Dog Days of Summer 2022

If you look to the east just before dawn you will see the Sirius star, also known as the “dog star”. It is the brightest star in our sky and is known as Orion’s hunting dog. It is most clearly visible in the late summer. The ancient Greeks noticed this star rising parallel to our sun and believed that this is what caused the scorch of late summer which is why this time of year is called “the dog days of summer.” On Sunday, July 17th, Kuhlman Cellars and the Humane Society of the New Braunfels Area  (HSNBA) was shining just as brightly as Orion’s pup while celebrating the second Dog Days of Summer event at the Kuhlman Cellars Estate.

We once again partnered with HSNBA in their effort to give pets a second chance at a first-class life. You may have met our vineyard cat, Nico, lounging around the water station or stalking through the tall grass of the garden. Nico used to be a resident of HSNBA before he called the Kuhlman vineyard home. Some of our guests have their own former HSNBA residents in their homes, some just have a heart for misplaced fur babies. Dog Days was also a great opportunity to simply get back out to our vineyard and soak up the vibe. The Kuhlman team enjoyed catching up with everyone while raising money for a wonderful cause.

One dollar from each bottle sold was donated to the HSNBA and we released some monumental landmark wines for this event!

Our 2021 Calcaria has big bright citrus notes of melon and honey-suckle with the satisfying body Calcaria is known for.

Then, of course, our 2021 Estate Rosé, a Provence-style summer helper made from grapes taken from the vines right here in the Kuhlman Estate vineyard.

Finally, after NINE years, we released our first Estate Red. This Carignan forward blend is fruitful and medium-bodied and a wonderful summer treat for wine lovers that don’t want to put their reds away for the summer. A glass of our 2019 Estate Red is nine years of love, care, family, and friends in a five oz pour.

We had great live music on the patio and, for our pups, we had “barkuterie” plates with meat and cheese.  We put the doggie pools out to beat the heat and, as always, glasses were poured by friendly faces excited to show you and your fur family some love.

Sunscreen was applied, pets were played with, and bottles were opened. And $416 was raised towards finding pets new forever homes! 

Thank you to everyone who came out and was a part of our story. Until next summer! 

Cheers!

 

Vina Vita University - Learning has never been so fun

​Vina Vita University

Vina Vita.  Literally “Wine Life”.  This is not just the name of our wine club, it is also a cornerstone of our wine philosophy.  It is an invitation to our community, an offer to join your individual wine life journey with ours as we taste, enjoy and appreciate the fine things in our lives.

For Kuhlman Cellars, the Wine Life isn’t just great wine, it’s also learning to appreciate it as well.  You see this in our tastings when we explore not just amazing wine, or wine and food pairings, but also in how we explore the reasons why we tend to enjoy the things we love.  It’s an Ah-Ha moment we love to share!

In our education efforts, we host a seminar series called Vina Vita University (VVU).  These classes explore viticulture, harvest, wine blending, and wine and food pairing theory.  Each class combines education with entertainment - and wine!  We had to suspend these classes in 2020.  But they are back! 

On December 5th, VVU returns just in time for the holidays with one of our favorites:  Naughty or Nice.  This class explores what happens when a wine goes wrong - corked, cooked, Bret, oxidized.  We will sniff and taste these common flaws to help you better identify them and know what to do when you encounter them.  

Studying has never been more fun!

 

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Curious to learn more about the Naughty or Nice Class?

Vertical Tasting?

Alluvé

Alluvé is our most popular wine.  And for good reason!  It is a beautifully balanced, complex red wine blend with medium body, lovely aromatics and nice fruit on the palette.  It is an easy wine to love, while also offering nuanced layers to experience and explore over time.

The grapes in the Alluvé blend change each year, reflecting the bounty of Mother Nature’s harvest.  While one year Sangiovese might be the lead grape, Mourvédre may take the lead in the next.  What doesn’t change, though, is the style of the wine - an approachable red blend perfect on its own but also very food-friendly.  (Our favorite pairing?  Kuhlman Cellars Herbed Almonds, of course!) 

It is remarkable how consistent the wine is from year to year.  It has become our “House Style”, in the same tradition as the great Champagne houses of France, though Alluvé is a vintage wine each release.

We are often asked how Texas wine ages and matures.  We jokingly say, we learn each day as our Cellar gets another day older!  However, one of the most fun things to do is to taste through a Vertical of a single wine to see how the wine tastes as you go further back in time (or forward, depending on your tasting order.)  What is a Vertical Tasting?  This is when you taste through different vintages of the same wine - for example a 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 Alluvé.  It is fun to experience what is consistent and what is different from each vintage, especially with the older ones.

Want to do a vertical tasting of Alluvé?!?  You are in luck!   We are launching a limited edition special tasting where you explore the 2015, 2016, and 2017 Alluvé as well as get a sneak tasting of the not-yet-released 2018 Alluvé!  Even better, we also include a barrel sample of the 2020 Alluvé  Offered once each Friday and Saturday at 11AM, this tasting will only be available for a short while starting November 5, 2021.  Reservations can be made online here (link) or by calling our tasting room at 512-920 2675.

