Posts Tagged party

In my last post in which I talked about Messina Hof Hill Country, I mentioned how VIP members at Messina Hof Winery and Resort in Bryan get the same VIP benefits in Fredericksburg. The full list of VIP benefits can be seen on Messina Hof’s website. Some of the benefits which we enjoy are the discounts, tour and tasting for 20 people, and private labels. One of the highlights is the quarterly VIP receptions where you get to don your winemaker’s red beret (did I mention you get a red beret too?) and enjoy two hours of drinking four Messina Hof wines, eating delicious appetizers, and mingling with other VIP members, not to mention the owners themselves.

The first VIP reception of the year occurred today and was called the Birthday Bash VIP Reception to celebrate Paul V. and Paul M. Bonarrigo’s birthdays. Paul V. is turning 65 and his son Paul M. will be turning 30 in April. We checked in upon arriving and Paul V. along with Paul M. and his wife Karen greeted us at the check-in location. Messina Hof considers the VIP members part of their “family” and it is readily apparent whenever you visit Messina Hof. Paul V.’s wife Merrill was not at the check-in location at that time, but we met her soon as she greeted other members of the “family” to ensure they were doing well and making sure everything was okay. Also playing nearby was Paul M. and Karen’s daughter Sophia Marie.

The VIP receptions take place at different locations at the winery during the year and since it was a beautiful day like last year’s Birthday Bash, it was held outside in front of the winery. At the check-in we picked up our wine glasses and the first table we saw was pouring the George Bush Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. As with most of Messina Hof’s wines, it was very good. The next wine was located at a nearby table and was the Rodeo Cuvee Port Special Reserve. Usually it’s recommended to save Ports to last but we decided to go for it and it was a great decision.

Later back by the pond we found Mike, an always fun and friendly employee, pouring the other two wines: Mama Rosa Rose and Merrill’s Vineyard Muscat Canelli. There were also cheese and fruit trays available there. Walking around were employees with other hot appetizers which were delicious. A live band was playing in front of the winery to entertain the guests.

I had a moment to speak to Paul V. later and he confirmed what I heard. His lower end wines will be using Nomacorc synthetic corks to avoid cork taint, but the Paulo and other higher priced wines will continue to use natural corks. He also admitted he is now a Twitter addict. If you follow @Messina_Hof on Twitter and it ends in PVB, it came from Paul V. If it ends with MB, it came from Merrill. If Paul continues his new addiction, I wouldn’t be surprised we will soon see a Twitter account just for Paul.

Soon it was time for Paul V.’s greeting to all “family” members. The entire Bonarrigo family was there including his mother 90 years young of age standing in front of a large birthday cake. He told us how the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo’s Champion Wine Auction and Dinner had just been held the day before and the top Texas wine of 2012, Messina Hof’s Solera, had a 9 liter bottle sell for $105,000 which is a record for a Texas wine. He said the previous record was $60,000. Paul mentioned how a couple had just been married at the winery yesterday by Paul (yes, he can legally marry people) and they had the most interesting vows he has ever heard.

Paul V. introduced the rest of his family and turned the microphone over to his son. Paul M. told us Sophia Marie was turning two this year and they are expecting their first son on July 18th. Of course true to tradition, his name will be Paul Bonarrigo.

Three raffles were done including a cooking class, an all-day harvest package, and a harvest grand finale ticket. We all then got to eat a slice of the large cake. Special cases of wine were available for purchasing which included some of each of the four wines being served.

Overall, it was another great time at a VIP reception. If you live somewhere near the Bryan area, the VIP receptions are a great way to meet other VIP members and enjoy some great benefits for being a Messina Hof wine lover. Join the VIP Club, wear your red beret, and meet us at the next one!

http://www.haakwine.com

Haak Vineyards & Winery is located in Santa Fe, Texas and is owned by Raymond and Gladys Haak. Raymond Haak first started experimenting with the Blanc du Bois grape in the early 1970′s and was one of the first wineries in the country to cultivate Blanc du Bois. The first commercial wines for Haak Vineyards & Winery was in 2000 and today they make seven different Texas wines from Blanc du Bois.

If you are planning on doing a tasting, you first take a tour and then do your tasting. The last time I visited Haak Vineyards & Winery, Yvette was my tour and tasting guide. There is a fee for tasting and you can choose between two plans. The lower price allows you to taste four wines chosen by Haak Vineyards and Winery and the higher price called the VIP tour allows you to select your own seven wines to taste in addition to getting a logo wine glass. I chose the VIP tour since I wanted to taste particular wines, and the wine glass certainly didn’t hurt.

