On Saturday evening we were in San Antonio (day trip) and ate at an absolutely delightful restaurant – “Cured” . Central to the Pearl area on the near north side, along the River Walk, Cured is the brainchild of Steve McHugh. I had seen a notification from my High School that Steve and his restaurant had been nominated for a James Beard Award (the “Oscars” for restaurants), for the 2nd year in a row. While I had never met Steve or any of his family, he is from my tiny hometown of Walworth, Wisconsin (~1500 people)!
Michelle and I were very impressed with our experience. The ambiance is casual, but the food is exquisite. You can even sit at the “bar,” which encircles the chefs, similar to the Culinary Institute of America experience (where Steve got his training).
Charcuterie display as you enter Cured
Walking in, you see the meats that are the namesake of the restaurant – a large display of the cured meats for the charcuterie choices on the menu. Everything from pate’s up to 12-month aged shoulder, with lamb pepperoni, aged Wagyu beef, etc.
Quail legs appetizerCharcuterie plate we chose
We started with the Happy Hour appetizer of Quail legs (50 cents each), which were fabulous! We followed it up with a small charcuterie plate of Apple Jalapeno Pork Rillettes, aged Wagyu, and Vermont cheddar cheese. I could have continued to eat the charcuterie meats all night!
For our main course, Michelle had the Roasted Beef Marrow,
Roasted Beef Marrow
with Escargot, Pickled Shallots, Hedgehog Mushrooms. I had the Bison Tartare, with Huitlacoche Purée, Bourbon, Quail Egg, Brioche. Both dishes were fantastic! I’ve always been a huge fan of beef tartare, and this bison was beyond compare.
Bison Tartare
Steve McHugh told me that they have also done a lamb tartare before. Michelle is a big fan of beef bone marrow, and this was delicious, also.
While the wine list was extensive and eclectic, since it was a warm (85 degree) day, and we had been walking in the art museum plus a 3 mile walk along the famed San Antonio River Walk, we decided on beer. They have a fantastic beer selection, and when I saw the Deschutes (Bend, OR) Fresh Squeezed IPA, I could not resist.
Cured is a huge hit, and worthy of a James Beard Award. This should be a mainstay on everyone’s list of restaurants in San Antonio.
This past Saturday, Michelle and I went to two more local wineries, relative to our home in Leander, TX, including a delicious visit to Perissos Vineyards outside of Burnet. Perissos is Greek for “exceeding abundantly, beyond what is expected, imagined, or hoped for” – Ephesians, 3:20. Perissos Vineyards is a small, family-run vineyard and
Deliciousness under development…
winery – the 16 acre dream of Seth and Laura Martin, as a place to raise their five children, and teach them the values of working for yourself. The Martins currently have around 11 acres planted, with over 13 varietals – the main successes being with Aglianico, Dolcetto, Petite Syrah, Roussanne, Tempranillo, Touriga, and Viognier. The entrance to Perissos Vineyards is wonderful. Upon entering the gates, you drive straight between rows of vines – white on the right, and red on the left. It’s a beautiful sight in the summer. The tasting room is done in large – farmhouse style, with long bench-style tables and seats. You can pack a lot of people in this place!
All of the wines at Perissos Vineyards are 100% Texas grown. Depending on yields, quality, and desired blends, they will supplement their Estate-Grown grapes with grapes from the Texas High Plains.
We met Amy, the Tasting Room Manager, who expertly took us through our tasting of four Estate and two High Plains wines. We
Perissos Tasting Menu
started with a newly released 2015 Estate Viognier ($32). This is a bright, crisp wine, loaded with honeysuckle, with touches of pear and apple. Wonderfully refreshing for this hot Texas summer day, it finishes with a smooth, creamy touch of pineapple and apricot. Definitely a delicious way to start today’s tasting.
We moved on to a 2013 Roussanne ($26) – a blend of 100% Roussanne from the Oswald (78%) and Bingham (22%) High Plains Vineyards. With lots of honey and citrus on the nose, this wine has a typical slight sour grapefruit taste, and a bold finish.
The final white (or maybe it could be considered a “blonde,” given its namesake) is the 2013 Estate Lucy (32), a blend of Viognier (40%,
Perissos’ Farm-style Tasting Room
Roussanne (40%), and Muscat Canelli (20%). Named for Seth and Laura’s daughter Lucy, this is another great hot afternoon wine. With a wonderful sense of sweetness (I’m sure like little Lucy herself), this wine has no Residual Sugars. The sweet aromas and tastes of tangerine come from the Muscat Canelli.
