West of Austin and Northwest of San Antonio lies the Texas Hill Country, home to historic Fredericksburg and the #2 Wine fastest growing Destination in America. Until last year, I didn’t even know there were wineries in Texas. Texas Hill Country is home to more than two dozen wineries. Laura and I set aside a few days recently to visit this unique wine region and came away with a true appreciation for the contribution Texas is making to the wine industry.

On our first morning, a wrong turn wound up becoming a blessing in disguise. We were heading to Becker Vineyards in Stonewall, just outside of Fredericksburg. We found ourselves on Sisterdale Road which took us straight to the front door of Sister Creek Vineyards. It was 9:30 on a Saturday morning. I parked the car and noticed the winery opened at 10:00, but I thought I’d try my luck and I found Fred Reissig on hand sweeping the floors and getting ready to open up. He welcomed us in, introduced us to winemaker Danny Hernandez and let us take a self-guided tour. Sister Creek is steeped in history. The building dates back to 1885 when it was a cotton gin. In 1927, the Boll Weevil decimated the cotton crop and the doors remained closed until 1988 when it reopened as Sister Creek Vineyards. They’re quite proud of their wines which recently picked up four silver medals at this year’s San Francisco International Wine Competition. We found the wines to be a bit drier than we like, but the hospitality and sense of history made the visit well worth our while.

We headed to Highway 290, the Hill Country Wine Road and stopped in at Becker Vineyards. Nichole Bendele was there to greet us and gave us a wonderful tour of their facility. They produce 59,000 cases annually and might hit 65,000 cases this year, making them the state’s third largest winery. Growing wine grapes in Texas is a tremendous challenge because of the extreme heat. Grapes ripen quickly and harvest begins in mid July. The heat produces high natural sugars. Dr. Becker likes to see some raisining on his fruit because he believes it produces more concentrated flavors. Nichole turned us over to Stepanie for some tasting. The tasting room is gorgeous, with vaulted ceilings and a wrap around bar in the middle. We again found the wines to be extremely dry and lacking in nose, with the exception of the ‘07 Priairie Rotie, a blend of 68% Mourvedre, 14% Grenache, 12& Syrah and 6% Carignan. We found it to be fruit forward with a lovely nose and also enjoyed the ‘07 Raven (80% Malbec, 20% Petite Verdot). Becker Vineyards was the Hill Country’s first lavender grower and they now host an annual Lavender Festival and feature several lavender based products in their gift shop.

Nichole

Stephanie

We hit a home run on our next stop, heading West on 290 through Fredericksburg before turning onto Usener Road to Chisholm Trail Winery. Chisholm Trail is owned by Paula Williamson, who is also the winemaker. We had an appointment with Paula, but learned when we arrived that her dad had passed away earlier that week. Rebecca was a gracious hostess and told us all about this unique winery and its wonderful wines. We started with the first of two varietals I had never before heard of. Belle Star is made from the Blanc du Bois grape, a hybrid of Moscato and a table grape developed at the University of Florida especially for hot climates. As a side benefit it’s resistant to Pierce’s disease. The nose is delightfully floral and the wine is fruit forward and crisp. This has truly become one of our favorite white wines. Our next incredible find was the Lone Wolf, a 100% Lenoir varietal. Lenoir, also known as Black Spanish, is what Paula refers to as her secret weapon. I have never tasted a wine like this in my life. The nose is distinctive, and we found sour cherries and even a hint of tomato on the finish. We love this wine and everyone we have shared it with has raved about it. Diablo is a 70% Syrah, 30% Lenoir blend that is also wonderfully drinkable. She adds 5% Lenoir to her Lil’s Red Satin Cabernet Sauvignon and it adds its personality creating an extremely palatable and satisfying wine. The Almagres Lenoir Port was also magnificent. We returned a few days later and had a wonderful visit with Paula. Laura will go into depth on our conversation when she launches her Women On Wine feature on WINEormous.