The tour starts out of the tasting room and goes to the back where Haak Vineyards & Winery maintains three acres of Blanc du Bois grapevines. The winery overlooks the vineyard in addition to two covered pavilion areas which allows events to be held rain or shine. We first stood under a gazebo which makes a nice setting for a wedding.

Music events are held at the winery usually on Saturday and/or Sunday nights. The first time we visited Haak Vineyards & Winery was for a birthday party while listening to one of the live bands. A full time kitchen staff is available for all the catering needs you may need.

One little tidbit of information is 2010 was the first time Haak Vineyards & Winery made estate wine. Other grapes come from the Hill Country and Yvette thought the Cabernet was made with out of state grapes.

We then went to the cellar of the winery. The winery consists of more than 25,000 square feet and the 1,800 square foot cellar is used for storing and aging wines in oak barrels. The oak barrels are all American oak with medium toast. The cellar also provides room for special events. Also present is the Haak “Vino Viejo” or what they call their wine library. This stores bottles which will need longer aging.

After the cellar we were brought through the production area. We saw the crush pad and the outside of their estufa which is used to make their Madeira Texas wine. We learned the estufa is similar to a sauna and barrels of wine use the estufagem process, where the barrels of wine have been “madeirized” in the special, heated cellar. The temperatures of the wine in the estufagem average between 102°F to 106°F. Haak Vineyards & Winery’s estufa was completed in early 2006 and there are only three wineries in the United States today which still use the style of estufagem. Haak Vineyards & Winery is the only winery that uses the estufagem style for Blanc du Bois. Yvette said that Madeira can be kept opened for two years without affecting its taste.

We learned that Haak Vineyards & Winery is still using natural corks although they are considering using synthetic corks. They use carbon dioxide gas when filling their bottles.

We then got to do a tasting which you do while standing at the tasting bar. Wine crackers are provided during the tasting to cleanse your palate. The tastings are poured with measured pourers. As I said earlier, I had chosen the VIP tour so I could choose my wines. During the tasting Yvette mentioned Raymond Haak had just been in the tasting room and I said I was hoping to have met him. She tried to get him on the intercom but did not have any luck. That’s okay as we met him later at the Houston Wine Fest.

Jeff and Raymond Haak

There is a nice gift shop present with wine accessories, clothing, plus selected deli foods which make for a nice lunch or snack with their wines. A wine club is available providing discounts, quarterly shipments of wine, member-only events, plus other benefits.

I left after having a nice afternoon at Haak Vineyards & Winery. While entering my notes later, I realized I didn’t receive the logo wine glass which came part of my VIP tour. Oh well, perhaps next time.

One of the best things about Texas wines besides visiting Texas wineries is drinking the wine and especially enjoying the Texas wine with other people. This post is about two events we attended this past weekend which hold true to that principle.

Texas Wine Release Party

You may have read about our recent experience in bottling wines at Caldwell Family Winery & Vineyards. Chris Caldwell told us at the time he would be having a release party and we were hoping we would be invited. After all, we helped bottle two of the wines.

We did get our invitation along with quite a few other people. According to the tasting menu sent in advance, there would be free white and red wine flights with two wines each. You could also purchase an Eaglefire wine by the glass or bottle. A silent auction would also be held for a 6 liter magnum of their 2010 Eaglefire Muscat Blanc, which was a 2010 Houston Rodeo International Wine Competition Gold Medal winner.

The release party started at 6:30pm on Friday and we arrived around 20 minutes later. We didn’t know what to do since it was our first release party, so we ended up standing around until Chris Caldwell saw us and welcomed us. As we learned, it was their first release party too. A table was on the side with bread, cheese, and pita chips which Gloria fell in love with. At the rear of the room was the tasting table where Chris’s wife Yoli was doing the pouring.

We started with the white of course and had the Muscat Blanc which we had previously bought and loved. Since we didn’t know anybody else at the party, we stood around looking for someone for which to start a conversation. While doing so we moved on to the next white wine, their Blanc du Bois, another Texas wine. They also had a mead wine which had previously been made but never sold which was actually pretty good.

After we finished the two flights of wine, we decided on a glass each. My glass was poured and it was a very generous glass. One guy who was standing nearby said, “I want one of those too!” He looked like fun so I made a note to try and talk to him and his partner later.

