Looking Back to Look Forward: Fly Gap December 2014

I am returning to the blog. My worked quickly filled November and December. However, my three short weeks of vacation has begun, so I am returning to these pages. And it so happens, that the following post is another return.

The clouds seemed to break for us, as we sat down at the picnic table to drink wine and catch up. A chilly breeze blew along the open fields in Mason County. The collection of buildings around us were transforming, slowly developing from dream into reality. This day was very different from the day in early June when I first stepped foot here. As 2014 draws to a close, I see growth and a bright future for Fly Gap Winery.

Mason Punch and Johnny Rojo

In June, Brock Estes allowed me to see his dream. We road through the hills along sandy, red dirt roads to see a place ripe for new life. When we finally arrived at the location that would soon be his winery and tasting room, I looked out on a clean block that would one day become a statue. The production facility had no siding, just an ever developing foundation of concrete vats that, one day, would flow with Mason County grapes. The future tasting room was filled with a collection of many pasts, not yet ready to become a future. The cellar was a roof and three walls with a rough dirt floor. But, I knew that this was only the beginning.

Concrete Vessel, June 2014

Just six months later, the form has begun to take shape. It is rough yet, but it shows signs of what is to be. The production facility now has siding and is better prepared to protect the wine. Boxes of the newest wine fill the space. This wall of white cardboard holds something precious: Brock's first 100% Mason wine and the first to be bottled on the premise. The cellar dives deep into the red earth, on schedule to begin its next phase. The tasting room has begun to let its memories go, and in it is the future back bar.

Production Facility, December 2014

Despite the cold breeze, Brock, my husband Sean, and I sat outside to take everything in. We sipped on the last release – Johnny Rojo – enjoying its growth since the late summer. This wine has begun to mature. It has relaxed into itself, softening its rougher edges and growing more harmonious. This wine lulled us into forgetting that it was December, its warmth a relaxing touch.

Mason Punch, front

And we tasted the newest wine – Mason Punch. This wine is special. The four previous wines, though made from Texas fruit, do not bear the name Fly Gap. These four wines are Dank. The Fly Gap name is reserved for those wines born in Mason County. Mason Punch is only the first. But it is young, much like the ever changing landscape of the winery. On that day, a youthfulness, new spring life, moved through the blend of 44% Touriga and 56% Tempranillo. The dusky terroir was quiet, and the fruit engaged in a frenetic dance. In the bottle, a dream is taking shape. But much like the world around it, it is finding its way.

Mason Punch, back

The sun moved across the sky; we were reminded that it was the shortest day of the year. We let the day slip by: witnessing a dream take shape does that. So we gathered up our wines – the maturing Johnny Rojo and the youthful Mason Punch – and set out into the setting sun.

Note: We all noticed a greenness to the newest wine, indicating that it may yet be too young to drink. However, there is a lot of potential, so we brought a few bottles home and plan to let them age a bit.

The Allure of the Dark Images of Fly Gap's Lights Out

Lights Out in normal light

Saturated earth, rich and dark, spills

out between golden and green grasses.

A smell of life not yet born

stirs me, draws me forward.

Limestone crests break free

from the heavy expanses of fresh turned soil.

Gritty and strong, they stand

For me to grasp and hold tight.

From purple to black, the sky deepens,

swells to embrace the horizon and beyond.

The night settles about me,

gently drapes me:

I close my eyes, relax,

Lights Out under blacklight

let the moment overcome me. 

**NOTE: This poem was written just after tasting Dank: Lights Out from Fly Gap Winery. The wine is made from 71% Syrah from Mason country and the rest Mourevdre. The Mason County Syrah is the dominant factor here. For me, the wine smell and tasted like Mason. This poem tries to capture that.

Sean Fills Some Space: Saturday, 10/26/2013

Between work and an amazing round of awesome wine things to do, Robin has actually been too busy to get any wine writing done.  Since my schedule is a bit less busy, I thought I’d take some time out of my role-playing game blog to leave some comments over here.

