Another new winery debuting on the Texas wine road this spring located between Stonewall and Fredericksburg is one more winery with roots elsewhere other than Texas. Surely if you have traveled Highway 290 lately you have noticed the newest winery sign; I’m not sure how you could miss it. It rivals the Hollywood sign in California, which is exactly where this new winery hails.
Photo: Halter Ranch
While I missed attending the “soft opening” as well as the industry night which happened one week prior to the media event, my curiosity was growing, but I chose to delay my attendance until the media event to make my first visit. I decided to do some homework while waiting for the doors to open, however. I have gleaned most of my information from their media packet, press release, and their website. A main point brought up is they’re a Certified Organic Vineyard with environmentally responsible grape-growing practices. They state in their media packet that they desire to “enrich and preserve the environment for generations to come.” They do this by employing organic farming practices throughout their property, abstaining from the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. They strive to conserve soil and water. Halter Ranch achieved its California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) Certification in 2023. The primary vineyard and winery sit on a 2,700-acre estate with a state-of-the-art production facility in Paso Robles. They have a second tasting facility in Temecula, CA.
Indulge me for a moment as I try to briefly explain what I learned when I researched the difference between Organic and Sustainable.
There are many rabbit holes to travel down in order to get to a brief definition of organic. The whole topic is interesting enough to deserve its own article at a later time. But right now I decided to start with the CCOF and use their information to answer my organic question. They have a document that was very helpful. It says: “Organic food is produced without using harmful or toxic pesticides, sewage sludge, or petroleum-based synthetic fertilizers, genetically modified organisms, bioengineering, or ionizing rations.” The CCOF is a group that helps people obtain their certification. There are five steps to be certified by the USDA: develop an organic system plan, implement the organic system plan and have it reviewed by a certifying agent, receive inspection, have a certifying agent review the inspection report, and receive a decision from the certifier. What it boils down to is…it ain’t quick or easy to become certified organic. This whole process takes at least three years. Is it worth it? In some cases, it is when it is feasible to do so.
Sustainable agriculture, defined very quickly according to the USDA National Agricultural Library, is “farming in such a way as to cause little or no damage to the environment and therefore able to continue for a long time; seeks to prevent the depletion of natural or physical resources, so that they will remain available for the long term; and to make the best use of nonrenewable resources.”
Definitely not the same thing…but close.
So what, you might ask, brings a central coast California winery to the Hill Country of Texas? Our natural beauty would be an obvious answer. According to Amie Nemec, in her article she wrote last April, the Halter Ranch team has also been “well aware of the long history of grape growing in Texas.” The property they found is set on 32 gorgeous acres full of amazing oaks where they have erected a 13,000-square-foot tasting room featuring two dining rooms. The onsite restaurant features a menu completely sourced in Texas and will serve dishes that will complement the Halter Ranch wines which currently includes one Texas wine.
When you arrive and pull through the gate, you will be driving through their Texas estate vineyard, a one-acre planting of organic Blanc du Bois. The driveway will meander for several hundred yards until you arrive at their architecturally stunning tasting room surrounded by landscaping featuring native plants and grasses. The first thing you can’t help but notice in the parking lot are several EV charging stations. One of the members of the media was taking advantage of the opportunity to plug in and “top off” his charge during his visit. A small group of us that had arrived at the same time followed the sidewalk around to the front of the building. We commented on how beautiful and natural the setting was.
At the entry is a massive gas fireplace as the focal point for a large seating area. We were greeted by a hostess who explained how the event would progress. We walked through the large glass doors and stepped up to the first large bar situated in the middle of the main tasting room. We were offered our first tasting which was a lovely 68% Grenache and 32% Mourvèdre Rosé produced with Texas High Plains organic grapes from Desert Willow Vineyards via Dr. Bob Young at Bending Branch Winery in Comfort. Halter Ranch winemaker, Kevin Sass has partnered with two Texas grape growers to harvest their organic grapes. There will also be a sparkling Cabernet Sauvignon. We took our glasses over to one of several high-top tables lining the interior wall where we could see out the floor-to-ceiling wall of windows overlooking the large outdoor patio. The patio was set up with outdoor seating groups and tables and chairs.