Rebecca

Paula & Laura

It was time for lunch, so we stopped at the Peach Pit for some delicious Texas barbeque. With our bellies full, we continued East on 290 to Grape Creek Vineyards. We had been fortunate with overcast weather which kept the sweltering September heat in check. We even got a few downpours that afternoon. Moriah Schumann gave us a full tour of the beautiful facility which they refer to as “Tuscany In Texas”. We visiting with winemaker Jason Englert, a Texas Tech grad who shared with us the obstacles Texas winemakers face with their brutal summer weather. He believes in making a clean, fresh wine and believes picking up problems early on while they can be corrected is crucial. They have nearly doubled production to 9,000 cases and expect to plateau at 12,000 cases. Their magnificent two year old tasting room features two tasting bars: one for their White Label or everyday wines and another for their higher end Black Label wines. From the White side we enjoyed the Pinot Grigio (with grapes sourced from Temecula) and on the Black side we found their Port to be quite tasty.

Jason

Moriah

Just down the road from Grape Creek is Torre di Pietra. We stopped in and introduced ourselves. We were told they don’t offer a complimentary tasting to media, so we continued East to Woodrose Winery. It was raining in earnest when we got there, but it was cozy inside and we found ourselves enjoying several of their wines, in particular their Blanc du Bois. It was slightly sweeter the Chisholm Trail’s, but equally enjoyable. We really love that grape. We had work to do in San Antonio, so we wound up paying a visit to Boudro’s on San Antonio’s renowned Riverwalk.  There is always a line to get in and once you experience Boudro’s you’ll understand why. We started with their signature prickly pear margaritas and table-side guacamole. For entrees I had the Big Tails, Little Tails (lobster and shrimp with crawfish) while Laura feasted on the Seafood Platter (lobster tail with grilled fish fillet, crawfish fricassee,  sea scallops, shrimp, jicama slaw and corn pudding). Both entrees were sublime. We had the good fortune to meet General Manger Andreas Esparza, who personally escorted us to their upscale Champagne bar Zinc and gave us a tour of their wine cellar and private dining rooms. Boudros easily moves into my all time top 10 restaurants list.

Andreas (these were taken with my Blackberry)

On our final day, we headed back to the Hill Country for a visit with Paula and to visit two more wineries. We took 290 East to Johnson City (birthplace of LBJ) and stopped at Pedernales (pronouced PER – duh – nal – us) Cellars. The tasting room is a remodeled 5,000 square foot building that was previously used as a summer home. President Frederick Osterberg was meeting with other visitors, so while we waited for him to finish up, we bellied up to the bar. The Pedernales philosophy is to focus on what does well in Texas. The Vino Blanco (Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay and Viognier blend) was refreshing, the Viognier was excellent and the Garnacha Rose had a wonderful color and was also quite tasty. The Tempranillo and Family Reserve (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo) reds were also noteworthy. Frederick gave us a thorough tour, showing us their underground caves which maintain a constant temperature while the wines are in barrel. Winemaker David Kuhlken is a co-founder of the winery with Frederick. Like all good winemakers, he is passionate about what he does and pays meticulous attention to detail.

We visited with Frederick in the private tasting room and sampled some selections that are not on the tasting list. They’ve come a long way in a very short time, having just opened their doors last year. He told us someone remarked they were “smoking dope” when they priced their Family Reserve at $49. “No one will pay that for a Texas wine.” It’s their best seller. Their wine club numbers a couple hundred members including one in Napa! On our way out, he showed us the “engagement bench”, which has earned its name on several occasions.

The "Engagement Bench"

The day was getting late and we just made it into Texas Hills Vineyard. We didn’t have time to do it justice, but we enjoyed what we tasted and found it to be a charming place. We arrived just ahead of a group of 40, so we figured it was time to hit the dusty trail. We had an incredible time in San Antonio and the Hill Country and hope to return soon.