First of all, I’d like to thank Mike and Lynn McHenry of Wedding Oak Winery for letting us stay at their beautiful home on October 26^th.  Not having to make the 2+ hour trip back down to San Antonio after a busy day along the Top of the Hill Country Wine Trail was a tremendous relief and allowed us to enjoy the area more.

The drive out to San Saba had to be one of the most pleasant and beautiful long-distance drives I’ve ever made -- even if we did pass at least a score of dead raccoons on the highways.  (Jebus Cripes, there were so many dead raccoons!)  San Saba itself is charming and we’ll have to make a weekend of just enjoying the town and its sights someday soon; we were stunned by the LCRA San Saba River Nature Park look forward to taking in more of the town and its environs. 

Saturday began by checking in at Wedding Oak Winery where Mike McHenry himself gave us our tasting.  Wedding Oak’s location, nestled right in the heart of San Saba, is gorgeous; I can’t think of a tasting room that exceeds its charm and ambience (even if a handful match it).  Winemaker Penny Adams’ work, of course, exceeds the beauty of its surroundings, slipping more toward the Italian side of reds than the French.  Wedding Oaks’ wines are athletic – playful but not immature, exuberant without being childish – in a way that makes me think they could win the FIFA World Cup.

We stopped for lunch at the Bar D Brewhouse, which was recommended to us on the strength of its home-brewed root beer (I’m celiac and so can’t drink real beer).  Honestly, they seemed a bit understaffed and our food took a good while to come.  Mine was a bit burnt, but still tasty, and Robin enjoyed her meal without quibble.  It was a good thing we weren’t in a hurry.     

From San Saba, we then drove out to Alamosa Wine Cellars where winemaker Jim Johnson stared at Robin for a couple of moments before recognizing her (“Wait… I know that hat.”).  I like wines that punch you in the face -- bold, earthy, ornery wines that swagger about like the Man with No Name – and Alamosa delivers those.  I hope that doesn’t make them sound undrinkable to people who prefer softer, fruitier wines, because they’re very, very drinkable.

We mainly stopped in at Fiesta Winery because it’s conveniently close to Alamosa, but were pleasantly surprised to discover they’ve added some actual dry red wines to their fruit-infused line-up.  Hooray!  I apologize to Pilot Knob Vineyard for not swinging by there because the next event took us out in the opposite direction…

Sandstone Cellars Winery – another one of those awesome, face-punchin’ wineries – had a “Hallowine” get-together on Saturday night where they brought in the rest of the Mason County wineries for FREE TASTINGS!  Compass Rose Cellars, Dotson-Cervantes Wines, Fly Gap Winery, and Pontotoc Vineyard were all there GIVING AWAY WINE!!  FOR FREE!!!

(Also, Santos Taqueria is awesome.)

I’m torn.  On the one hand, I am happy that Hallowine was not packed to the gills.  I don’t like crowds and I was happy to have space to breathe.  On the other hand, I am bitterly disappointed that some of the absolute best wineries in Texas were giving away free wine and the streets of Mason were not a jam-packed bacchanal.  What is wrong with you people?!

Seriously, despite all the love I have for the 290 Trail and the Texas wine industry as a whole, I really think that Mason County has the capacity to be our Bordeaux, our Napa, our breakout wine region.  There’s something distinctive about the Mason wines, something that unifies them into one distinct taste sensation (with the exception of Gotas de Oro, which is still awesome).  Maybe it’s the terroir, maybe it’s the Touriga Nacional; I just know I like it.

We also met Bill Worrell.  He's fun.  And we finally met winemaker Don Pullum in person.  He is also awesome.

Unfortunately, all of this awesome was then followed by a terrifying drive back to the McHenry’s house as we kept our paranoid eyes peeled for small, furry mammals.  We really didn’t want to add to the heap of dead raccoons.  We got back to the McHenry’s amazing, bread-and-breakfast-worthy guest suite and promptly fell asleep.

