Good Morning!

Another great winery we found on the Texas wine trail list was Chisholm Trail Winery. We poked the address into the GPS and it said 21 minutes and off we went. We were on the highway for a few miles then off on a side country road and then the GPS said turn right and it looked like a dirt driveway, but it said we had 1.7 miles to go…we followed and it was curvy, dusty and fun.

We saw the winery sign and pulled in and they had a baby donkey roaming around the side yard and wooden fences leading up to the tasting room and then we walked in and the tasting room was huge but still felt cozy. Alfred at the bar met us, he was wearing a cowboy hat and the place was filled with cowboy and Texas Hill country stuff….think TGI Friday’s interior but with a Texas theme. They had a wood oven and serve pizzas on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, they had hand made sausages, chocolates and even cigars.

They had a large area to the side of the tasting room where they host dances and events and I checked out the surroundings while Alfred set up our tastings. We started with the dry white, Belle Starr. There is a story about how this woman helped folks who were in trouble with the law back in the day and she was accidently shot by the sheriff, (I am sure I am not doing justice to the storied life of this woman, but I was distracted by this great wine). Crisp, fruity and full. Keep in mind all these wines are made with Texas grown grapes so this is a blend of about 3 different grape varietals. I liked this wine so well, I ended up buying this one!

Chisholm Trail Winery produces about 3500 cases per year and it is only sold at the winery, I found this to be so impressive, because you have to be looking for this place, it is not on the main road of Fredericksburg.

Next we tried Lone Wolf, a medium bodied, dry wine that I could really taste the berries, both raspberries and blackberries. It was a nice wine and I would totally pair this with a big, fat grilled burger with bacon strips on it!

Next was the Diablo, 70% Syrah and 30% Lenoir grapes, I had never had Lenoir wines until I tried Texas wines, Lenoir kinda reminds me of Cabernet Franc…most times it is too powerful alone, but blended it really has a great aroma and brings out the best of both wines. Dry and spicy, so naming this wine Diablo was perfect! I might pair this with anything with a hearty tomato based sauce would be really nice.

Silver Spur was next and it is a blend of 3 grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc…this wine is the most California like wine I had at Chisholm Trail Winery. Big flavors, big nose and quick, dry finish. I would like this with slow roasted meats and veggies!

Velvet Lady is their Zinfandel, I bought this wine….I can not wait to have this with lamb on the grill. This wine was fresh, fruity and really smooth for as young of a wine as it is. They said it is also perfect with Red Velvet Cake….I will be trying that pairing ASAP!

Next up were the sweet wines…Kiss Ass Blush and Ghostrider….not really my kinda wine to drink, but the tasting room was buzzing with the love of Kiss Ass Blush, people were buying this stuff by the case! It was a rush of sales and one of the women at the tasting bar said they drove 60 miles to get another case! Good for you Chisholm Trail…cash is KING!

Then I finished up with the Port, Almagres…paired with the chocolate they have made in Fredericksburg…it was silly good! As soon as the port hit my tongue and the chocolate finished…I was all smiles!

Going to Chisholm Trail Winery was fun, entertaining, the wines were very good, the story behind the winery is awesome and the hard work and love of making wine and being a place that would make anyone want to take the drive to their tasting room, is apparent. I will make sure when folks come to visit and they want to hit up wine country in Fredericksburg… we will make sure to hit up Chisholm Trail Winery!

Much LOVE and wine,

Tammi