 

Wine and Wildflowers

Beautiful Spring Color Awaits Your Visit!

The Texas Bluebonnets loved the snowpacalypse because the snow acted as a great insulator. The leaves, shaped like the bonnets pioneer women wore, peeked out of their icy covers awaiting sunshine and temperatures in the 70’s. At Kuhlman Cellars they will greet you at our entrance and in the parking area along with some late blooming daffodils. They form a blue carpet on the south side of the wine garden beneath the pink peach and white plum blossoms. Look closely for purple-bonnets and you might even spy a red or white bonnet.

 

Soon the red Indian Paintbrush will burst forth, followed by yellow coreopsis. Red poppies are popping out, and should be at their peak in late March and April. Take a walk and see how many different colors and color combinations you can find. 

Return frequently to witness the sequential blooms of delphiniums, blanket flowers, daisies, Mexican Hat, Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia, Butterfly Bush, etc that are host and food plants for butterflies. Sit near the fountain and relax to its musical splashing that sends droplets out for the pollinators.

Finding Thanks for Thanksgiving 2020

Thanksgiving 2020!

 

Thanksgiving looks a little different in 2020.  Covid-19 caused a collective upheaval in our lives and continues to pose a threat.  It is sometimes difficult to remember just exactly what we are thankful for this year; a year presenting challenges for all.

BUT… Thanksgiving is about giving thanks!  It is a time to acknowledge the silver linings in the dark clouds of the past nine months.  

While there have been difficulties, we feel blessed.  Most importantly, our team has remained healthy and safe.  Many of our staff members pulled double-duty and discovered new skills in other areas of the winery.  This year’s Estate vintage is exciting for many reasons, but the greatest is all members of the Kuhlman team contributed to our Estate harvest this year – a true team effort!  Through Virtual Tastings and Facebook Live, we learned new ways to maintain and build community with our guests.  And, we were finally able to reopen and see your smiling eyes, even if we could not see the smiles behind your masks.  

This Thanksgiving, we are thankful for our health.  We are thankful for our amazing, hard-working staff.  We are thankful for the opportunities coming from adversity.  We are thankful for our community.  We are thankful for our wonderfully supportive Vina Vita club members.  And, of course, we are thankful for great wine!

We wanted to make our 2020 Thanksgiving bundle something to really celebrate this year.  So, we turned to the cellar for some popular, limited supply, library wines.  When you look for wines complimenting your Thanksgiving favorites, the key is versatility.  You want wines pairing well with a variety of foods, so make sure you have plenty on hand!  

Greet your guests with our 2019 Hensell (or pour yourself a glass while you prepare the feast – we won’t tell.)  This delicate Provence-style Rosé is a perfect pre-dinner drink on its own but also pairs nicely with your favorite appetizers.  For the main meal, you will want to serve both a white and a red wine.  Our 2018 Estate Roussanne is both bright and complex at the same time.  This wine has lovely acidity with herbal notes on the nose and flavors of pear and citrus in the mouth.  The 2017 Sangiovese is a perfect accompaniment due to its beautiful structure, not overly oaky or tannic, and sharp acidity.  Thanksgiving meals are usually heavy enough on its own, so it is best to keep the wines refreshing.

Thank you for being part of our Kuhlman Cellars community!  We wish you all a happy Thanksgiving and a delicious Thanksgiving meal!

 

Hidden Wine Gems

Here at Kuhlman we love being able to feature wines with fun pairings. While we all know and love Alluve, Barranca and Kankar; let's take a minute to talk about wines we consider “hidden gems” for our favorite Texas foods. Our cultural history is written in food & wine and Texas is no exception with its melting pot of flavors. 

2017 Marl: This blend of Merlot and Petite Sirah has been winning hearts at the winery. Its velvety tannins and blackberry notes seem to surprise people who don’t care for merlot. The Petite Sirah adds a peppery note making this a great match for burgers on the grill or picnics with Roast beef or even Ruben sandwiches. We particularly love this with something that has red peppers in it like romesco sauce over potatoes. Try it with Texas style queso and tortilla chips.  A red wine with chips and queso?! Yes!

2016 Gypsum: Gypsum is our hidden summer favorite. Lighter than Alluvé, this wine can be enjoyed chilled. (shhh, try it in sangria!) Gypsum’s light and cheerful nature makes it a wonderful surprise pairing for seafood and spicy Mexican, Tapas and Spanish foods. Try it with spicy Barbecue, beans, and potato salad on a hot summer night. This wine is the perfect way to introduce dry reds to people just beginning their wine journey, but it also has a complexity that lets those “experienced” wine drinkers enjoy as well. 