The second pour was a beautiful 2023 Effervescent Rosé made with 93% Grenache, 5% Picpoul Blanc, and 2% Mourvèdre. This lightly sparkling wine was served in a tall flute where the tiny bubbles danced. I’m not a big fan of sparkling wines, but this one was quite lovely and very delicate. I learned from the tech sheet on the website that the pale salmon color was achieved by lightly crushing the grapes and cold-soaking the juice on the skins for 24 hours. The wine was left for four months in stainless steel tanks allowing it to hold on to natural CO2. We took our glasses to explore the next room. This room had more floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking another section of the outdoor covered patio with more conversational seating. Inside, a large fireplace with a wide gas firebox broke up the expanse wall of glass. We chose a few selections from their grazing charcuterie table and sat at one of the tables in this main dining room. The Effervescent Rose’ went very well with the prosciutto.
The next wine was a 100% Viognier. The tasting notes offered suggested “apricot, marmalade, and honey.” I love websites with tech sheets on their wines. This wine saw 10 months in neutral French oak barrels and was stirred once per week for the first two months. While we sipped on this wine, we were able to look into the open-concept kitchen and see the chefs busily preparing an array of delicious sample-tasting bites.
I hurried through this wine as the next one began their series of red wines. The first 2020 wine was called simply CDP, which they playfully call their Côtes de Paso. It was an amazing true GSM Rhône-blend of 70% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 13% Mourvèdre, and 2% Tannat. The Tannat is more like the pinch of salt in your cookies. Do you taste it and know it is there? No, it is there to add just a touch of structure. The tech sheet offered that 92% of the wine was aged in neutral French oak barrels and 8% was aged in Concrete Hippos. Ok, that presents a funny mental picture, but actually think elliptical concrete tank or concrete egg.
Following the CDP was a 2021 Syrah called Block 22 Syrah (100% Syrah) from their Silver Label series. Again, tech sheets to the rescue as no information was offered on this wine. It has a great fermentation story. It was destemmed and fermented in a combination of new and neutral French oak barrels (50%/50%) with their heads removed. Another funny mental picture. The barrel becomes the vessel to both ferment and age the wine. Three to five daily punch-downs helped to extract flavors and tannins from the fruit and oak, and then aged for 18 months.
The final wine of the official tasting flight offered was called 2020 Ancestor. The label and the flight sheet showed this blend was made up of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Petit Verdot, and 20% Malbec. They make this wine every year, but not necessarily the same blend. It is named after the largest Coast Oak Tree in California that is located on their Paso Robles property, is centuries old, and takes more than eight people to reach around it. This vintage was destemmed and allowed to ferment in closed top fermenters with a couple of days of délestage followed by open pump-overs two to three times a day for an average of 16 days. It was then aged for 16 months in 60% new French oak 59-gallon barrels. This wine is luscious and velvety.
To the visiting consumer, Halter Ranch’s tasting room offers two tasting flight options: the Ranch Flight at $35 per person and the Silver Flight at $50 per person. Both options offer five wines to taste. Both options offer whites and reds on the list. The Ranch Flight offers the Texas Rosé, while the Silver Flight offers the Effervescent Rosé. These tasting fees are waived with the purchase of two bottles from their respective list and are complimentary for club members.
They have two customizable wine clubs that can be shipped or picked up. The Ranch Club has two shipments a year with options of six or twelve bottles, reds only, or mixed reds and whites. The Silver Label Tier is an upgrade from their Ranch Club and has three shipments a year with options of six or twelve bottles which includes the newest release of their reserve reds. The benefits are what you have come to expect with wine clubs…complimentary tastings, discounts, access to new and limited-release wines, but they have some unique perks that are available at their Estate property in Paso Robles. With both club memberships, you have privileges at the Halter Ranch Airport, use of five Estate lodgings, and admission to the Halter Ranch Railroad.
Club member discounts are also extended to Restaurant H located in the room adjoining the main tasting room. As I mentioned previously, you can watch the chefs through their open-concept kitchen as they prepare seasonal, organic cuisine, currently burgers, fish tacos, and sandwiches. At this time the restaurant stops serving at 3:30 p.m.
There is also a merchandise area, but it was getting late and I did not have a chance to peruse and shop, but as I looked through the door I saw clothing and wine essentials.
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