More Mourvèdre
With Its Beautiful and Dynamic Expression of Texas Terroir, Mourvèdre Stands Out at Wineries Across The State
Swirling a glass of Mourvèdre, deep red with a tinge of indigo, emboldens aromas of violet, dark fruit and pepper. Complex and layered, a sip of this medium-bodied wine holds notes of berries and iron and piques the imagination. Pronounced “more-VEDD,” with almost no one articulating it precisely the same way, this gorgeous and dynamic varietal stands out here in Texas. Some local winemakers call it “the soldier grape,” others are calling it the “Pinot of Texas.” What if Mourvèdre could stand on its own as the Mourvèdre of Texas?
I spoke with several Texas vintners as they prepared for harvest who emphasized this grape’s resilience to Texas’ weather extremes, its versatility in expressions, its pairings with the foods Texans love — especially barbeque — and its impressive ability to capture Texas’ unique terroir. Mourvèdre seems to be on track to become one of our state’s most reliable varietals, increasingly entwined with Texas’ identity in the wine market.
Mourvèdre is thought to be an ancient varietal, with roots in Valencia, Spain, where it is called “Monastrell” and could be found as long ago as 500 B.C.E. By at least the 16th century, it could be found in the Roussillon, Provence and Rhône regions of France where it became widely used in Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre (GMS) blends like Côtes du Rhône or Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The grape eventually made its way to Australia, where it’s called “Mataro,” to California in the 1860s and is now grown across the Texas Hill Country and High Plains.
Texas vineyards have been growing Mourvèdre since the early 2000s. Chris Brundrett, co-founder and winemaker at William Chris Vineyards in Hye, was one of the early champions of the grape. “I had really fallen in love with some of the wines I was drinking from Spain and the southern part of France. I had done all of the research and was like, ‘This grape could be great for Texas, so I was kind of on this mission to get some of it planted in Texas. There were maybe two blocks in the state before then, but I wasn’t aware of them at the time.” Around 2006, Brundrett started conversations with Lost Draw Vineyard owner and operator Andy Timmons, who he considers a mentor. When Brundrett and Bill Blackmon established William Chris Vineyards in 2008, they planted their first block of Mourvèdre at Lost Draw. After the vines started producing fruit, the winery released the first Mourvèdre under the William Chris label in 2010.
“We call it the ‘soldier grape,’ because Mourvèdre... grows straight up,” says Brundrett. “And even in some of our most challenging years, Mourvèdre just loved the heat and it did fine through the freezes.”
Brundrett pinpoints several benefits to a varietal that is resilient to Texas weather. “Our goal is to grow and produce sustainably, and Mourvèdre helps achieve that goal,” says Brundrett. “It’s important to grow and make things that want to be here.” A bedrock of William Chris’s philosophy is a commitment to sustainable and regenerative practices.
“The fruit quality is just incredible,” says Brundrett. He appreciates the varietal for its consistent quality, which he views as a key aspect of sustainability. “Sustainability is seeing great quality year-in and year-out or nine out of ten years and being able to produce a high quality wine that is delicious and soulful and that people want to enjoy,” he says. What gives Mourvèdre an edge in Texas? According to Brundrett, our state’s size can be an advantage. “Texas is a huge state ... It can be seen as a blessing and a curse, but I see it as more of a blessing. It creates a lot of opportunity for us to experiment with different varieties and learn about different varieties in different regions.”
He is enthusiastic about the community of wine producers in the Hill Country and hopes that more and more people will try Mourvèdre and come to enjoy it as much as he does. “I want to encourage your readers to look at some of the best producers and start there, and then not be afraid to wander off the beaten path and try some of the younger producers because so many of our neighbors are doing such a great job,” he says.
William Chris now produces Mourvèdre at its Hill Country Estate, at Lost Draw vineyards in the High Plains, and at other Texas vineyards. It offers at least six different Mourvèdres, available at the winery and online. Brundrett also travels to international wine conferences, choosing to pour Mourvèdre as a representation of Texas wine. “Very few places in the world can grow Mourvèdre like Texas grows Mourvèdre,” he states.
Salt Lick Cellars in Driftwood is another Texas vineyard that has deeply invested in Mourvèdre. It accounts for approximately a quarter of its 50-acre vineyard. Garrett Strickler, vineyard manager, has a background in horticulture and farming and has been with Salt Lick for eight years helping its vines to thrive. He shares Brundrett’s enthusiasm for the varietal, “I have a personal affinity bordering on the evangelical for Mourvèdre.”
Strickler explains, “Mourvèdre is reliable. From a vineyard perspective, it’s so easy to manage compared to the other varieties. It’s late-budding so it misses most of the freeze damage and it really benefits from and enjoys our hotter climate. Some of these varieties might be described as ‘tolerating’ our drought, whereas Mourvèdre seems to thrive in it.”
