Don Pullum (@akashicvineyard), winemaker at Sandstone Cellars Winery, to visit first thing they opened on Friday so we started our northern trip to Mason, TX. We had only “talked” through Twitter so I was looking forward to meeting Don in person.

Gloria has never really cared for any Viognier wines or even blends which contained Viognier. I have even tried hiding the fact a wine had Viognier and she has been able to pick out even 10% of the grape present in a blend. We have not tried a red wine with Viognier in it which I learned is sometimes used to soften a wine predominantly made with Syrah. I was unaware of red wines with Viognier so I was sure Gloria didn’t know either. Noticing that the Sandstone Cellars 2010 XI was made with 5% Viognier, I told Don in advance not to mention that fact.

Don Pullum and Jeff

We arrived at the winery and met Don who was ready for us to begin a tasting. Don had lined up the bottles for us to taste in a particular order and I noticed the XI was near the end. He explained in detail about each wine as we all swirled, sniffed, and sipped. We learned a lot from Don about the wines and the history of Sandstone Cellars and Mason County.

When we got to the XI, I was hoping Don remembered not to say anything about the Viognier and true to his professionalism, he skipped over that fact. While we tasted the XI, Don was talking and we were looking at each other. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Gloria for the first time bend down to look at the bottle which detailed the grapes used in the wine. We both chuckled because we knew what she was looking for. Sure enough, she admitted it tasted different and she somehow picked out the 5% Viognier in the red wine. Don was even impressed. There must be something with that grape that affects her taste buds.

During the tasting we met and talked with co-owner Scott Haupert, who we had previously met last year when we visited Sandstone Cellars Winery. We had a great visit and it was a pleasure to meet and talk with Don and Scott. After buying a few bottles, we asked for an empty box too as our trunk was starting to get full and there’s nothing worse than bottles bouncing around and especially breaking. Our next stop was going to be Junction Rivers Winery and since Don helped them with their initial wines, he gave us directions and we bid a fond farewell.

We found Junction Rivers Winery in Junction, TX and after walking in we were greeted by Joe King and Jeanie Brosius. They are a very pleasant couple and we immediately felt welcome. Joe handled our tasting while Jeanie finished helping another customer. They were talking about the flatbread pizza which had just been eaten and Jeanie asked if we had lunch yet. We had not and had planned on finding a place to eat after visiting Junction Rivers Winery. Jeanie provided a menu of food choices and there were a couple items which were not on the menu, including the flatbread pizza. We thought that sounded good so we ordered some while we did our tasting.

Joe and Jeanie

Since the winery had recently opened, Joe explained about the winery and their philosophy, both with the future of the winery and helping the town of Junction. We enjoyed the four Texas wines they currently have and our pizza arrived. What a great choice! The flatbread pizza was definitely some of the best we have had. After complementing them on the pizza, Jeanie said her son was the chef who prepared it and she brought him from the kitchen so we could meet him. Joe gave us a tour of the production facility which is visible from the tasting room and we were able to sample two wines from the stainless steel tanks. He said Don Pullum thinks the Cab Franc they are making and which we tasted is going to be a hit. We had a great visit at Junction Rivers Winery and headed to our next new winery which was Kerrville Hills Winery.

By the time we arrived at Kerrville Hills Winery, it was raining pretty steadily but that didn’t deter us. We were the only visitors initially in the winery and we tried their three wines. Brenda, the tasting room manager, gave us a tour of the production facility and they have an amazing facility which rivals larger wineries. For having only three current wines, they have plenty of room to grow and the winery should do very well especially now that they are on the Texas Hill Country Wine Trail.

Just up the road was our next winery, Santamaria Cellars, also a new addition to the Texas Hill Country Wine Trail. It had been confusing with the name of the winery since I have seen spellings of Santa Maria Cellars, SantaMaria Cellars, and the banner outside the winery said Santamaria Cellars. I was determined to clarify this mystery.

Co-owner Angela Santamaria met us at the winery and we got the answer to the mystery. The winery’s name should be Santamaria Cellars but labels had been produced incorrectly, website done incorrectly, etc. but their goal was to eventually get it all clarified. Martin Santamaria, Angela’s husband and the winemaker, was not at the winery because he was in downtown Fredericksburg at a store giving tastings and autographing bottles. We thought it would be fun to meet Martin (pronounced Marteen) since he was from Mendoza, Argentina and Gloria is also from South America. After tasting their very good wines, Angela said she was going to be meeting him at the store and we said we would probably be stopping by too after one more winery visit.