Catching Up Part 2: A Love Letter to Hye Market

May ended up giving me a few opportunities to travel up to the Texas Hill Country. In mid-May, we headed up to the farther side of the 290 trail. After a visit to Pedernales Cellars -- to pick-up the Double Gold Viognier Reserve -- we made a stop at William Chris Vineyards' most recent neighbors, the Hye Market. I had been following the Market on Facebook for awhile and found myself constantly eager to visit. Every week they showcase some incredible Texas wines, and I wanted to try many of those wines. Sean and I chose a great day to visit, as we tasted three great wineries: FlyGap, Hye Meadow, and Compass Rose.

Fly Gap Winery

I had been curious about Fly Gap's wines since our visit to Mason last November. Scott Haupert from Sandstone Cellars told Sean and I a little about Brock Estes and his dream. We didn't get a chance to buy any of the wine at that time -- we are always on a budget and stuck to Sandstone wines and one from Pontotoc Vineyards. Then earlier in the month, Texas Wine Drinkers -- a group on Facebook -- had a label contest; Fly Gap's Dank label competed. That reminded me that I needed to try this wine. When I noticed that they were at Hye Market, we headed in.

Brock Estes, owner and wine maker, greeted us as we walked up. We quickly hit it off and started talking about wine, especially the wines we love. He, Sean, and I all have an appreciation for Portuguese wine -- Brock informed us he will be headed to Portugal to gain some more wine making experience. So of course, we were blown away by his Mason County grown Tempranillo and Touriga blend -- Dank - Vox Populi. It hinted at the blends at Sandstone, but it was as if I was immersed in it. There was a strong sense of all the work and love that went into this wine.

If you are interested, check out their website and their Facebook page.

Hye Meadow

For awhile now, I  have been following the progress of Hye Meadow Winery on Facebook. They are not only creating a great winery, but a unique space for wine tourism (for more on that, check out the recent post on Hye Meadow from the Grapes Around Texas). When we finished tasting with Brock, we shuffled over a few steps to be greeted by a friendly face, Chris Black. We met Chris over a year ago when we was with Cap*Rock. I was glad to see him at a winery close to home.

Right now, the wines from Hye Meadow are made from grapes from the Pacific Northwest. Texas grapes are making themselves into Texas wines as we speak, and they will find their way to all of the picky Texas wine drinkers in the future. The three wines we tasted presented a diverse range, from dry red (Sangiovese), a slightly sweet white (50/50 Riesling & Gewurztraminer) and a slightly sweet blush (mainly Gewurztraminer with a bit of Cab). Normally, I am not a sweet person, but the sweet wines had a hint of crispness that made them possible summer favorites. I am eager to see what they are doing with Tempranillo and other popular pro-Texas grapes.

They are working furiously to open the doors to their winery, next to Hye Market. Keep an eye out by visiting their Facebook page.

Compass Rose

Honestly, I didn't know much about Compass Rose when we got to Hye Market; however, I was eager to know more. We met Mark Watson, the winery's president. He expressed their goal to make great wine for those who wanted to enjoy it -- a sentiment I hear throughout the Texas wine industry. This winery takes great care in their wines.

This boutique winery out of nearby Mason is drafting some strong Texas wine. We were lucky enough to try the Merlot -- which was nearly sold out at the time and is now sold out -- and the Papillon (a Pinot Grigo).

Both dry wines provided great contrasts. Sean and I were in love with the Merlot and had to make sure to leave with a bottle (a promise to post pics once we opened it). But before then, we wanted to make sure that everyone knew this little winery has a lot to offer.

Check them out on Facebook and at their website. Try Papillon at Hye Market.

A Love Letter To Hye

Age shows through the paint, creases
like wrinkles are badges from years
of the Texas sun beating down
and wild winds wiping by.

At the heart, life
beats on, invigorated by a spirit
of what has come before
and what has yet to come.

Here, there are whispers
of long grown children's letters to santa,
of pronouncements of future weddings, births,
and even of debts that snatch every dollar earned.

Here, voices ring out
with greetings to a friend not yet met ,
jokes told anew, again and again,
and of new memories being made at the old post office.

We left Hye Market satisfied and grinning from ear-to-ear. The handmade Texas Gelato was the ice cream on the cake (we skipped on the other great foods). A visit to the Market will leave anyone well hydrated -- between the great wine and the wonderful libations from Garrison Brothers -- and well fed.