Chef Cody James of Manhattan Catering LLC visits Keyways Winery this week to prepare another fabulous meal. You can watch the show Saturday morning at 8:30 on Cox 4 in San Diego, or click Catch The Spirit at Keyways to see it now. Here are the recipes:

Chilean Sea Bass with a Citrus Beurre Blanc made with Keyways Sauvignon Blanc 2008

To serve 2
Two 6 oz Chilean sea bass filets
8 pink grapefruit sections
8 white grapefruit sections
1/4 cup each fresh red and white grapefruit juice
1/2 cup blood orange juice
1/2 cup 2008 Keyways Sauvignon Blanc Wine
1 tbsp freshly chopped chives
1 stick room temp butter
1 oz garlic oil
1 salad oil
1 piece of garlic, minced
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 200 degrees
Wash filets, make sure they are skinned, salt and pepper both sides,
Place oil and garlic into medium heated sautée pan, when the garlic starts
to caramelize, add seasoned fish filet skinned side up. Sautée for approximately
2 minutes or until clear fluid rises through the fish, Flip fish and continue sautéeing for approximately 1 minute. Take fish out of pan, put into 200 degree oven and let rest for approximately 8-10 minutes.
Add juices and wine to sautée pan, reduce by half, turn off heat and slowing incorporate butter with whisk till butter is dissolved, add chives to sauce.
Serve over fish immediately

To plate put rice pilaf in center of plate, sea bass fish on top of rice pilaf, 2 each grapefruit sections over fish, 2 each grapefruit sections around plate, pour beurre blanc sauce over fish, serve immediately

Rice Pilaf ………watch the show

Brie en Croute
with raspberry compote, red onion reduction, and cracked black pepper
To serve 2
1/6 of a large wheel of Brie
4 x 4 square of (store bought) puff pastry
1 pint of raspberries
1/4 cup of finely diced red onion
1 tsp of cracked black pepper
1/4 cup Keyways Zinfandel
1 tbsp salad oil
1/2 tbsp of salted butter
pinch of salt
Freeze slice of Brie to solid…leave white skin on the Brie
Take onions, a pinch of salt, and cracked black pepper and sautée with a small of butter till caramelized, add zinfandel, and cook till dry. Now add the raspberries and cook till dry, cool.
Roll out 4 x 4 square of puff pastry to 1/10th of an inch.
Place frozen brie in the middle of the pastry, top with raspberry and onion mixture and fold pastry over frozen brie as demonstrated on show.
Bake in preheated 350 degree oven until crust on top is starting to caramel colored.
Allow to rest for 25-30 minutes.
No cracker needed crust is the starch.  Serve with Keyways Zinfandel 2006

All this week, women from 31 nations have gathered in Perris, CA to combat a mortal enemy: breast cancer. Forgive me for straying off the subject of wine, but I felt this was important enough to merit a story. My friend Ginger Giordano of Going Grape (there’s a wine connection!) told me about this event and I decided to head to Perris and find out first hand what was going on.

This is the 10th anniversary of Jump For The Cause. Mallory Lewis formed the event to pay tribute to her mom, Shari Lewis, who died from cancer in 1998. The first event ten years ago was a fund raiser for a battered women’s shelter and raised $11,000. Last year more than a quarter of a million dollars went to the City of Hope for breast cancer research as a result of Jump For The Cause. As of yesterday, more than $830,000 had been raised this week alone.

I met with Mallory’s assistant Adrian Davies at The Bomb Shelter at  the Perris Valley Skydiving Center. He told me the event has become “what it was supposed to be” and he and Mallory both expect it to grow even bigger. It has slowly been gaining global attention. Some of the best camera people in the world are on hand and they are documenting each jump as the women attempt to set a world record, with ten planes lifting 180 women to 17,000 feet in an effort to do the largest all-female freefall formation. The women each have had to qualify, not only as a skilled skydiver (the least amount of jumps by a participant is about 400, the most 16,500), they also have each had to raise at least $3500. Adrian says the focus has shifted from getting to know each other to “game on”. The youngest jumpers are 25 and the oldest is an AARP member.

