October is Texas Wine Month
The Texas Department of Agriculture has designated October as Texas Wine Month. The harvest of grapes is finally finished with the grapes fermenting into wines. The hot summer is over and the weather is cooling to make wonderful outings to wineries possible. If you follow these hints, I believe you are well on your way to a memorable wine outing. Suggestions include:
• If possible, plan your winery outing on either Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday for an intimate affair. Most wineries are closed on Mondays with Friday, Saturday, and Sunday being very busy days.
• Review the winery’s website for special occasions such as concerts on the winery grounds or special tastings. Those events will bring more people to the winery when those special events happen. In some cases, the winery might also charge fees for those special events.
• If you know what type or style of wine you like, do a “Google Search” to find the winery that specializes in your special wine loves.
• Look for a winery with an onsite “Bed and Breakfast” facility such as Bernhardt Winery near Plantersville, Messina Hof Winery in Bryan and Fredericksburg, and Grape Creek Winery near Fredericksburg. These onsite facilities will provide you with an inside perspective on winery operations.
• Book no more than four winery visits per day to get a full winery visit. It is not just about tasting the wines at each winery. Add to your experience by learning about their winery history and philosophies. Almost every winery in Texas is family owned and has a story to tell and a passion to share.
Texas has numerous wine trails for you to travel to experience the local winemaking experiences. Search on the internet any of these wine trails to find the trail closest to you or for an extended trip:
• Bay Breeze Wine Trail – Gulf Coast
• Cross Timbers Wine Trail – North Texas
• Dallas Town and Country Wine Trail – North Texas
• Driftwood Wine Trail – Driftwood, TX
• Dripping Wine Trail – In and Around Dripping Springs, TX
• Grapevine Wine Trail – Grapevine, TX
• Guadalupe Valley Wine Country – Central Texas
• Piney Woods Wine Trail – East Texas
• Red River Wine Trail – North Texas
• Sam Houston Wine Trail – East Texas
• Texas Bluebonnet Wine Trail – Southeast Texas
• Texas Coast Wine Trail
• Texas High Plains Wine and Vine Trail – Lubbock Area
• Texas Hill Country Wineries – Fredericksburg Area
• Texas Independence Wine Trail – South and Central Texas
• Thirsty Oaks Wine Trail – Texas Hill Country
• Top of the Hill Country Wine Trail – Texas Hill Country
• Way Out Wineries – Southwest Texas
• Wine Road 290 – Fredericksburg Area
The oldest wine trail is the Texas Hill Country Wineries which started in 1999 and has grown to 63 wineries in 2024. There are over 120 wineries in the Texas Hill Country, but only 65 wineries have qualified to become a member of the Texas Hill Country Wineries. This wine trail experiences over 2,020,000 tourism visitors during the last calendar year and that was at the end of the pandemic. These wineries provided jobs for over 141,000 with annual wages approaching seven billion dollars. These economic numbers are very impressive, but what is impressive is what happens during the entire month of October at these 63 wineries. Tickets are available online at www.TexasWineTrail.com. Wine tastings are limited to four wineries per day so you can savor each wine with your friends. These wine tastings should normally run about an hour and a half. I suggest taking a picnic lunch and/or dinner with you consisting of cheeses, deli meats, and assorted breads/crackers. Enjoy Texas wines and raise a glass of Texas wine to commemorate this 23 billion dollar industry.