Posts Tagged Tour

http://www.bluffdalevineyards.com

Bluff Dale Vineyards is located in Bluff Dale and is owned by David and Theresa Hayes while David Hayes handles the winemaking. A vineyard was planted in 2001 and the winery was opened in 2004.

We were meeting a Facebook friend Laurie Ware and her husband Shelly at Bluff Dale and we arrived just before they did. Driving up to the winery the vineyard is on the right and up on a hill is the winery. Being on the hill, the winery awards a beautiful view of the countryside with hills and the vineyard below.

Chris Hayes, son of David and Theresa, greeted us as we entered the tasting room. Soon Laurie and Shelly arrived and we all began a tasting. There is a fee for a tasting for whatever wines they have except the Port which is an extra cost. Tastings are done either sitting at the tasting bar or at a table. The bottles use corks and the tastings are poured from the bottle. Crackers are available for cleansing your palate during the tasting. Food can be purchased during or after the tasting and includes items such as cheese and salami, smoked salmon, and edamame.

Chris said they use approximately 85-90% Texas grapes in their Texas wine. When they cannot get Texas grapes, they get grapes from California. Chris explained the vineyard below the winery now covers one and a third acres. Next year they plan on having a total of 5-7 acres of vineyards after planting.

During the tasting we reached one red blend called Paragon. Gloria immediately said it smelled like cotton candy which indeed it did. Because of the unique aroma, Chris said he had the thought to set up a booth at the State Fair and offer liquid cotton candy. I’m sure it would be a hit!

Tours are possible at the winery if they are not busy and fortunately for all of us, Chris was able to take us on a tour of the production facility. He explained they do everything by hand from harvesting the grapes, making the wine, and all the way to bottling. He even joked during our tasting if there was an air bubble in the wine bottle, he probably did it. During the tasting we were able to meet both David and Theresa Hayes, and during the tour David talked to us more. Bluff Dale Vineyards produces 5,000-7,000 cases of Texas wine a year.

Chris gives tour at Bluff Dale Vineyards

There is a gift shop at the winery with books and other items. A wine club was available from the winery called the Bluff Dale Wine Society but they still inform people of upcoming events. An outside covered patio area is used for live music events every month in addition to other social events.

Chris Hayes, David & Theresa Hayes

After the tour and checking out, we thanked everyone for their wonderful hospitality. The prices for the bottles of wine at Bluff Dale Vineyards are very reasonable.

Bluff Dale Vineyards is on the Way Out Wineries wine trail.

http://brennanvineyards.com

Brennan Vineyards is located in Comanche and Pat and Trellise Brennan are the majority owners. In 2002 a five acre vineyard was planted and the winery opened in 2005. Today they have three vineyards with a total of 37 acres. They grow about 12 different kinds of grapes and sell some grapes to other Texas wineries. Some of the grapes grown are Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Viognier, and Nero d’Avola.

As we drove to Brennan Vineyards, I received a message on Twitter from Todd Webster (@txviognier), winemaker at Brennan Vineyards. He said if we were coming up a certain road, make a short trip and we could see their biggest vineyard. We did so and it was the biggest vineyard we have seen so far. We learned later from Todd they mechanically harvest their grapes which makes sense with the amount of vineyard acres.

Upon entering Brennan Vineyards, you encounter a campus comprising three buildings. The first building is the historic McCrary House tasting room and gift shop built in 1879. The center building is the winery and the last building is the Austin House Events Center. The events center was built in 2006 and has 3,700 sq. ft. with a patio and outdoor fireplace.

We entered the tasting room and Tina Marken, Hospitality Director, was behind the tasting bar. Since Todd Webster was expecting us, she texted him to let him know we arrived. As we were waiting for Todd, Tina started us on a tasting.

Tina Marken

All tastings are complimentary and you can do a tasting while sitting or standing at the bar. Tastings are poured from the bottle. There is sometimes a limit to the number of wines tasted but usually it is whatever they have opened. Crackers and chocolates are provided during the tasting to cleanse your palate and enhance your tasting.