Mallory (Lamb Chop's sister)

Mallory has also included the Wounded Warrior Regiment with ex-Special Forces and Golden Knight Dana Bowman jumping under a purple heart canopy while flying smoke and a 1000 square foot flag. There have been two problems this week. The heat has been well above 100 degrees and the Santa Ana winds have been kicking up. Wednesday morning the winds came up so quickly and so strong they had to scratch the flight after all the women had boarded all the planes and they were on the runway about to take off. Organizers believe the record will fall either Friday or Saturday. The event continues through Sunday at the Perris Skydiving Center. If you’ve never seen a sea of pink before, you might want to stop by.

Adrian Davies

Documentary Crew

I sat with winemaker Doug Wiens on a cool September morning at Wiens Family Cellars in Temecula. Doug told me about the impact the late summer heat was taking on the harvest. It took some of the potential out of what was shaping up to be a perfect year, but all in all, things are looking good. The Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir had already been picked and were in the tanks before the heatwave hit, but the Syrah and Merlot grapes suffered a bit of “raisining” and yields may be slightly down.

Making wine has been a part of the Wiens family for many years. Doug is the winemaker and co-owner with his brother Jeff, the General Manager, George, the Architect and Dave, the Director of Business Operations. There are two other Wiens brothers: one works at the winery and the other doesn’t. The Wiens roots are in Southern California. Doug got his bachelors degree in horticulture from Colorado State and went on to Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo where he focused on food science and technology. He began toying with winemaking in college in the late 70s when he added yeast to Welch’s Grape Juice. He says “it was really horrible. It tasted like hot dogs… smokey, sulphery and nasty!”

The Wiens family planted vines in Lodi in 1996: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel and Chardonnay and to this day source some of their grapes from there. Their first Lodi crush was in 2001, but the family realized the potential was tremendous in the Temecula Valley and they moved their operations south. They were on hand to help Ponte Family Estate get off the ground, making their wine in ‘04 and ‘05 and to help them to spec out their equipment and advise them on what they needed to add.

Doug is a self taught and self-styled winemaker. When I asked if he had any mentors he said he didn’t, but he did say he thought Robert Mondavi was “pretty cool” in his philosophy and in what he did for California’s wine industry. Wiens Family Cellars 1st crush was in 2006, and when you arrive at the winery, you’ll see Big Reds prominently advertised. Doug says those are the types of wines he and the family gravitate towards, with Primitivo and Cabernet Sauvignon being his favorites. He says his wines get their character from his intense style of farming and it’s how the wines came out when he first began to make them. His ‘07 Refugio Cabernet from Vineyards in La Cresta won a Gold Medal at the California State Fair for the best Cabernet Sauvignon in Southern California as well as best of region. Doug hopes it’s the first of many. He believes that Temecula had given up on Cab, and that wineries were just taking what they got as opposed to the intense farming practices he utilizes for his style of Big Reds.

Their “artist series” wine features work from local artists, with the art of Ashley Collins displayed on the Gold Medal winning Cab. Production is currently at about 10,000 cases annually. His goal is to increase that number to around 15,000. Doug says he’d rather double his quality than his volume. If you can’t make it to the winery, you’ll find Wiens wines at about 70 independently owned restaurants and boutique wine shops in San Diego, Orange and Riverside Counties. Sunday October 18th is shaping up to be a big day. Not only is the winery hosting their annual Wiensfest, Doug’s son is getting married at the winery that same day.

Doug Wiens

Barrel Room and Members Only Tasting

Merlot

Thirty years ago, Robert Mondavi and Domenic Renzoni were sipping Scotch in Las Vegas. Mondavi said to Renzoni “Your grandson is taking over the company, isn’t he? Why not put his name on it? It sounds like my name, plus there’s Ronzoni pasta. People are going to think they know that name.”

