Libations

Your guide to Texas bars, cocktail recipes, distilleries, wineries, breweries and more

Libations |
September 17, 2015

Five Unexpected Wine Finds

ComfortBending Branch Winery’s Tannat grapes, a dark, inky variety from Southwest France and Uruguay, make for innovative wines with rich fruit concentration and grippy tannin. 2012 Estate Tannat, CM, $60. Del RioVal Verde Winery, founded in this sleepy border city in 1883, is the state’s oldest continuously running

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Libations |
May 15, 2015

Meet the Winemaker: David Kuhlken, Pedernales Cellars

A native Texan with a sharp business mind honed at Rice University and the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas, David Kuhlken didn’t originally aspire to be a winemaker. And yet, he’s making wine in Stonewall for Pedernales Cellars, a family operation that is among the

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Libations |
February 27, 2015

Meet the Winemaker: Todd Webster, Brennan Vineyards

This month, we’re launching a new column to introduce Texas Monthly readers to the people behind Texas Wine. Sometimes it helps to know a little bit about the person behind the wine in your glass. Todd Webster is the winemaker for Brennan Vineyards, a winery in Comanche located halfway between the

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Libations |
August 13, 2013

And Texas’s Best Sommelier Is…

Following a rigorous competition at the ninth annual TEXSOM conference, Austin sommelier Scott Ota, of Arro restaurant, takes top honors in what has been called a game-changing year for the state's wine industry.

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Libations |
January 20, 2013

¡Viva Tequila!

How it’s made, the secret of cooking with it, the truth about the worm, and everything else you ever wanted to know about Mexico’s favorite drink—and ours.

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sangria san antonio
Libations |
January 20, 2013

That’s the Spirit

Not that you’re looking for an excuse, but these five original cocktails concocted by Texas bartenders using local liquors are a thoroughly acceptable reason to pour yourself a drink. Or three.

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Libations |
June 30, 1995

Governor’s Mansion Summer Peach Tea Punch

6 cups water 3 family-size (1 ounce) tea bags 2 cups fresh mint, loosely packed 1 small can (6 ounces) frozen lemonade concentrate 1 bottle (32 ounces) R.W. Knudsen Peach Nectar (it has the most flavor) 1/2 to 1 cup simple syrup 1 liter ginger ale 1 liter club sodaBring

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Recipes |
April 30, 1990

Mango Lassis

64 ounces plain lowfat yogurt 2 cans (28 ounces each) mango pulp 12 cups crushed iceWhip half of ingredients at a time in blender until frothy. Pour into glasses. Serves 10 To 12.From Savoring Summer, featured in Domain, May 1990

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Recipes |
April 30, 1990

Chaplin’s Bloody Marys

2 quarts tomato juice (Sacramento) 4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (Lea and Perrins) 6 tablespoons chopped horseradish, or to taste 2 tablespoons each of chopped fresh garlic, lemon juice, lime juice, and dried dill 2 teaspoons ground black pepper 1 teaspoon each of ground white pepper, celery salt, and garlic salt

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Recipes |
November 1, 1985

Johnny B’s Lime Rickey

Fast becoming a master soda jerk, Marilyn Shackelford, manager of Johnny B’s Old-Fashioned Soda Fountain, showed us how to make a fresh Lime Rickey at home.1 juicy lime Crushed ice 1 1/2 oz. cherry syrup (Jubilee brand is good)Fill a pint glass with crushed ice. Squeeze in juice of one

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Libations |
November 1, 1985

On the Menu: Johnny B’s Old Fashioned Soda Fountain

IT WASN’T BECAUSE I was touring West Texas that I ate a cheeseburger for breakfast. It was after stumbling upon Johnny B’s for lunch the day before. Never mind the open sky and distant mesas, the cheeseburger at this inviting luncheonette was all I could envision.Open only since November (and

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Libations |
April 30, 1983

The Bar Bar

It’s a noble institution, especially if you can master all its subtle skills: not being there, the second call, holding forth, and another thing...

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Libations |
February 1, 1979

The Best Little Margarita In Texas

From Requiem for a Margarita.1/2 ounce of Triple Sec (1 tablespoon)1 ounce of fresh lime juice 1 1/2 ounces of light tequilaMaking the best margarita in town—at home—is not a matter of money. It does not depend on buying the best tequila or substituting classy Cointreau for the cheaper

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