Brennan Vineyards try to use 100% Texas grapes if they can. If they are unable to, the grapes come from California. Brennan Vineyards uses both corks and screw caps. Two types of labels are used: Austin Street and Brennan Vineyards. Austin Street is for their value line and the premium line is Brennan Vineyards. The Brennan Vineyards line uses 100% Texas grapes. The Brennan label also used to be straight varietals until the introduction of Buffalo Rhome. Brennan Vineyards produces about 5,000 cases of wines a year.

Soon Todd Webster arrived and we got a chance to meet in person. He took over our tasting and was able to provide insight into the wines he had made. As mentioned previously, his Twitter handle is @txviognier which makes sense since Viognier has been Brennan Vineyard’s signature wine since they opened in 2005.

Todd Webster, Trellise & Pat Brennan

During our tasting Pat and Trellise Brennan arrived in the tasting room so we got a chance to meet them. They, like most people in the wine industry, were very nice. We finished our tasting after Todd introduced us to a couple of his latest wines, Dark Horse made with Nero d’Avola which was bottled in March 2012 and Lily which is a White Rhone style blend with 53% Roussanne, 25% Viognier, and 22% Grenache. Since Grenache is a red grape, after they harvested, it went directly into the press so they got white juice out of it. As with the other wines we tasted, both were very good.

A question came up prior to our visit to Brennan Vineyards and now we had the perfect person in Todd to answer it. We had tried a Cabernet Sauvignon elsewhere but were then told it was mostly Cabernet Sauvignon but had a tiny bit of a few other grapes. We asked what percentage of grapes the single varietal wine has to be in order to call it just that variety on the label and the answer is 75% in Texas. The percentage is different in other states.

Tours are available at Brennan Vineyards so Todd then took us on a tour of the campus. We went first to the winery where we saw the production facility with the stainless steel tanks and the laboratory. We learned that the bladder press is used for two hours with the white wine program but the red wine program only uses about one hour.

Todd Webster in barrel room

We then went to the barrel room where their Texas wine is aged. We learned due to requests, Brennan Vineyards will be making a Chardonnay soon and will be making it buttery and oaky, but not with too much oak. Speaking of oak, we learned from Todd that a barrel usually loses 50% of its oak the first year, 30% the second year, and 20% the third year. The fourth year will then be neutral with no oak and primarily used for just storage. They can add oak chips though at that point to get the oak flavor again.

One interesting thing we haven’t seen before is Brennan Vineyards stores their barrels at a slight angle so the bung hole (the barrel hole) isn’t directly on top of the barrel. The reason is because they do not top their barrels with the wine. If they top the barrel and leave the barrel upright, they end up losing wine every month because of evaporation and have the chance of oxidizing the whole barrel. Rotating the barrel helps prevent that and they do not open the barrel during the year.

We then went to the events center. The basement of the events cellars is where the many cases of wine are stored. Upstairs in the building is the large room with tables set up for events such as weddings, live music, and other special occasions. Wine dinners are held the second Friday of each month except August. A balcony overlooks one of the vineyards along with Pat and Trellise Brennan’s house nearby.

We concluded our tour and returned to the tasting room. There is a gift shop present with clothing and wine accessories. A wine club is available from the winery.

It was a pleasure to meet Todd, the Brennan’s, and Tina and we had a wonderful time visiting Brennan Vineyards.

Brennan Vineyards recently joined forces with Lost Oak Winery and McPherson Cellars to form 4.0 Cellars in Fredericksburg. Brennan Vineyards is on the Way Out Wineries wine trail.

http://www.texaslegato.com

Texas Legato is located in Lampasas and is owned by Sulynn and Bill Bledsoe. Bill Bledsoe’s twin brother Gill owns nearby Pillar Bluff Vineyards. The name of the winery comes from the Italian word legato which means a gathering together of family or friends.