When you visit with Robert Renzoni, you’re treated to some wonderful stories. His family got its start in the wine business in 1886, when his great grandfather Federico began working in the vineyards near the small Italian town of Fano. Robert started sipping wine at the age of six and when he was twelve, his dad used to pour wine out of a brown paper bag each Sunday, and if any of the kids could name the varietal, region and country of origin, they’d get a hundred bucks. Robert won twice, correctly identifying a Chateau Montelena Chardonnay and a Silver Anniversary Parducci. Robert’s enthusiasm is infectious. His love for what he does is obvious.

Robert’s ancestors are the inspiration for everything he does. Federico and his brother-in-law Romeo Battistoni got into the wine and cordial business together in 1914 in Buffalo, New York. In 1954, Domenic teamed up with Marvin Sands, president of the Canandaigua Wine Company, now Constellation Brands and became the first distributor of Richards Wild Irish Rose. Domenic had a tremendous impact on Marvin. One day Marvin called Domenic and asked him what the hell he was doing. “I can’t keep up with your sales. What are you doing with all those empty bottles?” He invited Marvin to meet him at the winery one night and he would show him. He hopped in the car with Domenic and his sales staff as they hit the streets of Buffalo about 11:00pm with cases of empty bottles with the Wild Irish Rose label on them. They walked down the streets and smashed the bottles on the ground, label up. The next morning as people walked around town, they saw dozens of empty bottles of Wild Irish Rose. “That’s old school marketing” says Robert. “I love telling that story.”

Marvin Sands was an inspiration to Robert. At the age of 16, Robert remembers watching Sands in action. As the company’s president, it was not uncommon for him to go up to workers on the bottling line and ask them how their families were, referring to them by name. With thousands of employees, Marvin knew the importance of treating his workers with respect, a lesson that has left a profound mark on the way Robert does business today.

Robert thinks big and he thinks outside the box. No other Temecula Valley winery focuses on Italian varietals to the extent that Renzoni does. Currently his line up is 95% Italian and that percentage will soon go up to 98. His focus is on esoteric Italian varietals, but of course you’ll find Sangiovese and Pinot Grigio there. He saw an opportunity to do something unique here. In choosing the name for the winery, not only did he reflect on the advice his grandfather got from Robert Mondavi, but there were no other wineries in the valley using both someone’s first and last names. His whole life he was told he had a great name for a wine. One of Domenic’s dying wishes was that he use his name for the winery. The families’ closest friends voted on it and Robert Renzoni Vineyards won by a landslide – 49 to 1.

He purchased the property in November, 2006 and the following spring he graded the land and planted his vines. He opened the doors in the spring of 2008. He made his first wines at Leonesse Cellars in 2006 and says he learned a lot from winemaker Tim Kramer. He learned to make wine “hands on”, the same way he learned to play guitar and drums. When you taste his wines, you’re tasting his palette. Renzoni’s wines tend to have softer tannins than many others and are closer in alcohol content to fine Italian and French wines: generally between 13.1 and 13.9% alcohol. Higher alcohol content tends to give wine more of a “bite”. He cites John Parducci for his philosophy. “Offer a quality product at an honest price.” He prides himself on his staff, giving credit to Marvin Sands when he says happy employees are productive ones. He knows that his customers will be impressed by how knowledgeable his pouring staff is.

The entire project is dedicated to the memory of his grandfather Domenic. Future plans include building a Tuscan style villa on the lower pad. The 5,000 square foot two story building will have a fifty foot bell tower with a bell that’s been in the family since 1886. The bell will chime at the open and close of each business day to honor his grandfather’s memory. The villa will be like a mini museum honoring Robert’s late ancestors, with vintage family photos throughout. It will also be the new home to the tasting room, a wine club members only tasting room, a winemaker’s laboratory and Robert’s office. The current tasting room will be transformed into their production facility.

