Texas
Wine Today
by Diane Teitelbaum
If you have been saving up to visit Texas and see the quaint Chateau
Bubba, you're too late. Texas in now the third largest consumer of wine in
the United States, and the fifth largest state in the production of
commercial wine.
According to alcoholic beverage statistics from Dr. Tim Dodd, director of
the Texas Wine Marketing Institute at Texas Tech University, "The Texas wine
industry contributes about $170 million a year to the state's economy and
supports about 1,600 jobs for Texans. The direct excise tax sales impact is
$3.7 million and the indirect tax impact is $9.7 million. Production in 2003
was estimated to be 1.2 million gallons." While that's a drop in the bucket
compared to California, or even just Gallo, it's way past mom-and-pop
crushing by foot a la Lucy Ricardo. Texas is now a player.
When the modern Texas wine industry was starting up in the late 1960s and
1970s, fledgling producers got some bad advice from outside professionals
with preconceived ideas. It was assumed that Texas could plant and produce
nothing but labrusca and French-American hybrids, so that's what most did.
This caused a delay in development, despite the fact that some knowledgeable
pioneers, such as Dr. Clint McPherson, who was with Texas Tech, planted
vinifera.
McPherson's son Kim was the UC Davis-trained winemaker who brought the
country's attention to Texas. His 1984 Llano Estacado Leftwich-Slaughter
Vineyard Texas Chardonnay won a double gold medal at the San Francisco Wine
Competition in 1986. Shortly thereafter, Wolfgang Puck put winemaker/owner
Bobby Cox's Pheasant Ridge Texas Cabernet Sauvignon on the wine list at the
hot, new Spago in Los Angeles. May de Lencquesaing, owner of Chateau
Pichon-Lalande, came to Dallas and, when served a plethora of Texas wines at
lunch, only once did her head whip around as she said, "What's this? It's
quite good--tastes French." It was the Pheasant Ridge Cabernet.
But Paul Bonnarigo, who owns Messina Hof Winery, points out that, while
very helpful for the present, these and other national and international
awards were just showy public relations pops that disappear as fast as
bubbles. The changes seen now are solid and lasting, sustainable
improvements to the land, wineries and marketing that are well funded and
well thought out. These are important moves toward creating a respected and
commercially viable industry.
Notice Regarding Percentage Volume of Texas Grapes Required by Tex.
Alcoholic Beverage Code, Section 16.011
Texas Agriculture Code, Section 12.039, as enacted by the 79th Legislature, Regular Session, 2005, in Senate Bill 1137 (Section 12.039), provides that the commissioner of agriculture may reduce the percentage by volume of fermented juice of grapes or other fruit grown in this state that wine containing that particular variety of grape or other fruit must contain under Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code, Section 16.011. The commissioner has received a report from the Texas Wine Marketing Research Institute on the varieties and quantities of grapes grown in Texas in calendar year 2005
as provided for in Section 12.039, and upon review of that report and consultation with the Texas Wine Industry Advisory Committee, has determined that there is insufficient information available at this time to warrant the reduction of the percentage volume stated in Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code, Section 16.011 for the 2006 calendar year.
In accordance with Section 12.039(g), if a winery in this state finds that a particular variety of grape or other fruit is not available to a level sufficient for the winery to meet the winery's planned production for the relevant year, the winery may submit documentation or other information to the commissioner substantiating that the winery has not been able to acquire those grapes or other fruit grown in this state in an amount sufficient to meet the winery's production needs.
If the commissioner determines that there is not a sufficient quantity of that variety of grapes or other fruit grown in this state to meet the needs of that winery, the commissioner may reduce the percentage requirement for wine bottled during the remainder of the calendar year that contains that variety of fruit.
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