“Texas Winegrowers” after Ten Years: Are we having fun yet!
Guest Blog by Les ConstableTexas Winegrowers List OwnerOwner/Winemaker, Brushy Creek Vineyardswww.brushycreekvineyards.com
What were you doing ten years ago? How many wineries were there in Texas?
Shortly after I made the decision to plant grapes (1991) and start a winery, I discovered a few minor problems.
It was not constitutional to have a winery in dry areas of Texas and most of Texas was and still is dry.
It was legal to have a winery but you could not sell wine from your tasting room in dry areas.
Later they passed a law allowing us to give wine away free [i.e. provide wine tastings], but it is still not clear to me how that business model might work.
I got mad and found people like Dr. Bobby Smith and Gabe Parker who had been fighting the good battle for a long time.
The Texas WineGrowers List on Yahoo Groups at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Texas_Winegrowers
was initially started to help get the word out about legislative issues so that we could get people in hearing rooms to support our cause.
I think it worked!
It is wonderful to see what has evolved. The Texas wine industry now has money for research, education, and marketing. Do not let anyone fool you about this. The Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association (TWGGA - www.txwines.org) and our working together as a wonderful team made this happen.
More comments and links to Texas wine Internet resources at:
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=907
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Recent VintageTexas Wine Blogs
Video: Black Spanish - The Mysterious Red Wine of Texas
This video features a tasting of Black Spanish red wine with Franklin Howser owner of Dry Comal Creek Vineyards. Several months ago, I blogged about my experiences on a Hill Country Winery tour with the grape known as Black Spanish (otherwise known as Lenoir) that has a long history both in Texas and Internationally. It continues to be one of the most highly accessed articles posted on VintageTexas.com during the past year. Black Spanish actually has many names that go back over a hundred and fifty years back into history: Jacques, Jaquez, or Jack, as well as El Paso, Burgundy and Lenoir. The credentials of Texas Black Spanish were established in the mid-1860’s when its vines were introduced by the millions into Southern France.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=852
Reflections on Drinking Local Wines
If you think, we in Texas are alone in the battle to gain visibility and respectability for our local wines, check out these sites across America that highlight the increasing movement toward drinking local wines……Drink and support your local growers and winemakers. The carbon footprint of winePosted on April 22nd, 2009 Saver Queen - Although I enjoy drinking fine frugal wines, I’ve never considered the carbon footprint of wine - until now. According to Dr. Vino, National Geographic just published a diagram that illustrates the carbon footprint of wine by region. The results are a bit surprising - it shows that it is actually far better for a New Yorker to drink wine produced in France, Chili, or even Australia than in California.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=859
From Nuances in Arboreal Green to the Nuances of Wine
My trip was from Houston to the Dallas - Fort Worth area and my destination was more specifically Grapevine where I will be sitting with others in the wine and restaurant trades to judge wines in the 2009 Lone Star Wine Competition. We will have the opportunity to choose the best wines from Texas and several other countries such as Australia, Canada, Mexico, and those in Latin America as well as an enlarging number of wines from many states, including Oregon, Washington, New York and California. It has been over five years since I judged in this event, and since then it is hard to imagine that there are now a hundred new Texas wineries.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=865
Video: Texas Port and Dessert Wines - The Perfect Ending but Possibly Much More
In the sixth and final Texas wine webcast, Merrill Bonarrigo of the Messina Hof Winery in Bryan, Texas, discusses Port, a variety native to Portugal, as well as other dessert wines that are thriving in Texas. She tastes Lenoir (Black Spanish) Port, and discusses late harvest Riesling, Muscat Canelli, and even a Texas Madeira, only one of three made in the United States.
It is my experience that people have an increasing penchant for sweetness these days. Many wine magazines now hype “Semi-Dry” as the “New Dry”. Why is this? Well, many folks came from a generation that started the day with a good cup of strong coffee and a newspaper. But, nowadays, it is not unusual for some to have a diet Coke or other caffeinated soft drink with their morning email. Sweetness has permeated our existence, whether in the sauce, drink or dessert.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=876
This video features a tasting of Black Spanish red wine with Franklin Howser owner of Dry Comal Creek Vineyards. Several months ago, I blogged about my experiences on a Hill Country Winery tour with the grape known as Black Spanish (otherwise known as Lenoir) that has a long history both in Texas and Internationally. It continues to be one of the most highly accessed articles posted on VintageTexas.com during the past year. Black Spanish actually has many names that go back over a hundred and fifty years back into history: Jacques, Jaquez, or Jack, as well as El Paso, Burgundy and Lenoir. The credentials of Texas Black Spanish were established in the mid-1860’s when its vines were introduced by the millions into Southern France.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=852
Reflections on Drinking Local Wines
If you think, we in Texas are alone in the battle to gain visibility and respectability for our local wines, check out these sites across America that highlight the increasing movement toward drinking local wines……Drink and support your local growers and winemakers. The carbon footprint of winePosted on April 22nd, 2009 Saver Queen - Although I enjoy drinking fine frugal wines, I’ve never considered the carbon footprint of wine - until now. According to Dr. Vino, National Geographic just published a diagram that illustrates the carbon footprint of wine by region. The results are a bit surprising - it shows that it is actually far better for a New Yorker to drink wine produced in France, Chili, or even Australia than in California.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=859
From Nuances in Arboreal Green to the Nuances of Wine
My trip was from Houston to the Dallas - Fort Worth area and my destination was more specifically Grapevine where I will be sitting with others in the wine and restaurant trades to judge wines in the 2009 Lone Star Wine Competition. We will have the opportunity to choose the best wines from Texas and several other countries such as Australia, Canada, Mexico, and those in Latin America as well as an enlarging number of wines from many states, including Oregon, Washington, New York and California. It has been over five years since I judged in this event, and since then it is hard to imagine that there are now a hundred new Texas wineries.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=865
Video: Texas Port and Dessert Wines - The Perfect Ending but Possibly Much More
In the sixth and final Texas wine webcast, Merrill Bonarrigo of the Messina Hof Winery in Bryan, Texas, discusses Port, a variety native to Portugal, as well as other dessert wines that are thriving in Texas. She tastes Lenoir (Black Spanish) Port, and discusses late harvest Riesling, Muscat Canelli, and even a Texas Madeira, only one of three made in the United States.
It is my experience that people have an increasing penchant for sweetness these days. Many wine magazines now hype “Semi-Dry” as the “New Dry”. Why is this? Well, many folks came from a generation that started the day with a good cup of strong coffee and a newspaper. But, nowadays, it is not unusual for some to have a diet Coke or other caffeinated soft drink with their morning email. Sweetness has permeated our existence, whether in the sauce, drink or dessert.
http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=876
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