Moving on to the reds, we started with the Award Winning 2013
Award winning Perissos Vineyards wines
Estate Aglianico ($48). The 2014 release just won Best of Class at the 2016 San Francisco Chronicle competition in the past few weeks! The 2013 is dark and fruity, with plum and red raspberries, with slight spices and a touch of leather on the finish, with a great mouth feel. A delicious wine!
Every once in a while, you’ll run into that person who just needs some self-reassurance in their ability to name a wine they are drinking. T he 2014 Estate Racker’s Blend ($45) is perfect to help these people. If they pick a grape from the taste, they might just be right. This is a
Perissos Vineyards barrels
blend of EIGHT grapes: Aglianico (25%), Malbec (12%), Syrah (16%), Petite Sirah (20%), Tempranillo (24%), Touriga Nacionale (1%), Dolcetto (1%), and Montepulciano (1%). This is a very smooth, versatile wine that would go well with steaks and most Italian foods.
The final wine on the tasting menu was the 2014 (High Plains) Italian Stallion ($40) – an outstanding Italian blend of 25% each of Sangiovese, Dolcetto, Aglianico, and Montepulciano. A very delicious blend of blackberry flavors, with a touch of white pepper with lots of texture and a smooth, silky finish.
We also had the good fortune to spend some time with Laura Martin, and had a wonderful discussion with her about her family and their passion and dedication to their dream. In addition, Perissos offers a plate of cheese, crackers, fruit, and salami for $12.95. They will have an Estate 100% Montepulciano coming out soon (Mmmmmm….>!!), and also have a 2014 Rose (Grenache, Mourvedre, Cabernet Sauvignon) and a 2015 Rose (Dolcetto, Grenache, Mourvedre, Cabernet Sauvignon).
All in all, a delightful experience at a beautiful farm-style winery with great, award winning wines!
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In the Gaelic language of Scotland, Torr Na Lochs roughly translates as “Hill over Lakes.” This winery on Hwy 29 just west of Burnet, a little over an hour NW of Austin, has one of the most breathtaking views of any winery in the Texas Hill Country. Set on a hill with a beautiful view
Torr Na Lochs Winery – Burnet, TX
of the Lake Buchanan area, this new winery (September, 2015) is worth a visit to. Torr Na Lochs Winery was the vision of owners Blake and Karen DeBerry. With roots in San Antonio and the Lake LBJ area, the DeBerry family had been living in Singapore, and then moved to Aberdeen, Scotland. In 2004, Blake found this hillside ranch overlooking the Colorado River of Texas Valley for sale on the internet, and bought it sight unseen. The plan was for land to retire to, without much more in mind. But, another move back to Singapore put things on hold.
While on a vacation in Australia, Blake noticed the similarities to some of the wineries there and his ranch he had bought in Texas. Blake and
TNL Tasting Room
Karen decided that a winery would be perfect for their “retirement” ranch. They finally moved back to Texas, and spent two years of weekends getting their land ready to plant a vineyard, finally planting their first three acres of vines in April, 2014. The next 18 months were spent making wines in the Texas High Plains, and building their winery and tasting room. This gorgeous facility finally opened for business in September, 2015.
Aside from the stunning view that you see after parking, the next
TNL View of Lake Buchanan
thing you notice is how friendly the DeBerry family and their staff are. Michelle and I were warmly welcomed by everyone we met. The tasting room is very well designed, with ample seating at low and high top tables, with a view of the barrel room and the winery through windows, plenty of servers, and
TNL small patio
the spectacular view of a massive patio overlooking the valley and lakes (Inks and Buchanan) below.
A tasting at Torr Na Lochs consists of three Whites, a choice of one of two Rose’s, and two or three reds (out of five available), for $10 ($15 if you keep the tasting glass). Blake poured the entire tasting menu for me, so I could get a good sense of their variety. All of their current selections are made with Texas High Plains grapes, as this coming bottling will be the first of their Estate-grown wines. The Whites and Rose’s have screw tops, while the Reds have cork closures.
