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Food & Dining
Texas vineyards growing in number, respect

By Bonnie Walker and John Griffin
Express-News Staff Writers

The Wine Club, a congenial, long-established group, recently devoted its monthly get-together to Texas wines.

Becker Vineyards Reserve Chardonnay 2000 and Reserve Cabernet 1999 were served at a November 2001 dinner for President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Crawford.
Billy Calzada/Express-News

Jerrie Jackson, who put on the event with her husband, Tom, wasn't certain what the response would be.

But 25 to 30 people showed up with Texas wines in hand, and the evening was a success.

"At one point during the tasting I said to someone, 'I think this is the first time in the club's history that Texas wine was the theme,'" said Jackson, an education professor at Our Lake of the Lake University. "That person replied, 'Up until two years ago, that wouldn't have been a good theme.'"

There are those in the wine business who would argue that Texas wines still aren't up to snuff.

What is not open to argument is the phenomenal growth of this agriculturally based business in Texas.

While cabernet and Camembert may never push aside beer and barbecue, Texans have at least made some room on the table.

"It's pretty incredible growth," says Allen Spelce, the Texas Department of Agriculture's assistant commissioner for communications. "We're getting our marketing, science and techniques down better, and we've just got great climate and conditions in Texas for growing wine. California better watch out."

Texas is the fifth largest wine-producing state in the United States, with six federally recognized viticultural areas. The Texas Hill Country is, in fact, the largest appellation in the country, covering 15,000 square miles in 22 counties.

Since 1980, Texas has gone from producing 17,000 gallons of wine at five wineries to producing 1.2 million gallons at 45 wineries.

The attraction to growers is good return on their per-acre investment. According to Spelce, the per-acre yield for grapes is 3.2 tons and the average value per ton is around $900. Compare that to other crops, such as cotton, returning around $260-$300 per acre, and it all adds up to incentive.

"We don't want to mislead anyone that it's an easy business, though," says Judy Evans, director for wine marketing with the TDA. "It's a rough business." Farmers putting in new vines are going to wait three years until their first crop, she said. Add to that the $10,000-$35,000 required to develop a vineyard acre from scratch.

Most winemakers in the Texas Hill Country have yet to turn a profit, said Franklin D. Houser, a self-proclaimed "recovering lawyer" who runs Dry Comal Creek Vineyards in New Braunfels and who includes himself on that list. Money aside, there is a "myriad of just really fine products out there," he said. "I'm really proud of the Texas wine industry."

"We've made major progress in the last few years," Madeleine Manigold of Spicewood Vineyards agreed.

Certainly more people than ever are talking about Texas wines. Many have taken home medals from international wine competitions, and others in the wine industry are singing their praises. Dr. Mark Lemmon, owner of San Saba Vineyards in Soledad, Calif., had high praise for Fall Creek Vineyards, owned by Ed and Susan Auler. "I think that the Aulers have very good products," he said from his Dallas home. "The others are advancing. I think they're all getting better."

The wine press is also taking notice. The Wall Street Journal has hailed the Fall Creek Chardonnay, while Wine Spectator, in a recent review of Texas offerings, found some very good wines and good bargains for the price. Hill Country vintner Dr. Richard Becker, who with his wife, Bunny, owns Becker Vineyards, snared an 88 for the 1998 Vintage Port, the top score among all the Texas wines rated.

Other accolades were aired at the recent Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival in Austin. At a TDA-hosted tasting of all-Texas wines, moderator R.W. Apple, senior correspondent for the New York Times, called the Becker Reserve Cabernet "stunning." He also quoted world-renowned wine expert Jancis Robinson as having said that Texas and its wines will "get there."

Another coup for Becker Vineyards is that the winery will be showcased May 8 at the French restaurant L'Etoile. San Antonio has any number of wine dinners to choose from during a given week, but to feature single-winery Texas wines is a rarity.

Thierry Burkle, one of the restaurant's owners, didn't really know anything about Becker Vineyards or Texas wines until Becker brought some by. "We have a tendency to not look in our own back yards," said the chef. Yet he was so impressed with the winery's claret, cabernet sauvignon and fumé blanc that he's added them to the restaurant's wine list.

At Ruth's Chris Steak House on Jones Maltsberger Road, Texas wines have long been on the menu, according to sommelier Sandra Waldhelm. In fact, the house red is Becker's Iconoclast Cabernet Sauvignon and the white is the Becker Chardonnay.

Texas wines have come a long way, said Waldhelm, who also features wines from Sister Creek Vineyards on her list. A lot of tourists want to try Texas wines, and "most of them are surprised or shocked" by the quality, she says.

Quality is the first concern. Consistency is also a question. And some wonder if Texas wine growers are not focusing enough on varietals that grow well in our warmer climates — those from Spain, Italy and France's Rhône Valley, for instance.

Bruce Auden, chef/owner of Biga on the Banks, was recognized at the recent Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival for his support of Texas wines. Auden has traditionally kept Texas wines on his restaurant lists, dating back to his days as executive chef at Polo's at the Fairmount Hotel. Currently, he has several Becker Vineyard wines on his list as well as the Messina Hof port.

However, Auden has been disappointed that some good wines he used to sell are no longer available or have dropped in quality.

"I'm always out there tasting Texas wines, but they're not always as consistent as we like. Many of the California wines are more consistent. If you had a wine from one vintage, you'll probably like one from another. In Texas, with some vintages, it's hard to believe it's the same grape source or vineyard," he said.

Keeping quality high is important because of the growing amount of competition and the reasonable prices, San Saba owner Lemmon said. "The Australians are giving us a run for our money," he said. The public is also demanding greater quality. "The consumer is getting better at discriminating between a good wine and one that's not so good."

Manigold, whose Spicewood Vineyards has produced award-winning sauvignon blanc, chardonnay and merlot, said, "We need to conquer the various diseases that are a prime threat." She singled out the lethal Pierce's disease as the major concern.

Houser said the laws governing wine sales have to change in order for Texas wines to be available to wine buyers at large. He would like to have the ability to ship his wines out of state. "A free market is what we need," he said. In other words, the word won't get out if the wine can't get out.

"I think Texas wines are still a curiosity," said Fernando de Luna, education director at Block Distributing in San Antonio. "I've always maintained that if Texas is to have a truly world-class wine, people would flock to it."

De Luna believes the wines made in warmer European climates would be far better suited to Texas' climate than the chardonnay, cabernet and merlot that most Texas growers have gone for — grapes such as Italy's sangiovese, Spain's tempranillo and grenache, and varietals from the Rhône regions such as syrah, mourvèdre, viognier and carignan.

"There also are some fine red wines coming from the Duoro (Spain and Portugal) wine region," de Luna added. Among these grapes are touriga nacional, tinta roriz (tempranillo), tinta barroca and tinta cào.

Jim Johnson of Alamosa Wine Cellars also has advocated going beyond the conventional planting of merlot and chardonnay simply because they are popular. He believes varietals such as tempranillo, grenache and sangiovese, which thrive in warmer European climes, would be more suited to Texas terrain. He's proving his point, too. His El Guapo, a tempranillo-granache-cabernet sauvignon blend, recently received an 86 rating from Wine Spectator.

The Becker Vineyards' viognier is another example. At the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival, Becker said, "I was told I'd never be able to sell viognier. Now, I can't make enough to keep up. I've always said, if they're good wines — we'll sell them."