WST Greater Houston Chapter Presents Some Mighty Fine, ‘Texas Fine Wine” at Reef
Guest Blog by Ed Dent, The Wine Society of Texas Greater Houston Chapter
The May 31st Greater Houston Chapter of The Wine Society of Texas food and wine event at REEF Restaurant featuring Texas Fine Wines in Houston for the first time was a huge success. The event was sold out by Thursday, with a waiting list. The wines served were Duchman Winery Vermentino, Brennan Vineyards Viognier, Pedernales Cellars Tempranillo and Bending Branch Winery Tannat. Some attendees were treated to Bending Branch’s new Tannat Port. Representing the wineries at this event were Duchman Winery owner Stan Duchman, Julie Kuhlken co-owner of Pedernales Cellars, and Jennifer Beckman, Sommelier and Director of Marketing at Bending Branch Winery.
Each winery representative spoke about their wines and winery. There was a question and answer period which included such questions as the future of the Texas wine industry and why was there not enough storage capacity so more wine can be made in the good years and held for the leaner years. Stan Duchman expressed the importance of asking for Texas Wines at your favorite restaurants. Jennifer Beckman indicated that Texas wineries were doing some great things and were winning awards both nationally and internationally. Julie commented how wonderful it was to see how engaged the members of the Texas Wine Society were with Texas wine.
At the end of the evening, a raffle was held for the Wine Society of Texas’s scholarship fund. The wines which were raffled was 2012 GSM from Pedernales Cellars, 2012 Tempranillo from Brennan, 2011 Vermintino from Duchman, and Bending Branch’s 2011 Tannat as well as their sold out Tannat Port.
As an added bonus Dr. Duchman donated two tours and tastings for 10 people. In keeping with the spirit of the evening, Jennifer donated a tour and tasting for 10, too. To say the least, the raffle was also successful.
The members of the Greater Houston Chapter of the Wine Society of Texas thank each of the wineries, Bill Floyd, co-owner of REEF, and his staff, as well as all the attendees for such an enjoyable and successful evening.
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VintageTexas – Unfortunately, I was out of town the weekend of the WST Texas Fine Wine dinner event and was unable to attend. But, I did manage to get back in time for a Texas Fine Wine trade tasting that was also held at REEF the following Monday afternoon. Under the watchful eye and guitar of Willie Nelson (see below), and appetizers provided by Chef Brian Caswell, I had a chance to taste wines from all four wineries (Duchman, Bending Branch, Brennan and Pedernales Cellars). The tasting was commendable both for its quality and breadth of grape varieties and styles. Keep in mind, Texas is just about the same size as France and France offers quite a wide range of wines and styles, too. Texas Fine Wine is truly a diverse group, too. Remember, what brings them together is the desire to promote Texas wines from the standpoint of their quality, which I am glad to say is very competitive to well-accepted brands in the marketplace.
I love the flavor of Texas wine and it is one of the things that I look for in gatherings and special occasions. This industry is promising and can even become one of the trademarks of Texas.