We started with a 2014 “Fion Geal” (Gaelic for White Wine – $26), a fresh, crisp blend of six grapes, primarily Viognier with a touch of
Torr Na Lochs “Fion Geal”
Muscat. A light, fruity dry wine that would pair well with spicy food, as well as with the Texas heat. Think Nectarines with a lemon-lime finish. Very refreshing! We next had the 2014 Roussanne ($24) from the Oswald Family Vineyards in the High Plains. A typical light Roussanne done in 100% stainless tanks. With a beautiful lemon color, this simple, straight-forward wine will please those who like this acidic Rhone-style wine. I’m personally not a big fan of Roussanne, due to the acidity and slightly pungent notes, but a couple of years usually does the trick. The final White was the 2014 “Sweet Sunset” ($24), a 50-50 blend of Roussanne and Orange Muscat. Although “sweet” is in the name, this wine is only 3% Residual Sugars, so it’s nowhere near the sweetness of a dessert wine. With soft floral notes and a tangerine finish (from the Orange Muscat), this was a delightfully refreshing wine to enjoy on this 100 degree day.
On to the Rose’s… Bright and crisp, with the taste of fresh strawberries, the 2014 Rose’ di Montepulciano (Oswald Family Vineyards – $22) was extracted from the batch of Montepulciano tasted later. With a beautiful color, this is a nice alternative blush wine
Torr Na Lochs – Rose’ di Montepulciano
that would appeal to the sweet “White Zin” drinkers to trick them into enjoying a dry wine. The strawberry makes them think it is sweet. The second “Members Only” rose, named for Blake and Karen’s granddaughter was a 2015 Ruby Kate’s Rose’ ($22). Made with 50% Montepulciano and 50% Dolcetto, this Italian-style rose is very soft and subtle, with distinct fruit-forward cranberry notes (from the Dolcetto), a bright red color, with a surprising kiwi fruit finish. A nice tribute to Ruby Kate!
The five Reds were a nice variety, with some 100% Italian varietals that I like, but that may be a bit more unknown to many wine drinkers. The first, a 2015 “Fion Dearg” (Gaelic for Red Wine – $24), is a blend of
Torr Na Lochs – “Fion Dearg”
Tempranillo, Mourvedre, and Carignan. Pale red in color, this is lightly spicy with ripe strawberry and cherry notes, with a touch of tobacco. Would be good with barbecue and tacos. My favorite of the day was the 2014 Montepulciano ($31) – a grape that I have come to love. With a ruby red color and deep berry notes (think plums), this is a delicious oaky, full wine, with ripe tannins. I bought three bottles of this Montepulciano, to both enjoy now, and to cellar for a few years to watch it develop. Next was a very interesting wine – a 2014 Dolcetto ($30). This wine needs to be taste two different ways. First,
Torr Na Lochs – Montepulciano
without any swirling at all, this is a pure fruit-forward wine. Then, with 15 seconds of swirling, this wine opens up very quickly to expose soft fruit with a slight pepper note. A great wine to show off what it means for a wine to open up, since it happens so quickly. The most complex wine on the menu is a 2013 Sangiovese ($33). Aged 14 months in European Oak, with cherry and other berry notes, this wine has delicious smoky vanilla and leather notes, with slight spice and pepper. The final selection is a 2015 Petite Syrah ($48). With only two barrels produced, this is a beautifully dark, inky purple wine with deep, soft blackberry notes. Although very drinkable now, this wine – which helped to add 50 new Club Members this month – will grow well with age.
After completing the tasting menu, Blake took us out into the winery to do tank tasting on his first to Estate-grown wines. Barrel and Tank-tastings are a bit different, if you’ve never done them, as the wines are not always filtered or finished yet. These have been filtered, but still have a little finishing to be done, and then bottled. The 2015 Estate Malbec is deep with cherry, and will be a nice typical Malbec when ready. The 2015 Estate Syrah is a blend of 82% Syrah and 18% Petite Syrah. Aged in French and European Oak, this looks to be a wonderful wine in another year or more. I look forward to trying both of these when they are bottled and aged a bit!
Torr Na Lochs Tasting Menu – July, 2016
Of course, wines and a beautiful view to enjoy are not always enough. Torr La Nochs also has a light menu of food offerings to go along with your tasting. There is a $10 cheese plate, which included res and green grapes, cheese crisps, and crackers. For $12, they offer a seasonal plate, with cheeses (including goat cheese), nuts, and dried apricots. And lastly, they have a $6 dessert plate, with a homemade turtle, with truffles and a chocolate-dipped strawberry.