We went to Chisholm Trail Winery which we visited last year. We had met a couple at the Old Town Spring Autumn Art & Texas Wine Festival who were pouring wine for Chisholm Trail Winery. They said we needed to come back since they had changed the interior and put in a pizza oven earlier this year. We dried off from the still drizzling rain and shared a tasting at the winery. We had previously enjoyed Chisholm Trail’s wines and this time was no exception. Before we left we visited the pizza oven and the cook who showed it was a wood burning pizza oven with coals or wood always burning in the oven. Next time we visit, we’ll have to be hungry so we can try the pizza.

We then went to Fredericksburg to find the store where Martin Santamaria was doing tastings. We found the store which had been redesigned from the last time we were there. Angela Santamaria was already there along with Martin who we then met. We had a nice conversation, tasted a little more, and bought a bottle of their wine so Martin could autograph it. That’s when it occurred to us we should have been doing that all along whenever we met a winemaker or owner. We would solve that situation soon.

Martin and Angela Santamaria with Gloria

After saying goodbye, the Lighted Christmas Parade was about to start on Main Street. A large crowd was looking forward to this parade which begins the German holiday weekend. We watched some of the parade while it was sprinkling and then went to eat at the Auslander German restaurant where we finished the day.

Please read the posts for Day 1, Day 3, and Day 4.

Last year we went to Hill Country and Fredericksburg wineries three times. Unfortunately this was before we decided to start a blog and so we had no specific information about the wineries other than our memories. We started taking photos of the outside of a winery in the last trip just to help us remember what the winery looked like which we visited. But for some unknown reason, the photos taken with two cameras disappeared. So it was time to make our first trip back west this year and visit some wineries we had previously visited and also the many wineries which had opened up since last year.

We planned a four day trip so we didn’t have to rush. Thursday was day 1 and I was given the task of planning the trip. I decided we would visit some wineries on the eastern side of the Texas Hill Country Wine Trail and then work our way to Fredericksburg. Unfortunately not all wineries are open on Thursdays which meant we could not visit some of the wineries we were hoping to visit. We learned one thing on this trip though; visit on a weekday to a winery and most likely you’ll have the place to yourself or only a few people there, which leaves lots of time to talk to the people at the winery.

The plan came through nicely and we first visited Spicewood Vineyards soon after they opened. The last couple times we visited Spicewood was on a weekend and the tasting bars were always full. This time at Spicewood Vineyards we had the place to ourselves and enjoyed their Texas wines. Unfortunately tours are only given when the winemaker is there (call ahead) but we were able to sneak a peek at the underground barrel cellar directly below the tasting room.

Flat Creek Estate

Next up was Flat Creek Estate which we decided in our first TX Wine Lover Awards had the best tasting room. We weren’t disappointed this time either, although some other wineries may be in contention for our next awards. We did a tasting and I mentioned how I had previously tried to find out if tours were available for just two people. We learned the tours are available only for groups of 8 or more. Luckily since it was quiet and Tim Drake, winemaker, was handling the cold fermentation, we got a short impromptu tour which was nice. We then met co-owner Madelyn Naber who arrived to decorate the Christmas tree in time for the wine trail holiday ornament pickups. We had a nice chat with her and Amanda, our tasting guide and Flat Creek Estate event coordinator.

We decided the next winery was going to be Bell Springs Winery which we had also visited last year. At our last visit, a bachelorette party arrived just before us so the winery was crowded and we did not get to really relax. This time, again being a Thursday, it was just us enjoying Bell Spring’s wine.

Texas Hills Vineyard

It was getting close to closing time for most of the eastern wineries and so we had to visit Texas Hills Vineyard next before they closed. We met co-owner Gary Gilstrap at the Texas Hill Country Wine Trail’s roadshow in Houston and he said next time we were at the winery just ask for a tour. We arrived to do a tasting and briefly met Gary’s wife Kathy. During our tasting we asked about a tour. They checked with Gary, who happened to be upstairs, and he came down to give us a very interesting tour. They do not use oak barrels at all but control everything in their stainless steel tanks with micro-oxidation, oak chips, and everything is computer controlled. Definitely a modern operation. I heard earlier in the week how Jim Johnson from Alamosa Wine Cellars was going to do some bottling with a mobile bottling unit which comes to their winery and helps them bottle their Texas wines. We learned Gary owns that unit and helps over 20 Texas wineries do their bottling. After leaving, we realized we had forgotten to take a photo of Gary during the tour. We’ll have to remedy that next time we visit.

I previously contacted co-owner Chris Brundrett from William Chris Vineyards about visiting them on Saturday, but since they were open a little later on Thursday and are not that far from Texas Hills Vineyard, we decided to stop and hope Chris was there. The winery was doing their Christmas decorating and we were fortunate Chris was present and we got to meet him. He is a fun guy and we had a great conversation with him and the other employees. We were then lucky to get a taste of their upcoming Blanc du Bois which they will be bottling this week. It was definitely one of the best Blanc du Bois Texas wines we have had.