Texas Legato planted three acres of vineyards in 2002. Their first harvest was in 2005 and the tasting room was opened February 2007.

We visited Texas Legato over a year ago but have seen Sulynn Bledsoe at a couple wine festivals since then. She has remembered us, primarily me, because she says I look exactly like a friend of theirs. Sulynn always jokes she is married to the better looking brother even though they are identical twins.

When we entered the winery on this visit, Sulynn again recognized us which is always a nice welcome. Sulynn was finishing cleaning up the winery and we then began a tasting. You can sit at the tasting bar or a table for a tasting and we chose to sit at the tasting bar.

Sulynn Bledsoe

There is a tasting fee but the fee is waived with a purchase of a bottle. Nuts, cheese, and chocolate are given during the tasting to cleanse your palate or to enjoy the food pairing.

As Sulynn poured our tastings from the uncorked bottles, she said they try to use 100% Texas grapes but out of their 11 Texas wines they have right now, 7 of them are made with Texas grapes. If they cannot get Texas grapes, they use California grapes. Texas Legato grows Malbec, Merlot, Petite Sirah, and Petite Verdot in their six acre vineyard. They get their Chardonnay from a vineyard in Comanche and the Malbec comes from three vineyards. One of the vineyards used is Red Star Farms in Midland.

One of their noted wines is Sweet Peggy-Sue named after Sulynn and Bill Bledsoe’s mother Peggy. This is a gold medal winner at the Lone Star International Wine Competition and is a blend of Chenin Blanc and Orange Muscat from the High Plains.

There is a nice gift shop with wine accessories, olive oils, and clothing. Tours are given if they are not busy.

Texas Legato makes about 700 cases of Texas wine a year.

Sulynn said they have some plans for the future. They would like to build a patio next to the winery and then they could have events such as live music. She is also planning on starting a wine club this year.

Texas Legato is on the Texas Hill Country wine trail and the Way Out Wineries wine trail.

http://pillarbluff.com

Pillar Bluff Vineyards is located in Lampasas and is owned by Peggy and Gill Bledsoe. Gill Bledsoe’s twin brother Bill owns nearby Texas Legato. The winery was bonded in 1999 and the tasting room was opened in 2002.

When we re-visited Pillar Bluff Vineyards, the winery had not changed much, but on this visit we took time to admire the surroundings. There is a large pavilion next to the winery which is used for weddings and other private events. Behind the pavilion is the vineyard which we learned later is six acres comprising different red varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, and Malbec, and Petite Sirah. The white varieties include Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Viognier, and Sémillon.

We were visiting on a Friday morning when the winery opened. Gill Bledsoe was behind the tasting bar and he welcomed us as we entered the tasting room. He started us on a tasting as we sat at the tasting bar. Tastings can also be done while sitting at a table. Gill uses both corks and screw caps in his wines and he poured the tastings from the bottle.

There is a tasting fee for all wines currently available which was a total of nine wines during our visit. The tasting fee is refunded on a bottle purchase. Crackers with a bleu cheese dip were served to cleanse our palate.

All of Pillar Bluff’s wines are made with 100% Texas grapes except the Viognier which comes from California. We were enjoying our tasting as another couple came and we made room for them at the tasting bar. At that time we were tasting a Merlot and Gill said he had a 2010 Estate Reserve Merlot for us to try which was not on the list of wines to taste. It was harvested at 28 brix, made all natural, and sold for $40. He went to the back room to get it and the other couple got to enjoy the estate wine too.

When Gill got to his Ruby Port, he served chocolate with it. All in all, it was a great tasting to start the day.

Pillar Bluff Vineyards has a small gift shop with wine glasses and other wine accessories. If they are not busy, tours are available. There is a wine club and live music is held at the winery. Pillar Bluff Vineyards makes approximately 1,200 cases of Texas wine a year.