A big THANK YOU to Blake DeBerry for hosting Michelle and me at his
Blake & Karen DeBerry – Owners of Torr Na Lochs Winery – courtesy of TNL website
gorgeous new winery. Come for the wines, and enjoy the spectacular view, or come for the view, and enjoy some very promising wines! IT’s worth the trip to experience.
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Most of my trips to the Texas Hill Country wineries are on Fridays or Saturdays. Being Christmas week, and being off of work for the whole Holiday season, I decided to go on a Tuesday this time. The bad news is that many of the wineries from Johnson City to Fredericksburg – especially the smaller ones – are closed on Tuesdays. The good news is, I got to try two new wineries, and a couple of ones I’ve been to in the past. (Note: I was on vacation after Christmas, and have been sick since getting home, so I got behind in my posting. SORRY!)
Pedernales Cellars Tasting Room
I have visited Pedernales Cellars a number of times before, but normally they are my last stop on my way back to Austin. This time I decided to start there for a change. Pedernales is known for their award winning Tempranillos, having won Double Gold for their 2012 Reserve Tempranillo in San Francisco. That was an outstanding wine, and the 2013 promises to be as good. This winery offers both a regular and a Reserve tasting. I’ve done the Reserve tasting twice in the past, and it is well worth the $25 tasting fee. This visit, I did the normal $15 tasting. Owner/Winemaker David Kuhlken has a very nice selection to sample, consisting of a 1st vintage 2014 Vermentino (grapefruit & florals – $30), a 2nd vintage 2014 Viognier Reserve – Bingham (honey, rose, peach, vanilla, toast – $40), a 2014 Texas Dry Rose (Tempranillo/Mourvedre proprietary blend – dry with a crisp pear 7 cherry taste – $30). The two reds are a 2012 Texas Valhalla – a blend of Montepulciano, Aglianico and Tempranillo (plum, strawberry, spice, and light chocolate – $40), and the spectacular 2013 Tempranillo Reserve (tobacco, cherry, blackberry, and dark chocolate – $50). The next taste was a 2014 Moscato, a light off-dry dessert wine at 3% residual sugar (peach, green apple, apricot, pear – $30). Finally, they shared their Stonewall Holiday Glogg. Based on a Swedish recipe, this spiced tawny-style Port was served with a ginger cookie, and would be great mulled (nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves – $20). One tip about Pedernales’ Wine Club is that the prices remain constant at $69 or $79 per quarter. Many other clubs will fluctuate their price based on wine prices. Many thanks to Victoria for her expertise (as well as a winery tour) and to newcomer, Jose for his assistance!
Alexander Vineyards – Award winning French wines!Some of Alexander Vineyards Bordeaux wines
Next we stopped at a delightful newer (2013)tasting room, Alexander Vineyards, just east of Fredericksburg. Claude Alexander has brought true French, German, and soon Italian imports to Texas Hill Country. Claude selects the varietals and blends to put his name/label on, and is doing a fantastic job! Claude, along with Jayne Osborne were a delight to talk with. OK – for some of you, these are not Texas wines, so you may not really think they belong in Texas, but Claude travels to Europe to sample the barrels and to create the blends he wants, to put his name on the wines, and he is in Fredericksburg with his quaint tasting room, so I highly recommend giving these fine wines a try. Within the next two years, Alexander Vineyards will have about 40 delightful wines and champagnes available. Our tasting started with three champagnes (Grand Cru Brut – 6 g. RS – 91 pts – 100% Blanc de blanc – $50; Extra Brut – 3 g. RS – 92 pts. – $70; and Rose – 86% Chardonnay, 14% Pinot Noir – $70). Next was a silky smooth Bordeaux Rose (60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot – $18). This rose would go great with turkey, crab, BBQ, and I have had it with halibut cordon bleu and steamed trout! While enjoying their excellent charcuterie plate (rabbit & pork cheek pate, 2 sausages, 3 cheeses, & 2 chutneys), we moved on to the rest of the wines. The White Graves (55% Semillon, 45% Sauvignon Blanc – 93 pts. – $28) is “white on the nose and red in the mouth.” This was selected as the 2nd best white Bordeaux in France, best in Graves. A delicious white wine for red wine lovers. Then, it was on to the reds! The 2013 Graves (55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon – $33) is very soft, approachable, and drinkable now. The 2012 Grand Cru St. Emilion (75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc – $44) is very young, well balanced, and will set up well with up to 20-30 years of storage. This would be excellent with ribeye, quail, etc. Lastly, we enjoyed a spectacular 2011 Sauternes dessert wine (100% Semillon – 9th vintage – 2500 bottle production – $33). A perfect “OMG”, this was selected as the best Sauternes in San Francisco in 2014. Alexander Vineyards is here to stay, and is a great place to expand your palette with an excellent cross-section of European wines. Claude plans to plant local grapes soon, and will build on to his tasting facilities as he gets more great wines. Eventually he plans to add B&B cottages, as well. A fantastic find!
