Once again I headed out to this underappreciated Wine Festival in Brownfield, Texas. It was a great time, as always. It always amazes me when I go back and look at pictures, everything I forgot to take pictures of, so you can see more on the Brownfield Chamber of Commerce’s Facebook page.
So, why do I drive across the state to this Festival? Honestly – the people. I looked back at some of my past posts and that’s what it boils down to. The wine tastings are nice, and are for the most part wines I cannot get when I’m in the Hill Country. The vineyard tours are not to be missed. But the ability to talk to the growers – the ones that make the magic happen for Texas wine is what really does it for me. That and the fact that I’m in Brownfield once a year, and yet everyone treats me like a friend. Southern Hospitality at its Best.
The Wine Tastings
Some how I missed getting a photograph of Farmhouse Wines, but their Ojo Rojo is in the far bottom picture on the right. It’s a 50/50 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre, and I’ll have a post on it soon. I also didn’t manage to get a picture of Y Knot Vineyard – which will soon have a post about their Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. I might need to get the rest of the cru together to settle the debate on which is better. [Websites: Farmhouse Vineyards; Y Knot Vineyard]
Triple D winery is almost out of their Section 42 blend, so hurry up and order this smooth drinking red wine. I came home with a bottle of the latest Semillon (not pictured below) and have been told to be on the lookout for the new Malbec. The new Riesling is light and crisp and Ty’s Viognier is always a favorite. (Read my review here or visit the website)
A bottle of Oswald’s Albariño made it into the take home box, so look to see a review on that soon. The Montepulciano is good too, but I was trying hard not to come home with more than six bottles (mission accomplished!) and I’m low on white wines now that its summer. Check out Oswald Vineyard’s website to learn more about their roster of wines.
Bingham didn’t bring a big selection of wines for tasting, but I tried their 2024 Summer Nights, which is a sweet rosé, with the grapes grown just outside the Brownfield city limits. See more about Bingham Family vineyards here.
Prairie Chick, out of Levelland, surprised me, and yes that top glass is indeed a White Zinfandel. I never would have thought I would ever buy a glass – but it drinks like a Texas Rosé. It’s light, it’s crisp and more importantly it has a great strawberry flavor. I like it better than their Sweet Rosé because it’s dry yet fruity and refreshing. Their Roll On red blend was good too, and one I’ll have to check out again. See more from Prairie Chick here.
I tried Reddy Vineyard’s Petals and Clay which is a light bodied white. But I really enjoyed the Aglianico. Had a great chat with Anthony Mosley, the winemaker about what’s new. I still don’t have a concrete answer on the rebranding of Reddy Vineyards, beyond the fact that it has to do with opening their first tasting room in the Hill Country (Stonewall to be exact.) Nothing yet on the website about the tasting room, but watch for it.
The Vineyard Tours
The tours were a bit lighter than years past, but it was still great to see the vineyards and hear a bit of history about how the vineyards got started. I loved Ty’s story about how they got their name. Jet Wilmeth took the name Diamante Doble after their family’s brand (M over W – which makes double diamonds), so Ty named his Diamante Doble Dos (the second double diamond). The entire Wilmeth clan was out at the vineyard to meet with everyone, along with the consulting team members. While at Reddy, Anthony Mosely led tours out the back of the tank room across the crush pad to the vineyard and served a variety of wines.
On the way to the vineyards we were treated to local history from a longtime Brownfield resident and information from the local water commission on water conservation for agriculture in Terry County. Both were actually really interesting, even if I can’t remember the statistics that were rattled off…. I just know that grapes take less water to grow than cotton. Grapes only need about 7-9 inches of rainfall.
Final Thoughts
The Armory, which is an event location, was a great location with space for people to sit, eat and talk, as well as space for the bands and a dance floor. I didn’t snag pictures of the food the first night which was provided by several local businesses and you can see the HUGE porkchop served the second night. And yes, the dress I’m wearing is a grape pattern. [More on booking the Armory for an event here]
And Bless Your Heart, Katy Jane – It’s Grits and Wine… not grace, not gravy or whatever else you decide to throw at me on any given day. But I do thank you for the introduction to one of Llano’s new owners.
I didn’t mention Llano in the rundown of tastings, because I didn’t stop and taste anything. However, I did have a lovely chat with one of Llano’s new owners and hope to be sitting down with him soon to discuss his vision for Llano’s future without a live band in the background. But let me just say, his excitement was catching and I have great hopes for Llano’s comeback in the next few years. [Read more on the new management here.]
BTW – I was in no way compensated for writing this post, I’m just back to being excited about Texas’ Wine’s future.
What were the other bottles that came home? Of course I had to stock up on my go-to red wine – Jack Knife by Farmhouse Vineyards – so that made up the other two bottles.