We then headed to the table which had the silent auction items. One was the aforementioned 6 liter magnum and the other two were cases of wine. The labels from the Caldwell Family Winery & Vineyards white wines are actually from art drawn by Chris Caldwell’s children. The art was behind the silent auction table so it was fun seeing what inspired the actual label.

There was already one bid on the 6 liter bottle so I was prodded by Gloria to bid higher which I did. We would occasionally check back through the night and raise the bid.

I saw the opportunity to speak to the guy who made the generous glass comment and I’m glad I did. His name was Steven and his girlfriend is Amanda. It turns out that Steven is a sommelier and will be general manager of a restaurant opening on July 18th in Houston: Sorrel Urban Bistro (http://www.sorrelhouston.com). Note: unpaid plug. Besides having daily fresh fruits and vegetables, they will offer Texas wines. That news piqued our interest. Steven will be serving some Caldwell Family Winery wine in addition to some other Texas wines. We had a great conversation with Steven and Amanda during the night and promised we would definitely visit the new restaurant.

We went to visit the silent auction table again and my name was still the high bidder. Steven said the bottle would look great in his restaurant so I urged him to bid higher so he could get it, but he didn’t. As it turns out, the magnum was one of two bottles Caldwell Family Winery produced and that Gold Medal winning Texas wine was their first commercial wine.

While standing at the table, Chris Caldwell’s partner, Doug Webb, arrived who unfortunately arrived late because he had to be with someone at the hospital. His wife was helping Chris’s wife pour wine and we learned they have nine children.

Chris introduced us to Doug and they are both excited to start thinking about building the tasting room in Fredericksburg where the family owns 82 acres across from Grape Creek Vineyards. The plan is to start with the tasting room, then an underground cellar while production is still done in Houston, and then move production of their wine there. As mentioned in our previous blog post, Chris is insistent on eventually getting to 100% Texas wine. Doug said he was hoping to run the tasting room as that is where his previous experience would be helpful. Chris was really happy with the night saying they may have more investors lined up which will make opening the tasting room even more possible.

During the evening we also met Fritz Westover, who is the viticulture advisor for the Texas Gulf Coast region which includes the areas east of Austin and south of Tyler. In simple terms, he helps people with their vineyards. He and Chris were excited about a palette of Blanc du Bois grapes which had just come in and we got to taste a grape. It tasted like a regular grape to us so it is impressive what a winemaker can do with them.

The release party was supposed to finish at 9:30pm but we ended up closing it down with a few other people at 10:30pm. Oh, and I couldn’t convince anybody else to bid on that 6 liter magnum of wine (LOL) so after getting Chris and Doug to autograph it, I happily took it home where it will make a nice addition to our bar.

Private Texas Wine Tasting

We joined Messina Hof Winery & Resort‘s VIP club earlier in the year. One of the benefits with being a VIP member is you get a private wine tasting and tour for 20 people. We arranged our invitation list and the tasting was scheduled for 1:30pm on Saturday. We arrived at the winery and shortly thereafter everybody arrived on time.

We waited for the tour to start in the wine bar, and Mike, one of our favorite tasting people at Messina Hof, said it was time for our tour which he would give. Mike is a great guy and a lot of fun, so we knew everybody would have an excellent time.

Mike took us outside and gave a little history of Messina Hof and the retail building which we were just in. We then went to the nearby Villa which is Messina Hof’s bed and breakfast building where ten rooms are available for a romantic stay. We have stayed there before and highly recommend it.

After the villa, we visited the vineyard of Black Spanish grapes where we got to taste some of the soon-to-be-harvested grapes. The production facility came next with the crush pad and back inside a cool building where the bottling is done.

The next part was what everybody was waiting for, especially after being in the heat for a little while, and that was the wine tasting. We sat in a private room and Mike gave us an introduction to the four wines we would be tasting. Before tasting each white or red wine, he instructed us on how to properly taste including trilling for white wine and clucking for red wine.

We were able to taste a Paulo wine and then finish with a Tawny Port. During the tasting a fruit and cheese tray was available for everybody to eat. At the end of the wine tasting, everybody was able to keep their Messina Hof wine glass.

We were thanked by everybody who joined us and they all said they had a great time. It looks like we had chosen the perfect wine drinkers to join us.

The Vintage House Restaurant, which is also part of Messina Hof Winery & Resort, beckoned some of us and eight of us enjoyed a late lunch. Overall, it was a great day and we look forward to doing it again next year.