Texas Twitter Talk happens every Tuesday on social media. As the name would indicate, the main discussion is taking place on Twitter but Texas wine lovers also post and discuss their Texas wine choices on Facebook and Instagram as well. Some earlier picks were included in a weekly roundup of wines that I tasted during the first few weeks of the Stay Home order. I decided to separate them out a couple of weeks ago to make it easier for Texas wine lovers to find my notes on these home grown wines.
This wine was selected when favorite Texas white wines was the theme of the talk. I consider Duchman to be one of the best wineries in the state. My favorites have typically been the Vermentino tasted here and their Aglianico, but they also make a good Trebbiano and Montepulciano.
Duchman Family Winery Vermentino 2016 - Grapes sourced from the Bingham Family Vineyard. Dry, smooth, medium body white wine with tropical aromas of white flower and pineapple with notes of lemon peel and a hint of saline in clean, refreshing finish.
Full disclosure, one of the owners is now my husband's cardiologist but I was enjoying the wines long before they met. Read more about the winemaker for Duchman in a feature I wrote for a local magazine.
This wine was selected when favorite Texas winery was the theme. I met Ron Yates a few years ago at Spicewood Vineyards. Since then, he has expanded with a new winery producing wines under the Ron Yates Wines label. I wrote about meeting Ron in 2014, you can click here to read more about him. I tasted both of these wines at that first meeting mentioned above and purchased both of these bottles at that time. The High Plains was my favorite of these two wines then. This was my last bottle of each. Halfway through dinner, I pulled the Hill Country wine out. We were discussing that first trip and I couldn't resist comparing the two again. My son and daughter were also at home to join the discussion, both bottles were fully consumed.
Spicewood Vineyards Texas High Plains Tempranillo 2012 - This wine was starting to show its age a bit but has become more elegant as well. I had a friend that used to make oven dried fruit snacks with no added sugar for her kids and that was the aroma and flavor of which I was reminded. Dried strawberry with leather, and a dusty note, the wine was dry, and medium bodied with a lingering white pepper finish. It was definitely different than the fruity wine, I remembered.
Spicewood Vineyards Texas Hill Country Tempranillo 2012 - This wine is also evolving but it is defying its age a bit better. This wine had the similar strawberry note but was more vibrant, it displayed some fig and tobacco, along with a lighter leather note, it was fuller bodied, a bit more structured but still with a persistent spicy finish. On this evening, the Texas Hill Country was the preferred wine by all.
The theme for this night was wines made from Italian grape varieties. 86% of this wine meets that criteria. I was also curious to see how the 2013 vintage was holding up after tasting the 2012s. The THP on this label stands for Texas Hocus Pocus named because it is a blend of grapes that are not usually blended together. This red is composed of 54% Aglianico, 21% Montepulciano, 14% Tempranillo, and 11% Barbera.
Llano Estacado Texas High Plains THP Stampede 2013 - Red cherry and cranberry aromas and flavors with fresh cracked black pepper, and dried herbs, medium-bodied and easy drinking with good acidity and fine, powdery tannins, and a juicy, spicy red fruit finish.
These vintages are no longer available on the winery websites but you can find more current releases.
This wine was selected when favorite Texas white wines was the theme of the talk. I consider Duchman to be one of the best wineries in the state. My favorites have typically been the Vermentino tasted here and their Aglianico, but they also make a good Trebbiano and Montepulciano.
Duchman Family Winery Vermentino 2016 - Grapes sourced from the Bingham Family Vineyard. Dry, smooth, medium body white wine with tropical aromas of white flower and pineapple with notes of lemon peel and a hint of saline in clean, refreshing finish.
Full disclosure, one of the owners is now my husband's cardiologist but I was enjoying the wines long before they met. Read more about the winemaker for Duchman in a feature I wrote for a local magazine.
This wine was selected when favorite Texas winery was the theme. I met Ron Yates a few years ago at Spicewood Vineyards. Since then, he has expanded with a new winery producing wines under the Ron Yates Wines label. I wrote about meeting Ron in 2014, you can click here to read more about him. I tasted both of these wines at that first meeting mentioned above and purchased both of these bottles at that time. The High Plains was my favorite of these two wines then. This was my last bottle of each. Halfway through dinner, I pulled the Hill Country wine out. We were discussing that first trip and I couldn't resist comparing the two again. My son and daughter were also at home to join the discussion, both bottles were fully consumed.Spicewood Vineyards Texas High Plains Tempranillo 2012 - This wine was starting to show its age a bit but has become more elegant as well. I had a friend that used to make oven dried fruit snacks with no added sugar for her kids and that was the aroma and flavor of which I was reminded. Dried strawberry with leather, and a dusty note, the wine was dry, and medium bodied with a lingering white pepper finish. It was definitely different than the fruity wine, I remembered.
Spicewood Vineyards Texas Hill Country Tempranillo 2012 - This wine is also evolving but it is defying its age a bit better. This wine had the similar strawberry note but was more vibrant, it displayed some fig and tobacco, along with a lighter leather note, it was fuller bodied, a bit more structured but still with a persistent spicy finish. On this evening, the Texas Hill Country was the preferred wine by all.
Llano Estacado Texas High Plains THP Stampede 2013 - Red cherry and cranberry aromas and flavors with fresh cracked black pepper, and dried herbs, medium-bodied and easy drinking with good acidity and fine, powdery tannins, and a juicy, spicy red fruit finish.
These vintages are no longer available on the winery websites but you can find more current releases.
Comments
Post a Comment
Thank you for reading Wine Life - Houston.