We said goodbye to Chris and the others and headed toward Fredericksburg. On Saturday we were going to visit some of the wineries along Highway 290. After leaving William Chris Vineyards, we once again realized we had forgotten to take a photo of Chris and would stop again on Saturday to hopefully get a photo. We need to get better at this.

Since the newly opened Messina Hof Hill Country was open until 7:00pm, we decided to stop in to hopefully reduce the quantity of wineries we wanted to visit on Saturday. It was already dark (I really don’t like daylight savings time) but Messina Hof Hill Country looked great lit up at night. As previously mentioned months ago, we have been to Messina Hof Winery & Resort many times as we are VIP members and have tasted most of their many Texas wines, so we were not sure what we would be tasting differently. The one wine I definitely wanted to taste again though was their 2004 Solera which was just declared the best Texas wine at the recently held Houston Rodeo’s International Wine Competition. The Sherry did not disappoint us at all. Unfortunately the price had risen with the menu even having a crossed off price and hand-written new price. I don’t blame them though as I am sure many people were coming in to try the best Texas wine. We did learn that Messina Hof Hill Country only serves 100% Texas wine so that was nice to learn. There are also some special wines made specifically for Messina Hof Hill Country which you can’t get in Bryan at the main winery location. It was too dark to really tour the villas so we thought about doing that next time.

Messina Hof Hill Country

We checked into our hotel, no bed and breakfast on this trip, and ended the long day with a relaxing dinner at the famed Cabernet Grill.

Please read the posts for Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4.

http://www.whitehousewinery.net

White House Winery is located in White Hall near Navasota and is owned by Gary and Margo Hahne. The winery was planning on opening around the Conroe area but there were so many rules and regulations within the city limits that it was decided to find property in the country and deal with the less taxing county rules. They found a nice piece of property on FM 362, very near Retreat Hill Winery and Vineyard, and started building their winery.

When I first found out about the winery, I kept waiting for the notice they were open so we could visit. The winery was hoping to open earlier in 2011 but officially opened on August 27, 2011. The winery later asked for volunteers to help them bottle their Riesling and we offered our services. It was a perfect combination to visit, do some tasting, and also help bottle some Texas wine.

We arrived at the winery and entered the tasting room. In the back of the tasting room building is a small production room containing stainless steel tanks. A house is next to the tasting room which will be remodeled into the winery’s bed and breakfast.

We met John Martinez, Director of Sales, and he offered us a bottle of wine to take outside and drink while we waited for the other volunteers to arrive. There are some nice tables and chairs outside where we sat to drink our first taste of White House Winery wine, which was a Chardonnay.

While we were enjoying the wine, a music stage was being built nearby so it could be on time for the winery’s first series of concerts which was started on Sunday, November 6th. Other volunteers came and after a nice conversation with them, we headed into the tasting room to help with the bottling. There we met Gary Hahne who was already in the process of filling the bottles with Riesling.

We all took turns at the various stations and began to help: cleaning bottles, corking, labels, and foil. While helping, I learned more about the winery from Gary. The reason for the delay in opening the winery was a common problem among wineries and that is problems getting approval on wine labels. Gary said he had a nicely detailed label but had to keep taking things off the label to finally get approved and it was a three month process. The labels have a drawing of the future White House Winery and a rooster. The reason for the rooster is the last name of Hahne means rooster in German.

White House Winery makes five wines and four of the five are made with 100% Texas grapes from the Lubbock area. Because of the label problems, the word Texas to identify a Texas wine was not put on. Now that they know the way around label issues, this should be resolved in the future. The four Texas wines are a Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese-Lenoir blend, Chardonnay, and Riesling-Blanc du Bois blend. The fifth wine made from California grapes from the Lodi region is a Zinfandel. The bottles are corked and if you go for a regular tasting, you can stand at the tasting bar and for a small fee, you can taste their current five wines.

While taking a break, I met and spoke with Margo Hahne. She explained how Gary’s Opa (grandfather in German) helped during the redesign and reconstruction of Lyndon B. Johnson’s ranch house near Stonewall, TX during the 1950′s. Gary also had grown up in the Stonewall area. During the Johnson Administration, LBJ’s ranch house became known as the Texas White House. White House Winery’s name is inspired by that and they are designing their winery to look like the Texas White House. A design of what the final winery and land will look like is on the tasting room’s wall and it should be a very stunning winery.

A vineyard is scheduled to be planted in the spring of 2012 with Blanc du Bois and Lenoir. In April 2012, the winery plans to start a weekly concert series.

Overall, the evening was fun helping with the bottling, tasting some great wines, and making new friends. We will definitely make a point to visit again to watch White House Winery as they grow.