Le Libertine – NV; Time Ten Cellars; Dallas, Texas

This red wine is a blend if Merlot (47%), Cabernet Sauvignon (44%), and Malbec (9%).  From the back of the label, it looks like the grapes were sourced from California.  This red was created in a Bordeaux style and although non-vintage, this bottle is about 10 years old.  It is declining, so sadly we did not pull it to try in its heyday, however, it still maintains some of the fruit and smoke flavors that made this wine very enjoyable. Cherries still stand out the most and there is a tobacco sensation on the palate.  The acids are tolerable with a nice fatty dish.  Temper this nice red blend with a great cut of meat and veggies for a pleasant delight! Check our other great wines offered by this winery at their website link below.

www.timestencellars.com

Blanc du Bois – 2010; Enoch’s Stomp Vineyard & Winery; Harleton, Texas

This elegant Blanc du Bois white wine can stand toe-to-toe with many traditional fine white wines.  It’s a pleasant off-dry wine with notes of pears.  The fruit is beginning to taper off in this seven-year-old white wine, but it’s still quite refreshing and enjoyable. The color is also experiencing some darkening with age, but not as much as with most aged whites. It’s still a great wine to enjoy and pair with your favorite spring dishes or to just enjoy by itself while out on the porch enjoying the beautiful sunset! Cheers!

www.enochsstomp.com

Whistling Duck Vineyard & Winery – Weimar, Texas

You’ll want to take a trip down the country dirt road for this winery trek, because you’ll eventually end up at a very peaceful and picturesque location, with lots of wine available for you to sample. The Johnson’s (Stan and Mary) and Cooke’s (John and Kari) teamed up using their backgrounds in horticulture and winemaking to make dreams come true and started the Whistling Duck winery.   They started out planning vines on the 17-acre family ponderosa. Over the years, they’ve continued to add to the rows and now have about 4 acres of Blanc du Bois and Black Spanish planted.  Up near the Dublin/Stephenville area, is another 55-acre family farm where they have 3 acres of Tempranillo, Viognier, and Malbec planted. They opened in 2014 and now have many wines to choose from for tasting.  You get to choose from a diverse selection of white to red and dry to sweet.  The people at Texas Custom Wine Works have assisted them with the wine production.  The 2015 dry Blanc du Bois is a light and smooth enjoyable white wine.  The 2016 Viognier is semi- sweet with honey and apricot notes and a touch of effervescence.  The Friday Night Whites is a white blend of Blanc du Bois, Orange Muscat and Muscat Canelli.  It’s citrus aromas and tropical notes will help transport you to that remote island relaxation mode.  The Pura Vida is a nice Muscat Canelli that’s very elegant with its citrus and melon notes.  The Texas Sparkler is an off-dry Blanc du Bois. It’s very refreshing and once again shows how this varietal has found its calling!  If you like the semi-sweet Blanc du Bois style wine, do try the Long Road Home.  For the Black Spanish grape, their 2015 Lenoir has a nice fruit forward appealing taste.  For an off-dry Lenoir, check out their 2015 Buzzard Head.  It has a lighter texture and is smooth. The 2015 Tempranillo is very dry and quite peppery!  You’ll be in for a delight with the Chocolate Duck. Made with infused chocolate and almonds coupled with a Ruby Cabernet, it is very delicious and has the power to charm the sweet and chocolate addict!  Finally, you’ll get to sample their own Sangria recipe.  It employs their Cattle Guard Sweet Red (Tempranillo) as the base married by citrus and sparkle, it is quite the delightful refreshing end to your tasting journey. The friendly and warm hosts and the inviting and relaxing country setting implores you to slow down and set a spell as you take in the nice country air and enjoy the fruits of the vine. This little piece of heaven is a place where you can unwind and let your worries escape as you enjoy all the beauty of the season with good company, attentive service, and a good selection of wines to tempt your palate. Cheers!

www.whistlingduckwinery.com

White Zinfandel – 2010; Kiepersol Winery; Tyler, Texas

What an absolutely, lovely treat to have tucked away and rediscovered!  This elegant White Zinfandel was beautiful in sight, smell, and taste!  We were happy to see how nicely this wine held up with aging and it literally tasted spectacular. It had a nice bright raspberry color with pleasant floral aromas on the nose. The raspberry and light strawberry notes were still well intact along with a long apricot finish. This sweet fruit forward chilled beauty was just what we needed on a warm evening to help shake off our workday cares.  Don’t overlook the chance to pick up any of Kiepersol’s White Zinfandel for those upcoming spring and summer evenings when you need to reach for something sweet, refreshing, and truly a delight to drink.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed drinking this one!

