Tag Archives: Texas winery

by | April 15, 2014 · 9:37 am

Newsom Grape Day is May 9th

chalkby Andrew Chalk

A landmark annual event in the Texas wine industry is Newsom Grape Day. Held each year in the farm buildings of Newsom Vineyards in Plains, Texas, the event acts as a magnet for winemakers from across the state for a day of discussion of current viticultural issues. The attendance is an indication of the event’s importance to the industry in that Plains is just 102 miles from Roswell New Mexico, a popular retirement home for extraterrestrial life.

This year’s agenda is below and members of the public with an interest in grape growing are welcome to attend. The following day if The High Plains Winegrowers Wine & Music event so plan on spending the whole weekend.              Continue reading →

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by | October 9, 2013 · 9:20 am

Fall Creek Vineyards Hires Chilean Winemaker

grape-vines-at-fall-creek-vineyardsby Andrew Chalk

Word from Fall Creek Vineyards in the Texas Hill Country is that they have hired Sergio Cuadra Schlie as their new winemaker. Schlie is a Chilean who brings a vast range of experience with working for or consulting to such names as global superstar winemaker Paul Hobbs, Chile’s largest winery Concha y Toro and California vintner Fetzer Vineyards. He trained at the Unversidad de Talca in Chile as an Agronomy Engineer.

This is a very significant hire for Fall Creek. Not just because of Schlie’s qualifications and  experience, but because of what it signifies about the winery’s intentions. Here is a Texas winery entering the global winemaking employment market for talent. The rationale has to be a push to the top of the pack among Texas wineries. I suspect this kind of reaching with become more common in the near future and interpret it as yet another indication of the increasingly maturity of the Texas wine industry.

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