Pillar Bluff Vineyards is on the Texas Hill Country wine trail and the Way Out Wineries wine trail.

http://www.sansabawinecellars.com

San Saba Wine Cellars is located in the town of San Saba and is managed by Mike and Lynn McHenry. Mike is the General Manager/Managing Partner for their group of investors who all happen to be wine aficionados. The winery is scheduled to early June, but we got an invitation by Mike and Lynn to visit the winery in advance.

I have been following their well-documented website and Facebook page with the construction of their winery and it looked like it was going to be very nice. From looking at the photos in advance, the tasting room building was making good progress and the production facility next door had a concrete slab poured and steel girders installed to begin the construction of the building.

Lynn and Mike McHenry

Mike McHenry told me to call him when we got close to San Saba and when I called him, he said to meet them in the bank building across from the winery. We arrived and Mike greeted us as we were parking in the back of the bank. He took us inside where we met his wife, Lynn. They explained we were meeting there because the winery was still under construction, but they would be giving us a tour of the winery.

We stood across the street from the winery and they explained the buildings which would comprise the winery. Facing the winery, they actually bought three unused buildings and are in the process of renovating them. The middle building was a 1926 commercial building and will be the tasting room. The left building built in 1910 will be leased, and the right building was torn down. In its location they are building the 7,800 square foot production facility for the winery which will contain a barrel room, tank room, and allow special private tastings. The new building will be designed on the outside as if it was built years ago to fit in with the decor of the street. In fact even though it will be one large building, it will look like two buildings from the outside and even looking in the windows, the viewer will think they are two separate buildings. Mike stressed keeping the history there was very important and the story is almost as important as the wines.

As we walked across the street, we learned the McHenrys have been growing grapes for 11 years in their four acre vineyard called Cherokee Creek Vineyards. All their previous harvests have been used by Alamosa Wine Cellars. They decided by using their years of growing experience, it was time to open a winery and the town of San Saba with its classic, early 20th century historical structures made a perfect location.

Rear entrance through courtyard

We went around the back of the building since that is where customers will most likely be entering. The front of the winery is just street parking but in the rear is a large city parking lot. The rear of the winery will also have a courtyard where customers can enjoy a glass of wine.

Walking into the rear of the winery from the courtyard will be a kitchen to the right where food such as cheeses can be purchased. The winery’s tasting room is a beautiful display of workmanship with the stone arches and walls. Mike said the tasting room was designed so a customer would have a feeling they could be in Texas, Italy, or anywhere in the world. They could look to the rear door and see the courtyard, to the front would be the historic buildings, and there will be two windows looking into the barrel room. The tasting room will have a television showing video loops of the winery’s construction, the vineyard, and other items to give interest for the customer.

Tasting room

The winery will have a wine club called the 300 club which will be a unique club. To become a member of the limited club of 300 members, all you have to do is buy two cases of wine the first year, three cases of wine the second year, and so forth. The members will receive a bronze plaque with their name which will be installed in the winery, hence becoming part of the history of the winery. 300 club wine members will get special tastings in the barrel room with their membership. Even though the winery has not opened and no wine has been tasted, Lynn said they already have 30 members. There will also be another wine club which is the case buyer’s club and all you need to do is buy one case of wine and you’re in.

As mentioned, special tastings will be held in the barrel room and Mike jokingly said when customers are in the tasting room, they’ll wonder how they can get into the barrel room for the special tasting taking place. The tasting room is close to completion and Mike said if the counter top for the 43 foot long tasting bar was in place, we would be doing a tasting there.

We walked into the production facility, or what will soon be the production facility. Right now there are just steel girders framing the outline of the building. Mike said the equipment for production will arrive in June. There will be 14 tanks with storage of 21,000 gallons. The production facility will have the capacity to produce 10,000 cases of wine a year. They have already made 1,256 cases of wine and initially they are expecting to make 3,000 cases of wine a year. French oak barrels, one time used, are already waiting in California for delivery. Besides producing their own wine, they will have the ability to do custom crushing for others. They plan on starting to crush their own fruit this year.

