Texas Wine on Its Own Terms

Texas is far too large and diverse to have a single wine climate, grape or style. In this episode of The Wine Lab, Andreea travels through the state’s major wine-growing regions, from the High Plains and Hill Country to North, West and Gulf Coast Texas, to look at what makes winegrowing here so distinctive. We explore Tempranillo and Tannat, the surprising promise of Picpoul Blanc, the versatility of Blanc du Bois, increasingly impressive sparkling wines, and why blends may ultimately make more sense than searching for a single signature grape. There’s also phylloxera, Thomas Volney Munson, the pioneers of the modern industry, international competition success, and more than 600 wineries, most of which Andreea apologizes in advance for failing to mention by name. 

Glossary

American Viticultural Area (AVA) — A legally defined wine-grape-growing region in the United States distinguished by geographic features that can affect viticulture.

Texas High Plains — A high-elevation, relatively dry grape-growing region in northwest Texas that produces a large proportion of the state’s wine grapes.

Texas Hill Country — A large AVA and major wine-tourism region in central Texas, home to many wineries and tasting rooms.

Vitis vinifera — The European grapevine species that includes most familiar wine grapes, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Pierce’s disease — A bacterial grapevine disease transmitted by insects such as sharpshooters. It strongly influences which grape varieties can be grown successfully in warmer, more humid parts of Texas.

Blanc du Bois — A Pierce’s disease-resistant hybrid white grape grown extensively in the southern United States. It can be used for dry, sweet, sparkling and fortified wines.

Black Spanish / Lenoir — A dark-skinned, Pierce’s disease-tolerant grape with a long history in Texas and other parts of the southern United States.

Tannat — A deeply colored, tannic red grape originally associated with southwestern France and now particularly famous in Uruguay. It has also shown considerable promise under Texas growing conditions.

Picpoul Blanc — A Mediterranean white grape known for retaining lively acidity. Its name is commonly interpreted as “lip stinger.”

Diurnal temperature variation — The difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures. High-elevation vineyard regions can have hot days followed by substantially cooler nights.

Phenolic ripeness — The development of compounds in grape skins and seeds that influence wine color, tannin, bitterness, aroma and mouthfeel. It doesn’t always progress at the same rate as sugar accumulation.

Traditional-method sparkling wine — Sparkling wine produced through a second fermentation in the bottle, followed by aging on the yeast lees, riddling and disgorgement.

Blending — Combining wines made from different grapes, vineyard sites, lots or sometimes vintages to create the desired balance of acidity, aroma, color, tannin, structure and flavor.

Phylloxera — A tiny grapevine pest that devastated European vineyards during the nineteenth century. Grafting Vitis vinifera onto resistant American rootstocks provided the long-term solution.

Thomas Volney Munson — Texas viticulturist and grape breeder whose extensive work with native American grape species contributed to the selection of rootstocks used to combat the European phylloxera crisis.