Hidden Hangar – Flight 1

Hidden Hangar Vineyard & Winery is hidden east of Denison, Texas. It is on what was once an airfield for barnstorming pilots. (Read more) It was an impromptu stop over the weekend. The countryside is lovely, and it is hard to remember you are only two hours north of downtown Dallas and less than 15 minutes from the Oklahoma border.

The first flight consisted of the following:

• Rosé
• Syrah
• Cabernet Franc
• Malbec
• V.F.R. (Very Fine Riesling)

A generous 1 oz pour of each was provided and armed with the printed literature, we were left to enjoy the beauty of the landscape and the wine.

Rosé

Their Notes: medium-bodied, dry wine made with estate grown grapes that reveal aromas and flavors of pear, lemon, melon and apple

My Thoughts: Smelled amazing. The aroma was like that of a fine perfume, light, summer roses. Very much a debutante scent. Unfortunately, the taste disappointed me. Maybe it was too cold, maybe I expected too much after the aroma being so sweet it was too dry. I’d classify it as a porch pounder – but more of a girls day by the pool. Smells great, will go with nibbles but not heavy.

Syrah

Their Notes: aged 8 months in new oak barrels; full bodied red wine has black raspberry, black cherry, plum and vanilla character.

Cabernet Franc

Their Notes: medium-bodied red wine with black cherry, plum, chocolate, vanilla and coffee aromas and flavors.

My Thoughts: I really wanted to like this wine. It’s like your sorority little – you want so much to be friends but your personalities just clash. But you still have to be nice and guide them, so you find a way to make it work (at least until they get a little).

I did think that if I had to pair this with food, I’d put with with Steak Diane. Steak Diane is a dish of pan-fried steak with a sauce made from the seasoned pan juices, and sometimes flambéed, and sometimes just drowned in browned butter.

This is a Monday for me personally, but in reality it’s a Tuesday wine. I’d happily try it again to see if we get along better another day… especially since it’s won 4 awards within Texas.

Malbec

Their Notes: medium-to-full-bodied fruit forward red with plum, black raspberry, blueberry, vanilla and clove.

My Thoughts: I love malbecs. So imagine my disappointment when the aroma of this one disappointed, almost to the point I didn’t want to try it and ruin my perception of their description. But having disliked the Cab Franc, I figured it really couldn’t get worse.

It went well with the spicy salami from the charcuterie tray and much like the Syrah went well with the aged white cheddar. It did not pair well with the fruit and the crackers made it a bit dry for me. It’s a good solid Tuesday Malbec, or Sunday dinner with the family, just maybe don’t linger over the aroma. (Again another 4 award winner, 1 of which is from the San Francisco Chronicle)

V.F.R. (Very Fine Riesling)

Their Notes: crisp, medium-bodied, balanced white wine with character typical of Riesling such as apricot, peach, lime and white flowers.

My Thoughts: absolutely love the smell, took me back to making grape sherbet with my grandmother in the old hand-cranked machine where you used Welch’s grape juice. My grandmother used the regular grape, so the sherbet was a beautiful pale purple. This has the sweet scent of the white grape juice. The wine has won 3 awards (within Texas).

I let it get too warm, so I didn’t love the taste as much as I think I would have if it was still super cold. But I could see serving this at a garden party with some peach cobbler. It’s a delightfully “Southern” Riesling.

Final Thoughts

Overall a surprise for a random stop. Most of the time when my husband and I go adventuring we don’t like the wine as much. However, Hidden Hangar is a solid Monday-Thursday wine varietal. Worth the stop if you are in the area to take a flight or two (pun intended).

Look for Flight 2’s description in a couple of days.