www.kiepersol.com

Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve – 2004; Triple R Ranch, Whitesboro, Texas

Sourced from the Texas High Plains, this aged Cabernet still exhibits some lively ruby color and enticing vanilla bean aromas. There is moderate color loss, but not unexpected due to the age. Cherry and blueberries are the notes that are holding well as you sip and enjoy this wine.  The tannins are still quite firm and the cork was still intact, as well! Labeled “Big Red”, this wine does demand a big bold meaty pairing to do it justice. We were pleasantly surprised how well this one still held up over time and were pleased with the overall structure. We always enjoy sampling any Cabernet Sauvignons and this one did not disappoint over time.

www.thetriplerranch.com

Sangiovese – 2007; San Martino Winery; Rockwall, Texas

Great wines come to those you have the patience to wait!  This ten-year-old Sangiovese from San Martino is a testament to how Texas wine can age well.  Sourced from Newsom Vineyards, the high plains fruit has melded nicely with the beautiful oak flavors in this wine. The cherry and raspberry notes still hold up well and balance out with the great acidity in the wine.  Some peppery notes linger towards the end of the finish just to further dazzle your palate and leave you wanting another sip. The tannins are still holding their own and we believe this wine could last another couple of years before smoothing out.  This wine was a great treat to open and enjoy on its own and pair with a big pasta dish.  Though you may not be able to find this vintage at the winery, they are still producing Sangiovese from this vineyard and we have every reason to believe that subsequent vintages should no doubt still delight. We  highly encourage you to make the trip to Rockwall to visit them and taste for yourself. Enjoy well, our wine friends!

www.sanmartinowinery.com

Wines of Dotson-Cervantes – Pontotoc, Texas

Out on the edge of the Texas Hill Country is where you’ll find this shining light producing some great Texas wines.  Owners Alphonse Dotson and Martha Cervantes may have started out on difference paths in life, but good karma has brought them together and lead them to this piece of Texas wine country.   Alphonse was a former NFL player and played for the Oakland Raiders.  Martha worked for resort companies in Mexico.  They met and had a desire to start something entirely new in their lives and determined that Texas was the place for their vineyard.  They have been growing grapes in their vineyard near Voca for about 18 years.  The vineyard has about 20 acres planted with about 20,000 vines.  Fall Creek Winery has been using their grapes to make some of their award-winning wines for many years.  Fall Creek and the Dotson’s helped disprove the myth that high quality Chardonnay can’t be grown in Texas.  You may have seen their wines at area wine stores.  Don’t be afraid to try them.  They are quite good!  The tasting room in Pontotoc opened in November of 2014.  They currently have four wines for tasting.  Ed Auler and Sergio Cuadra from Fall Creek helped with the winemaking, too.  The 2015 Perseverance is a blend of 75% Muscat Canelli, 13% Malvasia Bianco, 7% Chardonnay, and 5% Moscato.  Alphonse tells a great story of how these vines recovered from an accidental herbicide dose, hence, the origin of the name. This white wine is crisp with lovely citrus notes.  It has the taste of sweetness, yet it’s dry.  The 2015 Gotas de Oro is a 50% Chardonnay, 50% Muscat Canelli blend.  The “Drop of Gold” wine has delightful citrus and pear notes with a nice soft finish.  Now, the Something Red is a real treat!  This 2008 blend of Cabinet Sauvignon 68% and Merlot 32%.  It has all the right berries, all the right tannins, and just enough spicy notes to give that wonderful full mouth feel.  We also tried the same wine that had been opened for two weeks.  Guess what…it still tasted great!  It was just a bit softer and more mellow, but the fruit still held up well. We enjoyed Fall Creek’s Chardonnay that he had on hand.  It’s a very nice wine for the white wine lovers!  Already bottled and waiting to settle down is the 2015 Patience.  This blend of 55% Merlot, 17% Sangiovese, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 13% Petit Verdot is surely to be the next knockout red wine for the Dotsons. When you come, plan on spending a long afternoon sitting, visiting and enjoying yourself.  There’s no rush or hurry in Pontatoc. Alphonse has some great stories to tell while you sip and enjoy these wonderful wines.  We’re looking forward to the next outing here and hope we’ve inspired you to make the journey as well!  Cheers!

www.dotsoncervanteswines.com