CapRock Winery in Lubbock

By now we all know that the Napa Valley of Texas is the Hill Country—at least in appearance. The winding roads that bend around ranches and homesteads and lanscapes of live oak mots and cedar-post fences. And every now and then, you come upon rows and rows of vineyard. Of course, it’s on a significantly smaller scale than the vineyards you see in Napa. And if you judge by the amount of wine many of these wineries are selling, you can quickly estimate that there’s no possible way these vineyards are supplying all of the juice these wineries need to fill these bottles.

And you would be right. As we’ve discussed before, the Hill Country is where people GO to see vineyards, but the High Plains (near Lubbock) is where most of the grapes are actually grown for Texas wine. (And California, too. But that’s an entirely different story.) Unless you’re from that area, or unless you’re a die-hard Texas Tech University Red Raider fan, chances are, you probably don’t make it up to the High Plains very often.

But what it you want to check out where the heart of the Texas Wine agricutlure really is? Are there wineries up there that you can visit? Absolutely, though they are few and far between. In fact, three primary spots I’d point you too can be all be visited in a single day and they include: McPherson Cellars, Llano Estacado Winery and CapRock Winery.

McPherson Cellars and Llano Estacado are regular names to Texas wine fans. Both for their host of affordable and well-made wines, but also for their longevity and history in the Texas wine story. (Both wineries have won myriad awards and many of their wines have been selected as Texas Wine of the Month including the McPherson Cellars Roussanne Reserve in May 2012  and Llano Estacado’s 1836 Red Table Wine for June 2012.)

And while CapRock Winery has certainly been around for a while in Texas—it was originally Teysha Cellar in 1988 and later named CapRock Winery in 1992—the winery itself, as well as the wines, have had a rather rocky story throughout most of its life. That was until it almost literally fell into the lap of Catherine Bodenstedt in July of 2010, when she purchased CapRock in a public auction.

“It was sort of a fluke,” says Bodenstedt. “I didn’t have any expertise but for people that like wine, this is one of those dreams you have. It was certainly not planned, but it’s been a nice surprise.”

Bodenstedt moved from her home in San Antonio to the Lubbock area and jumped straight into the role of winery owner. Of course, it didn’t hurt that she had a very capable general manager, Phillip Anderson who had already been with the winery for some time as well as winemaker Michael Vorauer who was keen to turn CapRock Winery around as one of the premier wineries of Texas.

“Most of the plan had to do with deciding what to do with inherited wine,” says Bondenstedt who was eager to get started with a blank slate of new wines from CapRock but soon found there were a lot of details to organize first. “The first harvest we had was in 2010 and we had a consultant help us with those wines, getting our labels and marketing up and running and getting someone on board for distribution.”

Whatever little bits of magic fairy dust Bodenstadt may have had up her sleeve in the short time she has owned CapRock seem to have done the trick. The winery is now producing around 20,000 cases of wine with a goal to eventually be at 40,000 cases or more in the coming years.

I recently had a chance to sit down and sample a handful of wines in their portfolio—all of which are available throughout the state. Of the ones I tried, my favorites included:

2010 Roussanne: One of my favorite white grapes for Texas right now, and this is a world class example of what this “Goldilocks”varietal can do. With tropical fruit, white flowers and a little citrus on the nose, this crisp, dry wine has a touch of honey on the palate without being at all sweet.

2010 Dry Granache Rosé: For the summer sipper, this dry rosé is sure to please. With raspberry, cranberry and a touch of cotton candy on the nose, the fruit dominates in this wine but remains dry throughout its medium-long finish. Though perfect for a backyard barbecue dinner (use lots of pepper), this wine would also be great in the fall for Thanksgiving dinner.

2010 Tempranillo: In Texas, everyone’s got a Tempranillo in their lineup. It’s true that this Spanish-based grape has made quite an impression on winemakers here and you’re seeing this grape presented in a number of retail price points from $10-$40 depending on the producer. Thankfully, this one is at the $10 mark and stands strong with dark fruit, cherry cola, mocha, and a touch of warm earth. Try it slightly chilled with fajitas for an alternative to the typical margarita.

2010 Sweet Tempranillo: I almost shutter to suggest a “sweet” wine, as it’s just not my style. But for those that do like a little bit of sweetness as well as for those who prefer bone-dry wines, this is a great compromise. There’s less than .3 percent residual sugar on this Tempranillo and you’ll find hints of framboise, banana and even bubble gum on the nose, but I’d suggest giving it a try if you’re among friends with different palates. Chances are, you’ll all be happy.

Orange Muscat (Non-Vintage):  If you like dessert wines, this one shows very well—especially paired with cheesecake for dessert. With yellow flowers, orange blossom and a touch of honey on the nose, this dessert wine is both crisp and creamy at the same time and makes the perfect end to a summer dinner.

2010 Pinot Grigio: This wine should see retail shelves in July. It’s one of the winery’s newest releases. I’m not typically a Pinot Grigio consumer, but if you’re looking for a crisp, dry wine to go with grilled fish, this will definitely do the trick. (Although I would challenge you to put this one and the Roussanne side by side to see what different nuances you find.)

All of the wines above are produced from 100% Texas grapes in the High Plains AVA. They’re also all in the $10-$15 range. CapRock will have between 14-16 wines released by the end of the year, some of them will include California fruit until they can get what they need from Texas grapes.

“We are going to be 100%,” says Bodenstedt who has already developed relationships with some of the High Plains’ top growers including VJ Reddy and a few smaller producers. “We feel strongly about grapes like Tempranillo that are growing well here in Texas and we’re also excited about our recent release of Pinot Grigio, which can be hit or miss a lot of times.

As for visiting the winery, you won’t be disappointed. The facility is beautiful—perfect for a High Plains wedding or special event. And throughout the summer there are a number of live music concerts to enjoy—with a glass of CapRock wine, of course.

“The bad part of being in Lubbock, is that we are not Fredericksburg,” says Bodenstedt. “There is not a winery every 20 feet, but we think Lubbock deserves a lot more attention, especially because most of the grapes in Texas come from this part of the state.”

The CapRock Winery and tasting room are open for visits Monday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m and 12:30-5:30 on Sundays. Tours are conducted between 12:00 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 12:30 p.m. on Sundays to 4:00 p.m. daily. See website for more details.

- Jessica Dupuy