Mike and Lynn were proud when talking about their winemaker, Penny S. Adams. Penny graduated from Texas A&M and is the first Texas woman Wine Master. She also is one of four viticulture advisors for the state of Texas and covers the Texas Hill Country. Other viticulture advisors in the state are Fritz Westover for the Gulf Coast, Dusty Timmons for West Texas, and Fran Pontasch for North Texas. I can see why the McHenrys are proud of their winemaker.

Mike asked if we had heard of the new wine trail starting soon and we had not. The wine trail will be called the Top of the Hill Country wine trail. Wineries on the wine trail will be:

• Alamosa Wine Cellars
• Fiesta Winery
• Perissos Vineyard and Winery
• Pillar Bluff Vineyards
• Pilot Knob Vineyard
• San Saba Wine Cellars
• Texas Legato

July 13th through the 15th will be an event for the new wine trail simply called a Beach Party.

The building was impressive, the plans sound great, but the real question now came down to, “how good is the wine?” We went back to the bank building and Mike started a tasting for us. He informed us all the wines so far were made at McPherson Cellars. Their winemaker Penny Adams has known Kim McPherson for a number of years so they collaborated on the initial wines for San Saba Wine Cellars.

The first wine to taste was a Viognier which of course was very good. 224 cases of Viognier were made.

While tasting, Mike made a point to indicate they would be taking the best possible grapes and making their wine the best possible way. The county used to be a dry county until recently so that makes it easier for them to open. Speaking of opening, they will be opening with a beer and wine license because the winery isn’t finished yet, so the TABC will not issue a winery license. The beer and wine license will allow them to do tastings and let wine be bought at the winery much like a bar. However, it will not allow them to do things such as ship wine. The completion of the TABC license may not happen until September.

The next wine we tasted was a 2011 Wedding Oak White made of Vermentino, Trebbiano, and Pinot Grigio of which 224 cases were made. We fell in love with this wine!

The name Wedding Oak came from a historic Wedding Oak tree in San Saba located just northwest of the winery which has served as a symbolic marriage site for over 400 years. Their Wedding Oak Wines reflect the union of Texas wine grapes with Old World winemaking styles.

Wedding Oak tree

The next wine was the 2010 Tioja. This contained all Texas fruit which was bottled in January with 392 cases and it contains 60% Tempranillo, 20% Mourvèdre, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Once again it was another great wine.

Next was a Sangiovese which was made with Texas fruit from Kim McPherson’s father’s vineyard, “Doc” McPherson’s Sagmore Vineyard, which got its name because the original trellis wires sagged noticeably. 192 cases of this was wine made.

Last to taste was 2011 Wedding Oak Bridal Blush. There were 224 cases of this wine made which consists of Chenin Blanc, Muscat Canelli, Orange Muscat, and just one percent of Ruby Cabernet for the color. Oh yes, it was another great wine. They said there are weddings which will be happening soon and the wedding parties wanted to get this wine and the Wedding Oak White to serve at their weddings.

It is rare when we walk out of a winery and like all the wines, but that is what happened in this case. We tried to come away with buying some cases of wine, especially the Wedding Oak White, even offering a donation, but again due to the TABC rules it was not possible. We were able to come away with a cork though which will tease us until we get to drink their wine again.

Lynn and Mike invited us to visit again when they are open and if we do not make it soon, the 2012 San Saba River Pecan Jam in October is now on our calendar. Unfortunately the winery is a distance from where we live, but they are planning on having a fixed cost shipping rate for cases of wine which will make it very nice to get wine delivered.

We thanked Lynn and Mike McHenry for their hospitality and drove away very happy there is going to be a great Texas winery opening up soon.

San Saba Wine Cellars is currently on the Way Out Wineries wine trail.