Duchman Winery says $10 is the New $15 for Their Vermentino
Last weekend my wife and I were sitting on our front porch at my cottage in the Texas hill country. The weather was simply divine: cool and breezy as the sun was setting to our backs. Birds were eating at the feeders. We were doing what Texans do; enjoying some Texas wines. The white wine was Duchman Family Winery Vermentino.
As we sipped, I took a look at by Blackberry Twitter app and noticed that I received the following tweet from Duchman Winery…”Our New wine prices are meant to put our wines in competition with other wines on the world stage. $10 a bottle for Vermentino!!!”
I thought to myself…A ten dollar Vermentino that’s really cool. Most Vermentinos in the marketplace are Italian and are $18 or more a bottle. This one is grown, ripened, and fermented inTexas…now, that’s even cooler.
So, I had to get some additional info. I tweeted back, “@DuchmanWinery: This is great. Is it at the winery or retail stores?”
In a matter of seconds, I got a response…”Retail will be soon to follow, tasting room/online now. All wines have been re-priced. We now offer some of the best value in the state.” I thought….and, you did it without going to some far away state to get grapes, either!
Next, I went to the Duchman Winery Website and found the page titled, “Duchman Family 2009 Texas Vermentino”….Texas grown and Texas made! Price: $10. Who says that $15 is the new $10? Here, at the Duchman Family Winery we’re working hard to bring you fresh, food-friendly wines like this $10 Texas Vermentino. Click here to purchase.”
Here are the details on the Duchman Family Winery 2009 Vermentino:
Harvested: August 2009
Vineyard: Bingham Family Vineyards
Appellation: Texas High Plains AVA
Bottled: May 2010
Total Production: 1156 Cases
Aging: Fermented and aged in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks for 9 months
Alcohol %: 13.1
Winemaker Notes: The 2009 Duchman Family Winery Vermentino is a white wine that offers perfumed aromas of grapefruit and slightly sweet pear on the nose. The palate offers more notes of citrus, pear, and a slight herbaceous character. This wine finishes clean and dry with refreshing acidity. Being the sole producer of Texas grown Vermentino in the state, Duchman Family Winery has received excellent response to this varietal from sommeliers and restaurateurs alike. As a refreshing alternative to Sauvignon Blanc, the 2009 is a great option for oysters, sushi, and other seafood.
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If you are one of those people that always feels the need to say, “Texas wines are too expensive. Blah! Blah! Blah! I can find a better bottle of Australian wine for less”, here is your chance to partake in a bargain that has real value. The Duchman Vermentino is very well made and an exciting wine to enjoy (especially in the Texas hill country, or actually anywhere). OK, what’s your excuse? Ain’t you ever heard of a Texas Vermentino before?
According to Wikipedia, “Vermentino is a late-ripening white grape variety, primarily found in Italian wine. It is widely planted in Sardinia, in Liguria primarily under the name Pigato, to some extent in Corsica, in Piedmont under the name Favorita, and in increasing amounts in Languedoc-Roussillon.”
If you’ve been to southwestern France like I have, you would have to agree that Texas is a hell of a lot more like Languedoc-Roussillon and the other places where Vermentino grows than Texas is like Bordeaux or Burgundy.
Vermentino has found a new home….TEXAS!
Well, if name dropping impresses you, Duchman’s Vermentino captivated Oz Clarke during his stop in Texas enough to make it a point out the potential future for this varietal in Texas. In his blog in the Wine Spectator, Oz called the Duchman Vermentino “SMASHING, VIVACIOUS”! The Dallas Morning News recently named this wine their “wine of the week” (click here for details). Whole Foods Market even chose this wine to have on tap at their Highland Park and Park Lane locations in Dallas, Texas.
$10 IS the new $15, but only while the supply of Duchman Vermentino lasts.
This is a VERY smart move and I hope many Texas wineries follow Duchman’s lead. I know some already have.
Duchman is going to sell a ton more wine. Most places where I saw this wine it was being sold at 17.99. Their Vermentino is a great wine but I would classify it along the lines of a more Sicilian white (Picollo Fiore or Lamura Bianca) which is going for 5.99-9.99 a bottle and the Lamura is in a screw cap. The Vermintino is the same quality if not a little better.
I myself am now going to go and buy a handful of Duchman wines just because they dropped the price, way to take the market lead Duchman!
I keep saying this “Price moves wine” more than any kind of advertising ect.
Can’t wait to try this! Thanks for the hot tip.