New Texas Winery FlorVino Launches Texas Flower Wines

FlorVino, a new Texas winery, launches its one-of-a-kind flower wines in Texas during Galveston’s Dickens on The Strand. FlorVino produces its flower wines in Comfort, TX, and brings them to the public via their website florvino.wine with next-day delivery service for most regions in Texas. You can sample and purchase FlorVino’s flower wines or warm up with a delicious cup of mulled wine during Dickens in Galveston, TX, December 2-4.

Manny Ortiz, FlorVino’s general manager, first discovered the flower wines of the Spirit Hills flower winery in the Canadian Rocky Mountain foothills, just South of Calgary. “It was like a whole new world of wine,” said Manny, “Flower wines are so aromatic and have such unique flavors. I have spent my entire life in the fine dining world and instantly could see so many new ideas and food pairing possibilities. I am excited to have the opportunity to bring this to Texas and develop flower wines with flowers from this region that have cultural relevance here.”

Spirit Hills flower wines have been exported to Japan and Europe. In Europe, they have been served in fine-dining restaurants, among them Michelin-star restaurants. Eric Beaumard, winner of best sommelier in France and Europe, and vice-champion of the world sampled the wines with his entire team of sommeliers of the 3-star Michelin restaurant, Le Cinq, at the George V in Paris in 2019, and said, “The way Spirit Hills manages to craft such structure and balance with flowers, honey, and berries is impressive. I thought this could only be achieved with grapes.”

All the ingredients in flower wine come from flowers. The fermentable sugars come from flower nectar which consists of 70% to 80% moisture. It is harvested by bees and dehydrated to a moisture content of 17.8% or less and stored in the form of honey. During the winemaking process, the winemakers rehydrate the honey, turn it back in its liquid state, and then add other components of flowers which can include leaves, seeds, or fruit in the form of spices and herbs. They also add flower petals which give their distinct aroma and flavor to each of the FlorVino flower wines.

Flower winemaking is a unique craft. FlorVino turned to the best and asked the winemakers at Spirit Hills to craft flower wines specifically for the Texas market and with flowers from the region. FlorVino offers three distinct wines:

• Glory: a dry light-colored red crafted from wildflower nectar and hibiscus flowers and named after the 13 days of Glory at the Alamo. Glory pairs great with both red and white meats and is a great refreshing sipping wine.
• Peaches: a medium-dry white crafted from wildflower nectar and peach blossoms to honor the history of peach growing in the Hill Country region. Peaches pair fantastic with all salads and make a great pairing for cheese platters and chocolate desserts.
• Magnolia, a semi-sweet herbaceous wine with a powerful aroma and body. It pairs well with BBQ, Caribbean, and Cajun foods, or simply could be enjoyed as a white sangria over ice.

FlorVino also brings three flower wines from Spirit Hills to Texas:

• Dande: a medium dry multi-award-winning dandelion wine that has been served in Michelin-star restaurants in Europe. It is a great pairing for white meats, seafood, Italian foods, and curry.
• Wild Rosy: crafted from wildflower nectar and wild rose flower petals and a memorable pairing for cheese, chocolate, charcuterie boards, and Asian foods.
• YeeHaa!: the cowboy’s sangria to pair with all festivals, parties, BBQs, and great rodeo fun.

“We are excited that FlorVino will introduce the Spirit Hills flower wines to Texas and will be producing flower wines of the Texas region as well. It is great to see our industry grow with new wines crafted from different flowers,” said Ilse de Wit, president and CEO of Spirit Hills.

While the first batch of wines has been produced on behalf of FlorVino at Spirit Hills, going forward FlorVino will be producing these unique Texas flower wines at the facility of the Bending Branch Winery in Comfort, Texas. “It was our goal to work together with one of the best wineries in Texas to produce our flower wines,” said Manny.

Dr. Bob Young, the Bending Branch Winery co-owner and winemaker noted, “Bending Branch is a premier custom crush facility and top innovator in the industry. The creativity behind the FlorVino wines is synergistic with the pioneering spirit at Bending Branch, so we’ve welcomed their use of our facility.”

There will be no tasting room for FlorVino’s wines at the Bending Branch location. Instead, FlorVino is securing listings in other already existing tasting rooms and urban wineries in various cities across Texas. “It is our goal to bring our flower wines directly into the communities of our customers,” said Manny Ortiz. “If you want to see where our wines come from, simply go enjoy the wildflowers of Texas while sipping a nice chilled FlorVino flower wine. The entire beautiful state of Texas is where the flowers grow that are in your wine.”

Re:Rooted 210 Urban Winery, San Antonio’s premier urban winery in Hemisfair, is the first place you can sample the FlorVino flower wines or enjoy a glass. “At Re:Rooted, we seek the best wines Texas offers. In addition to the Re:Rooted 210 wines produced by our sommelier, we feature a curated list of 50+ wines from across the state. We started this project to educate consumers about the unique terroir of Texas and the best resulting wines ranging from micro-production labels to historical brands. FlorVino’s flower wines are among the most refreshing wine innovations I’ve come across with thought-provoking aromas and a complex structure,” said sommelier and wine educator Jennifer Beckmann, owner of Re:Rooted.

FlorVino flower wines retail for $34 a bottle with a 10% discount on 6-packs and 20% off 12-packs. You can purchase Florvino flower wines at florvino.wine. Shipping within Texas is free for 6-packs and 12-packs and only $1/bottle extra for out-of-state orders. Restaurants, bars, and tasting rooms that are interested in adding FlorVino flower wine to their menu can obtain a wholesale account directly from FlorVino.