The Grape Capital of Texas – Terry County – doesn’t get enough acknowledgement for their Texas Vineyard and Wine Festival. Now in it’s 12th year, it is still mostly a local event. And while that’s a wonderful thing, as it keeps it from becoming a tourist nightmare – it’s also a shame as the vineyards in Terry County have some amazing things going on.
Don’t get me wrong – most of the vineyards also have tasting rooms in the Hill Country, because let’s face it – driving to the middle of West Texas in July isn’t most people’s idea of a vacation. I, on the other hand, relish the chance to go to Brownfield for the festival.
It’s much like a family reunion – I get to see people I only really see once a year beyond following them on Facebook or Instagram. It’s lovely to catch up and see how big the kids have gotten and hear all the family gossip. I love catching up on what’s new both personally and professionally with the farmers, vintners, and everyone.


This year the event was once again held at the Armory on July 12 and 13th. The usual wineries: Reddy, Bingham, Oswald, Adelphos, Llano, Triple D and Farmhouse were there. This year also had the YKnot Winery – but more on them in another post. Farmhouse, which owns the armory did a barrel tasting of their cabernet sauvignon… and I’m really looking forward to that one when its bottled.
There were only two winery tours this year – which is probably good as even with only a half hour allotted for each one, we were squeezed for time.

The first winery our bus visited was Bingham. I’ve never made it out for Bingham Grape Days, so I was excited to see the winery. The tour may have been a bit technical for some of the individuals but I rather enjoyed the mix of technical detail on how Bingham makes wine and the tastings. The tastings were spread out between the different sections of the tour, and it made for good dialog.
The second winery was Oswald Vineyards. I’d tried their wines at previous festivals – but only one or two. It was nice to get to taste a few more during the tour and time we got to spend at the facility.

Final Thoughts
The festival truly deserves more attention from the Texas wine community than it gets, but I would really hate for it to become too big and lose the small town feel it has now. Yet, I would like to see more serious Texas Wine enthusiasts join me at the festival in the future. I always learn so much from having the ability to sit down and talk to people like Ty and Mary Wilmeth (Triple D) during dinner or to pick Anthony Mosley’s (Reddy’s Executive Winemaker) brain while we each enjoy a glass of our favorite wine while listening to three dudes attempt to play classic country with a modern twist. (The music wasn’t bad, just interesting, and for the most part the performers were good – just a bit too loud.)

Personally, I think the Chamber has gotten a good plan for the festival now – though do agree the food might need some coordination as banana pudding is hard to pair with wine – but we tried. Overall, I can’t wait to get the dates for next year and maybe there will be a few more wine enthusiasts…. Brownfield is only 45 minutes from Lubbock, so it’s not like you’re completely without your fancy coffee. Though, I do recommend stopping in at “Board and Brew” and ordering the Ms. Peacock (Coffee, Lavender, Rose and White Chocolate). They are on the road to Lubbock. (more)