Stoneledge Vineyard and Winery

Stoneledge Vineyard and Winery is located in Lometa and is owned by Greg and Deborah Gissler. Bob Wonacott is the winemaker for the winery. The winery had its Grand Opening on November 16, and we had the pleasure of visiting the next day.

The winery is easy to find on the country roads and once you find the entrance, you start the driving trek up the hill to the winery. But once you are at the top of the hill, you discover that the climb was definitely worth it with a wonderful view of the countryside. There is a large parking lot and a sizable walk to the winery. We discovered later that the current tasting room is only temporary as a new tasting room will be built closer to the parking lot. The current tasting room will then turn into a private tasting room.

Owners Greg and Deborah Gissler lived in Austin, but they purchased the Stoneledge Ranch property twenty years ago and moved there. At the end of 2014, they began creating their dream of owning their own vineyard and winery. The 11 acre vineyard began at that time, followed by the construction of the buildings.

Greg and Deborah Gissler greeted us outside of the tasting room and we walked a short distance to the edge of the hill. There we found a few different locations with chairs set up for your use to sit with a glass of wine and enjoy the view of the Colorado River Valley. If we were still giving out Texas Wine Lover awards for various winery-related things, Stoneledge Vineyard and Winery would definitely be in contention for best view.

Greg explained how the tasting room is actually the second floor, and the first floor is dug into the hillside and serves as the winery’s production area. Crushing happens outside the winery and then is pumped into the tank room below. The barrel room is in a building behind the winery and at an even lower level, and also built into the side of the hill to take advantage of the natural cooling. When it is time to fill the barrels, the wine is gravity fed from the production area to the barrel room. We learned the entire winery project has been 2.5 years in the making, and you can tell some planning has definitely gone into the construction of the winery.

After looking around outside, we headed into the tasting room to taste some wine. Behind the tasting bar are large windows where you can view the winery’s production area below. The tasting room has tables and chairs, or you have the option to sit at the tasting bar. There is a tasting fee for six wines, and the uncorked wines are poured using a measured pourer. You can purchase a meat and cheese tray, and since it was past our lunch time, we opted for one to snack on while we tasted the wines.

These are the wines that are available now:

• Chenin Blanc – Krick Hill Vineyard, Texas High Plains
• Isabella Rosé (100% Sangiovese) – Phillips Vineyard, Texas High Plains
  • Isabella Rose is their only granddaughter, so the name made perfect sense for their Rosé. Isabella Rose also loves to come to help out at the winery.
• Cabernet Sauvignon – Paka Vineyards, Texas High Plains
• Tempranillo – Bayer Family Vineyards, Texas High Plains
• Sangiovese – Phillips Vineyard, Texas High Plains
• Sweet Isabella Rosé (sweetened version of Isabella Rosé)

Stoneledge had a first Estate Rosé, but it quickly sold out. Well, actually they said they drank it all. The next Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, and Syrah Rosé Estate wine will be coming out soon.

There is a small gift shop with Stoneledge Vineyard and Winery clothing. A wine club is planned for some time in the future in addition to future events to be held at night.

When you are in the Lampasas and Lometa area, be sure to visit Stoneledge Vineyard and Winery. There are a lot of deer in the area, so be sure to enjoy the view and the wine but be careful with your driving.