Texas Wineries? Yer Darn Tootin'
From the blog Boots in the Oven:
If you ain't from 'round here, you might not know that Texas is a major producer of grapes. Wine grapes! Within just a few hours of Austin sit lots of adorable boutique wineries, some of them turning out products that are not just drinkable, but actually tasty.
I guess that shouldn't surprise me. I grew up a couple hours' drive from vineyards in Missouri. If Missouri can do wine, why not Texas?
Boots in the Oven visits Flat Creek Estate, in Marble Falls.
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12 Comments:
CAROL!
meg3j at 7:12PM on 03/03/09
Cool, Adam! Thanks so much for linking to us - I'm so glad you liked the post!
The New York Times has visited the TX hill country outside of Austin several times - here's a good Frugal Traveler piece on the German heritage, beer, and wine around here. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/travel/11frugaltraveler.html?_r=1&scp=6&sq=texas%20hill%20country&st=cse
Boots in the Oven at 7:44PM on 03/03/09
I remember writing a piece for a travel mag (AirfareWatchdog.com) on the new airport food court options. I think the there was a huge wine store and tasting room at one of the Texas airports which was a surprise to me. Now I know why!
jacquelinec at 8:58PM on 03/03/09
I tried two Texas wines from Becker, and really enjoyed both of them:
http://wine-by-benito.blogspot.com/2007/04/2005-becker-vineyards-iconoclast.html
http://wine-by-benito.blogspot.com/2007/11/2004-becker-les-trois-dames-claret.html
In the second review, I note how odd it was to find a really amazing wine selection inside a gas station outside of Dallas.
Benitowine at 10:18PM on 03/03/09
There are some excellent Texas wines out there. Inwood (Yoakum City) makes an outstanding Tempranillo. Macpherson (Lubbock) makes a lovely Viognier, and I recently tried their Sangiovese, which was terrific.
hungryinhouston at 12:41AM on 03/04/09
I live in Austin now. This is new to New Yorkers? Need I mention no city personal income tax, no state personal income tax, and great Tex-Mex and barbecue?
http://www.winefoodfoundation.org/
barrypopik at 2:26AM on 03/04/09
@barrypopik: Yeah. I know. It probably shouldn't be new to folks, but I don't know if people necessarily think Texas when they hear wine. For U.S. wine, I think of California, parts of the Pacific Northwest, and, probably just because I live near it, Long Island. I was surprised, too, to find out about wine production in the Finger Lakes region of western New York—mostly because I think of snow and cold when I think of that area.
The tax savings, Tex-Mex, and barbecue are tempting reasons to move to the Austin area. And it's a fun city.
Adam Kuban at 3:20AM on 03/04/09
I love Austin. We have friends there and when we visited, they took us to a vineyard. The whole landscape and feel was just different, and the wine was fantastic. It felt very unpretentious and easy to just go in with friends and enjoy the wine. I love Austin. We have friends there and when we visited, they took us to a vineyard. The whole landscape and feel was just different, and the wine was fantastic. It felt very unpretentious and easy to just go in with friends and enjoy the wine.
csbrown at 9:20AM on 03/04/09
And thanks for the shout-out for Missouri wineries. Before prohibition, MO was the second-biggest producer of wine in the U.S.
And you haven't lived until you've tried a norton (aka cynthiana) with chocolate!
lemons at 12:54PM on 03/04/09
One of the worst hangovers of my life came from spending a day at a Missouri winery. That sugary sweet mess will knock you on your back through Wednesday of the next week. Blech.
atammal at 4:03PM on 03/04/09
Central Texas is in the hill country, which averages 300 days of sunshine a year. It makes sense.
jayevee at 5:28PM on 03/04/09
I wouldn't have thought of Texas as a wine state until I visited a friend in Houston. I had the tasting menu at T'afia with local wine pairings, which led me to Haak Winery. Worth the trip! (25 miles outside of Houston) Try the madeira!
http://www.haakwine.com/
nyclocavore at 11:25PM on 03/04/09