Robert is driven to carry on the family legacy. “I felt it was my obligation, not only for the love of my family and my grandfather who was my best friend, I thought that over one hundred years was too much to flush down the toilet.” His dad Fred is at the winery most every day. Robert saw an opportunity to pull his dad out of retirement and give him something to do, he noted with a wink. He reflected how amazing it is how life goes full cycle, noting that his family did business with Brookside Winery 60 years ago and the first Cucamonga Zinfandel they released was from those same vineyards. Robert is proud of what’s he’s accomplished in his first year in business and with good reason. His Sangiovese and Pinot Grigio are poured in more than 40 restaurants. He has just released the first authentic Portuguese Port in the valley using the Touriga Nacional grape. It’s called Paradiso. He will be releasing a Lagrein called Vecchio Frate, a tip of the cap to a line of dessert and table wines the family trademarked in 1939: Old Friar. Come in for a glass of wine and a story or two. Robert has plenty of them to share.

It’s harvest time, the crush is on and life in the vineyards is extremely busy. I visited Thornton Winery for their first crush of the year last month. Crush at a large winery like Thornton is a big deal, involving several tons of grapes. Last week Laura and I were invited by some Fallbrook growers to help pick their Syrah grapes and join in  their harvest celebration. I become involved with this group when  I Met Bob Howard at Fallbrook Winery a few months ago, and they are a tight-knit group that are always there for each other.

Mike and Tricia Hoffman own Live Oak Vineyards and have three acres of Syrah grapes that they planted in 2006. We arrived at 7:00am, armed with gloves, clippers and hats. Mother Nature was kind enough to provide us with a cloud cover to keep it cool. We were done picking in just about an hour.

There was a bit of disappointment when the harvest weighed in at under 250 pounds, but that’s the hand fate deals you sometimes. The fruit was beautiful and the juice we tasted was nectar sweet. Friends and neighbors shared several bottles of locally hand crafted wine and some delicious food and looked ahead to next year’s crop.

Mrs. WINEormous (Laura)

Mike Hoffman

Marshall Stuart is a hands on winemaker. When I arrived at Stuart Cellars last week, Marshall was driving the forklift and overseeing every aspect of the Viognier crush. I had a hard time setting up an appointment to meet with Marshall. After visiting with him, I understand why. In the hour I spent there, he fielded at least half a dozen cell phone calls, fixed a stuck drain in the crusher and took care to make certain every aspect of the crush received proper attention.

He had been at the winery since before dawn. The Southern California wildfires were at their peak and he told me that at dawn the falling ash looked like snow. There was dry lightning and the wind was blowing so strongly it knocked lemons off the trees.

Marshall shares a common trait with other successful winemakers I know. He is passionate about what he does. He comes by farming honestly, having grown up on a farm in Ohio. He did earth moving and grading at Callaway Winery in the 80s and spent a great deal of time with John Moramarco. He then apprenticed with Carl Key at Keyways. Marshall lived in Fallbrook at the time and had a vineyard on his land. In the time he spent around wineries and winemakers he discovered he really enjoyed wine and knew he wanted to embrace the business. He studied at UC Davis and wound up purchasing the property he currently occupies in 1994. He sourced grapes and released his first vintage in 1995, and then planted his vineyards in 1996, with his first harvest in 1999.

Stuart Cellars produces about 26,000 cases annually. He wants to remain a boutique winery with production remaining under 30,000 cases. His goal is to produce the best red wines in the Temecula Valley. He thinks he’s done well in that regard and although he’s pleased with his whites, he is striving to improve them. The estate grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Viognier, Petite Sirah, Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Tempranillo. He sources his Lagrein grapes from the Central Coast. Marshall’s philosophy? “95% is farming… 5% I don’t want to screw it up.”

He hasn’t screwed it up. I tasted several of Marshall’s wines after he went back to continue the work on the Viognier. His Petite Sirah is magnificent, with deep, inky colors and an intense nose and lingering finish. Marshall made certain I was able to taste his reserve estate Cabernet Sauvignon. It was a classic example of the varietal, a beautiful wine, but with a price tag over $100 a bit out of my range. When  you visit Temecula Wine Country, don’t pass Stuart Cellars by. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a chance to visit with Marshall. He has many stories to share.

This is my first harvest/crush since I started WINEormous and I am learning firsthand that these are long days for a winemaker. They’re also the most rewarding.