Our third stop was the newly opened Armadillo’s Leap. This is the new lower-end arm of Pedernales Cellars, with mostly non-Texas grapes. Fitting with the lesser quality of wines compared to other wineries, Armadillo’s Leap offers a 6-wine tasting with a glass to keep, for only $10 – and with healthy pours! The wines offered were:
Sparkling Muscat: 0% RS, but feels like a light dessert wine – $30 Armadillo’s Leap Tasting Menu
2013 Viognier – Roussanne: a slightly funky wine that must be served with food, such as shrimp salad or a spicy pork tenderloin – $20
2013 Viognier “Table White”: a smooth, drinkable wine to have with Tex-Mex – $15
“Red”: A 100% Tempranillo, an everyday kind of wine – $25
BFF: A sec, secret blend red, with plum, strawberry, chocolate, and very soft tannins – $20
Muscat: a slightly light pure Muscat with 4% RS, with Mandarin orange, pear, and green apple flavors – $18
Our 4th and final stop of the day was at another of the great, newer wineries – Lewis Wines. This was my 4th visit to Lewis Wines, and as usual, it did not disappoint. Doug Lewis and Duncan McNabb have something special going on here. In my
Lewis Wines tasting patio
opinion, they have some great wines, and have a lot of potential to become exceptional. With their new tasting room and patio, they can handle the crowds that are pouring in. Featuring 100% Texas wines with a primarily Spanish and Portuguese style, we started with the delightful 2014 Swim Spot, a crisp blend of primarily Blanc du Bois – a perfect summer wine – $14. Next, we enjoyed the lovely 2014 Mourvedre Rose, a truly boutique wine, with only 157 cases produced – $30. From there, it was on to a wonderful quartet of Temranillos:
2012 Newsome (High Plains) Tempranillo, with slight leather, this is a very drinkable wine, and will peak in 3-5 years – $30
2012 Parr Tempranillo, a smooth leathery Tempranillo – very delicious – $32
2012 Lost Draw Tempranillo, deliciously smoky with hints of tobacco – $35
2012 Texas Tempranillo, a smooth blend of 46% Lost Draw, 25% Newsome, 19% Parr, and 10% Bingham – $28.
We finished up at Lewis with both the 2011 and 2012 Round Mountain Estate, a fantastic blend of 82% Tempranillo and 18% Touriga Nacional – %50. As usual, a delightful tasting at Lewis Wines!
Thank you to all of these wineries for another wonderful day of tasting in our Texas Hill Country. I look forward to more visits to yours and other area wineries, as the list continues to grow!
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A continuation of a Saturday afternoon wine tasting out Texas Hwy 290, west of Austin – the 2nd most visited wine area in the country. My previous post talked about William Chris and Kuhlman Cellars.
Our rainy Saturday afternoon wine tasting in the Texas Hill Country continued at Four Point O (4.0) Cellars. This facility is a tasting room for three reputable Texas wineries. The first is Brennan Vineyards, Pat and Trellise Brennan’s 37 acre winery in Comanche, Texas.
Four Point O (4.0) Cellars Tasting Room – Fredericksburg
Brennan is best known for their Tempranillo and Viognier, as well as an excellent white blend, their medium bodied Reserve Lily (Chardonnay 42%, Muscat of Alexandria 38%, Chenin Blanc 10%, Riesling 6%, Grenache 4%) and a delightful Mourvedre dry rose.
The second winery represented at Four Point O is Gene Estes’ Lost Oak Winery , from Burleson, TX. Lost Oak is known primarily for their dry, semi-sweet, and sweet whites, with Blanc du Bois, Muscats/Muscatos, Rieslings, Viognier, and blends, with a few red blends and Tempranillo, plus a “Holiday wine” (which they could not tell me what all was in the blend), a mildly spicy treat with a Tempranillo base.
