Duchman Family Winery’s 2010 Vermentino

We received the product for review and all opinions are our own.

The 2010 Vermentino from Duchman Family Winery has been getting a lot of press with its recent availability and top wine bloggers have been commenting on the wine. Duchman Family Winery is obviously excited about the wine with winemaker Dave Reilly even saying, “The 2010 Vermentino is the best wine I’ve ever made.” The 2010 Vermentino is made with grapes from Bingham Family Vineyards in the Texas High Plains.

I received a sample of the wine but since the purpose of this blog is not to do wine reviews, I decided to do something different and put the wine to a real test. I brought the bottle of Texas wine to a party and had various people taste it and give me their opinions. The people were not wine critics but just normal every day wine drinkers and actually, the majority of the tasters primarily drank red wine. If asked, I would tell them it was a Duchman Family Winery 2010 Vermentino but that was it, other than it was a Texas wine.

I was able to get eleven people to give their opinions and here is a sampling of the comments:

“Sweet yet a little bit dry. A very light taste, a light body for a white wine. Kind of a Pinot flavor to it. Tastes more like a Pinot than a Chardonnay to me, but I don’t know this grape.”

“Feels light, very dry, lightly fruity. Not overly sweet. It’s a bit tart for me. Smells light but it is not overbearing. I would probably drink this over most whites that I’ve tried but I’m mostly a red wine drinker.”

“It does have a light taste; very light, mild, almost delicate. It also has a fizz to it, a touch of effervescence in it. It has a fruity taste but I’m not sure that it’s anything else other than the grape that was used. I don’t really pick out that it’s apple or berry or anything, just very pleasant. It would be something nice to have with a meal that most people could accept as a nice wine to drink. Some people might think that some whites are too strong, too bitter, too green, but this one is very pleasant.”

“Smells a little bit like pineapple, seems a little bit sparkly ever so slightly, maybe a little bit sweet but mostly on the tangy side. I’m definitely thinking apples, like Russet apples. Crisp and fresh. Very fresh, very light, very drinkable, just the kind of wine that I would like.”

“Smells a little tart, crisp, dry but not too dry. It has a nice after taste. It lingers a little bit. Feels clean. It’s good.”

“It’s a little tart, green apple. It has a slight fizz about it. It has a nice finish. Really refreshing; I like it. If you turn the house up to about 100 degrees it would be nice on a hot day. It’s a nice refreshing wine.”

“Medium dry. Very light. Not too sweet. Elegant. I like it.”

“It’s very smooth. It’s between sweet and dry. It would be good with a fish. I really like it.”

The back label has a description of the wine and nobody ever saw it. The description on the bottle is:

Pale straw yellow with hints of green, our 2010 Vermentino is clean and crisp while still firm and fruity. Delicate nuances of white flowers and citrus blossom come through on the nose. Complex flavors of pear, grapefruit, and lime zest linger on the palate. Look to pair this wine with seafood, salads and the intense Texas heat!

Looking at the comments my tasters gave, they came up with some of the same words such as clean and crisp. I was impressed. The most important thing was every single person, even the red wine drinkers, said they liked it.

I am very glad Duchman Family Winery has changed the labels on their new wines. The previously clear label, especially on white wines, was very difficult to read what the wine was. The new label is a welcome change.

Full disclosure: I received this wine as a press sample.