TEXSOM. Say it like it sounds. Tech-Somm. No, it’s not a new form of Texas cuisine, as in Tex-Mex. And no, it’s not a new style of Texas line dancing blended with the Samba. It stands for the Texas Sommelier Conference and if you’re in the wine industry, you’ve at least heard of it, if not become a regular attender.

TEXSOM 2011 was held just last week at the Four Seasons Hotel Resort and Club in Colinas following the Court of Master Sommeliers Level 1 Course and exam. It’s actually the only one of its kind in the country. Formed by Texas-based Master Sommeliers James Tidwell of the Four Seasons Las Colinas and Drew Hendricks of Pappas Bros., the conference is a central meeting place where sommeliers from across the nation (and globe) congregate to network, brush up on characteristics of specific grape varietals, regions, and basically taste a whole lot of wine. (In one day alone, I counted a total of 42 wines tasted. And just to be clear, no one with any common sense actually drinks the wine completely; you taste and spit, otherwise you’d be a stumbling fool.)

James Tidwell and Drew Hendricks

In its 8th year, the event, hosted by the not-for-profit organizations Texas Sommelier Association and the Wine and Food Foundation of Texas, has attracted more than 2,200 wine professionals from across the United States.

“Every year, the conference reflects greater diversity,” says Tidwell. “This year we featured an amazing vertical tasting with celebrated winemaker Serge Hochar, who traveled all the way from Lebanon and shared wines dating back to 1969. No other conference integrates all levels of the business and welcomes the public like this one does.”

In addition to the unparralleled experience of having Serge Hochar from Chateau de Musar–a rare occassion that brought a hush over a room full of sommeliers–TEXSOM hosted it’s annual competition to determine the Best Texas Sommelier of the Year, a key component that occurs in the background of the conference for a hand-picked 20 candidates from across the state. To participate, candidates must be a current resident of Texas and must not have passed the Court of Master Sommeliers’ Advanced Exam.

This year the distinction went to Bill Elsey, Director of Sales for D’Amore Wine Selections a wine distribution company owned by Duchman Family Winery.  Elsey outperformed his fellow Texas compatriots in an intense three-part examination involving service, blind tasting, and theory and proctored by a panel of Master Sommelier judges.“TEXSOM is such an amazing opportunity. I stammered through my acceptance speech, and I didn’t conveny the amount of appreciation I have for James [Tidwell] and Drew [Hendricks] and the work they’ve done,” says Elsey, who in his young 27 years has worked as a sommelier, a wine buyer for a restaurant, a tasting room manager, and now a sales director for a wine distributor. “There’s no way I’d have this much support to work at continuing my education without something like this. I’m unbelievably thankful.”

Elsey received a scholarship of $2,500 from the Guild of Sommeliers Education Foundation to be used for a Court of Master Sommeliers certification program.  Nathan Prater from Spec’s Wine, Spirits and Finer Foods secured the first runner up spot and a $1,500 scholarship, and David Keck from the Prestige Division of Glazer’s Distributors was recognized as second runner up and given a $1,000 scholarship.

TEXSOM 2012 is already scheduled for August 12 and 13 of 2012 and will be held at the Four Seasons Hotel Resort and Club in Colinas. And for a little more on just how far this conference has grown in importance for the growing world of wine professionals here are a few interesting statistics on TEXSOM since its inception in 2005:
·         Four Master Sommeliers attended the first TEXSOM, and this year’s conference featured the largest contingent of Master Sommeliers at a public event worldwide (more than 25).
·         Approximately 100 people attended the first year.  This year’s seminars and Grand Tasting were sold out with more than 400 attendees.
·         In the first year, there was one Master Sommelier in Texas, and now there are six:  Guy Stout, Barbara Werley, Drew Hendricks, James Tidwell, Devon Broglie and Craig Collins.

Bill Elsey of Duchman Family Winery, Best Texas Sommelier

A big congrats to Bill Elsey and the other Best Texas Sommelier competitors. And an even bigger congrats to James Tidwell, Drew Hendricks, Guy Stout, Barbara Werley, Devon Broglie, Craig Collins, Mark Sayre, June Rodil and the many other Texas Sommeliers who helped pull off this great event.  See you next year!

- Jessica Dupuy

Tagged: Bill Elsey, Drew Hendricks, Duchman Family Winery, James Tidwell, TexSom