The third (and my favorite) winery available at Four Point O is McPherson Cellars. With their winery located in Lubbock in a former Coca Cola bottling plant, the McPherson family has over 40 years of winemaking experience. Kim McPherson has won over 450 medals in competitions within Texas, the U.S., and Internationally, with his offerings of wines from Spanish, French, and Italian varietals. Their flagship wine is a traditional Italian “DBS” (Dolcetto, Barbera, and Sangiovese) – a warm, earthy, wonderful blend – think of a nice Chianti (without the Fava Beans…).
The Four Point O tasting room was very crowded, due to the rain, leaving the outside tent completely empty (except for the music entertainer). During the wait for a tasting, there is a nice sampling of
Four Point O (4.0) Tasting Room
flavored mustards, olive oils, sauces, etc. to sample, as well as some wonderful cheeses from Veldhuizen Cheese. The tastings at Four Point O offer a nice choice of three tasting menus ($12 for 6 wines) – “Light and Sweet,” “Cellar Selection,” and “All Red.” In addition to the three wineries mentioned above, there are also a few selections that Todd Webster (Winemaker at Brennan Vineyards) has made for the 4.0 label, including a 2012 Syrah and 2013 Tempranillo. A delightful tasting room, which I have visited four times!
Our final tasting of the day was another excellent example of Texas wines done right – Messina Hof Hill Country Winery. Messina Hof is
Messina Hof Hill Country Winery – Fredericksburg, TX
based in Bryan, TX, with a Four Diamond Resort there, and this tasting room and B&B in the Fredericksburg (Hill Country) area. The Messina Hof name comes from the family origins of Paul and Merrill Bonarrigo (Messina, Sicily and Hof, Germany), and have strong ties to Texas A&M University, with a few “Aggie Network” wines available.
Messina Hof is well set up for the maximum flexibility for wine tasters. For $10, you get 5 wooden tokens to use for tasting. Most wines are one token, with their high end “Paulo” and their Limited Release wines needing two tokens. The tasting menu gives you 40 options, from whites, sparkling, rose, reds, dessert, and port wines. I ended up trying 10 wines, with no disappointments.
Messina Hof Tasting Room
Some of the highlights I tried were the Bell Brothers Zinfandel (09), with a light bell pepper and cherry taste, The Texas Sparkling Rose (fresh strawberries), a newly released Petit Verdot (14), a soft yet bold wine with a deep color, and an excellent Papa Paulo Port, which would pair perfectly with dark chocolate (provided) and a Cuban cigar (not provided…). But to me, the star of the tasting was their 204 Paulo Sagrantino. A spectacular $60 wine that would be fantastic with a spicy marinara pasta or a great pizza. Messina Hof is definitely a great place to spend an hour or more, with this wide variety of tasting options.
As I have said a few times before, although I am a huge fan of Napa and Sonoma wines, I continue to be amazed by the quickly improving quality of our Texas Hill Country wines. The number of new wineries is growing all the time, and I continue to hear of additional wineries in the area that I need to try. I am always looking for my next favorite local winery, so please continue to send me suggestions via email or Facebook!
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Owner/Winemaker David Kuhlken has a very nice selection to sample, consisting of a 1st vintage 2014 Vermentino (grapefruit & florals – $30), a 2nd vintage 2014 Viognier Reserve – Bingham (honey, rose, peach, vanilla, toast – $40), a 2014 Texas Dry Rose (Tempranillo/Mourvedre proprietary blend – dry with a crisp pear 7 cherry taste – $30). The two reds are a 2012 Texas Valhalla – a blend of Montepulciano, Aglianico and Tempranillo (plum, strawberry, spice, and light chocolate – $40), and the spectacular 2013 Tempranillo Reserve (tobacco, cherry, blackberry, and dark chocolate – $50). The next taste was a 2014 Moscato, a light off-dry dessert wine at 3% residual sugar (peach, green apple, apricot, pear – $30). Finally, they shared their Stonewall Holiday Glogg. Based on a Swedish recipe, this spiced tawny-style Port was served with a ginger cookie, and would be great mulled (nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves – $20). One tip about Pedernales’ Wine Club is that the prices remain constant at $69 or $79 per quarter. Many other clubs will fluctuate their price based on wine prices. Many thanks to Victoria for her expertise (as well as a winery tour) and to newcomer, Jose for his assistance!