Switching from vineyard manager to avid Texas-wine drinker, he adds, “It’s really rare to come across a winery or a tasting room where they say, ‘Yeah, you know our Mourvèdre is OK but it’s not really my favorite.’” Strickler shares that when he’s come across Mourvèdre in Texas tasting rooms, whether it is a rosé, a fruit-forward High Plains expression or a bold, oak-aged Hill Country expression, he feels it’s been consistently high quality. “I think it would be beneficial for us as a region to embrace a variety like Mourvèdre that is telling us over and over, ‘You can trust me,’” Strickler encourages, “Every year is a Mourvèdre year.”
While Salt Lick Cellars cares for extensive vineyards, it does not make wine onsite. It partners with neighboring Driftwood winemakers like Duchman Family Winery and Fall Creek Vineyards, and others, to produce the wines for Salt Lick Cellars. Those wines can be enjoyed at the Salt Lick Cellars tasting room, which is tucked under a shady oak grove next to the infamous barbeque restaurant.
Mourvèdre has traditionally been known as a great blending grape, and Salt Lick first planted the varietal for that purpose. Though it makes a GSM that features its Mourvèdre, Stickler says it stands out “as a single varietal.”
The 2018 Salt Lick Cellars Mourvèdre I tasted was a knock-out. It was both earthy and mouth-wateringly jammy with a hint of oak and a layered, lasting finish. “It’s a best-selling wine for us and 100 percent from our site,” Strickler tells me
At Salt Lick Cellars, the wine showcases the vineyard’s limestone and nutrient-rich alluvial soil, a benefit being in the Onion Creek floodplain.
Another thing that makes this varietal a go-to for Strickler is its “broad spectrum of expression.” It can be used to make wines ranging from a light rosé to an elegant blend to a big, bold red. Stickler says more than 12 winemakers source their Mourvèdre fruit from Salt Lick’s vineyards, and that he enjoys all of the distinctive expressions that originated from the site.
Partnerships are a characteristic of the Texas Hill Country wine community.
One of the winemakers who sources Mourvèdre from the Salt Lick is Joshua Fritsche, owner/winemaker at Tatum Cellars. Fritsche started Tatum Cellars in 2012, the year his daughter, Tatum Rose, was born. He began making Provence-style rosé wines while working at William Chris, where he would sell it upon request without a tasting room or online presence.
As he built a cult following and expanded his wine portfolio, he opened a tasting room in the Johnson City town square this year.
Fritsche ages his Mourvèdre sur lie (This translates to “on the lees.” Lees are leftover yeast particles created by the fermentation process, which can add unique textures to the wine) in neutral oak barrels for 18–22 months. When you sip his wine, its reminiscent of Old World styles — earthy with notes of ripe plum, red meat and chalky herbs.
He’s more than a fan of Rhône varieties, and appreciates Mourvèdre’s resilience and versatility. “My experience with Mourvèdre from all across the state showed me that the grape does really well here,” says Fritsche. “It's late budding and cold hardy so it misses the late spring freezes. It just makes sense from a grower standpoint. It's very happy here.”
He sees a promising future for Mourvèdre in Texas. “This is a large state with vineyards spread all over and we're just starting to really focus on what varieties make sense in specific areas. Mourvèdre has proven itself to grow well pretty much anywhere here.”
In Houston, Decant Urban Winery is introducing its customers to Mourvèdre. In 2017, Winemaker Kristina Olivarez Tucker and her husband co-founded this city-based winery that produces wines in a warehouse using low-intervention techniques. They source their Mourvèdre from the Texas High Plains and age it in neutral French oak barrels to maximize the expression of the fruit and the vineyard. “Our Mourvèdre is lighter and brighter. It looks like cranberry juice in the glass,” says Olivarez Tucker. “You get the characteristic smoky, gamey/meatiness, and then a lot of tart raspberry, orange, and spice.”
She prefers to serve it chilled and with barbeque. “When it’s 105° and you want a red, it’s perfect,” she shares. “It goes really well with brisket, ribs and fajitas, and it’s high acid so it helps cut through any fat.”
What influenced Olivarez Tucker’s decision to make and serve Mourvèdre? “Well, it probably goes without saying but we try to make wines and varietals we like!”
Brundrett, Strickler, Fritsche and Olivarez Tucker all share a personal passion for the varietal. It’s a wine they love to drink themselves and that pairs well with the Texas foods they love, from barbacoa tacos to barbeque. Mourvèdre and Texas seem destined for each other.
WHERE TO ENJOY
If you haven’t yet ventured out for a glass of Texas Mourvèdre, there’s no better time to try it. And, if you’ve had it before, the range of expressions in the wine found at different Texas wineries leaves room for discovery and adventure. Mourvèdre’s medium-bodied complexity makes it enjoyable for porch-sipping throughout the fall. Be sure to ask for it in tasting rooms during Texas Wine Month this October and pick up a bottle to pair with your Thanksgiving dinner. Your friends and family will thank you!
About the Contributor
Stacey Ingram Kaleh is a native Texan and writer and editor for Edible publications. When she's not eating at local restaurants and drinking Texas wine, she's spending time outdoors in the Hill Country with her husband and two young daughters and soaking up as much live music and art as possible.