2017 Zinfandel:  There is a reason we put Texas on the label. This isn’t California Zin. This Zinfandel is light, fresh and peppery with hints of strawberry. Because this Zin is a lighter style, it is surprisingly versatile and loves big flavors in food. Try it with Lamb meatballs or Pulled pork with Barbecue sauce. We often pair this Zinfandel with game meats to complement their earthy nature. Try smoked duck breast for an extra treat. Zinfandel tends to be high in alcohol which can make spicy food seem spicier so be cautious with the hot peppers. But Indian flavors and Zinfandel are a perfect match, I also love it with chicken fried steak or Jaeger schnitzel. But the best… try it with barbecue potato chips. 

Enjoy!

Grab a 3-Pack Bundle today!

Reserve Tasting: The Gift of History

With our five year anniversary upon us, Kuhlman Cellars has something special now we have not had before: history. While of course our history is in the making, we now have the gift of a place and entity transformed by time. Time takes our original story on a curvy road of changes, through both elated and bittersweet moments. Time transforms our story, as the former beginning and end morph into a completely different picture.  The beginning seems to span more time than before while the end is somehow simultaneously where we wanted to be and yet not exactly as planned.

As we capture our history, we become able to share it. Our newest tasting, The Reserve Tasting and Tour, explores our history in physical form: through our vintages. The Reserve Tasting is a celebration of time. It is a way for us to share with you our history, our evolving vineyard, and our winemaking philosophy. 

The Reserve Tasting is an intimate conversation with our winemaker Bénédicte Rhyne, who through the eyes of Kuhlman’s winemaking, takes you on a journey through our story. Together you travel through time, exploring the present moment with wine-in-progress (barrel/tank tastings) and our history with our library wines.

 

Opening each of the rare and special library bottles is exciting new territory. They are gifts to share. For Kuhlman Cellars, having a reserve library is not about bottles collecting dust but rather about sharing something special with our families and community. It is about experiencing wine and tasting the evolution. Each Reserve Tasting focuses on exploring a particular aspect of our vintage library. Bénédicte shares the story of each of these wines, what was happening with them at their birth, and then sharing in the experience of what they are now.

It is so reaffirming to know that our patience pays off--that the hard work keeps giving back to us years down the line. 

The vintages of Kuhlman Cellars are our living history captured in a bottle. They charm and entrance us, and there is nothing better than sharing in our living history with the Kuhlman community.

 

New Red Wines!

As we approach our 5th birthday, we are excited to finally unveil two new red wines, years in the making.  

We’ve learned our patience for the process because fine wine takes time.  At Kuhlman, we don’t believe in bottling our reds a year after harvest. Fine red wine simply needs time to mature and reach it’s true potential.  You can taste the difference in wines that haven’t been rushed. Currently, we take an average of 30 months from harvesting to release a bottle of red wine - that’s two and a half years!  We also will never, ever “bottle Thursday, sell Friday”. Our reds get at least a few months if not upwards of a year of bottle aging prior to their release. Patience is the name of the game for fine wine!

Our two newest reds received this same patience and care in their development. Which is part of the reason we are so proud to offer them in the September Club Release:   

2017 Marl

Our Kuhlman proprietary blends are named after distinct geological features of Texas terroir.  Marl is a soil structure of mixed of clay and limestone, which we have generous amounts of towards the eastern half of the Kuhlman Estate.Blocks 2, 3 and 5-- Marsanne, Agilanico and Carignan, respectfully, all contain the Marl soil, contributing to our ability to grow this fruit beautifully and capture its essence even in the extremes of Texas weather  All else being equal, clay results in a “cooler” soil which tends to slow down ripening and helps keep acidity of the fruit. It also holds significantly more moisture - which on a wet year, can be challenging! 2019 certainly has shown this, as we’ve had about 50% more rain than a “normal” year.  

Pomerol, Bordeaux and Piedmont, Italy also are known for their Marl terroir, and the amazing quality and blending in these wines regions help inspire our own old world blend, Marl.The new 2017 Marl is a beautiful Old World style red blend.  It has bright red fruit notes with aromatics of plum and cassis. As with all of our blends, the grape composition will change from year to year. For 2017, Marl is a wonderful, rich blend of Merlot and Petite Sirah.

 

 

 

2016 Reserve Merlot

The 2016 Reserve Merlot is a landmark wine for Kuhlman Cellars.  It is our first ever “Reserve” designate wine, made with great intention and care.  Prior to bottling the regular 2016, Bénédicte sampled and tasted each barrel, selecting the very best to be set aside.  We allowed these barrels to rest, reserved in the cellar, for an additional 12 months French Oak barrel aging. All told, the 2016 Reserve Merlot spent 30 months in French oak barrels developing mature aromas of dried cherries and violets.  The extended aging also developed exquisite mouthfeel. We are very pleased with how the complex finish lingers and creates a layered experience/reflection which time, patience and intention bring. This is a wine to enjoy with rich, complex foods, or for a special occasion.

We are excited to share this Reserve wine with you.  When we first considered the possibility of reserving part of the 2016 Merlot for special cellaring treatment, we were driven by creating a distinct and elegant wine.  We expect you will be delighted when you open the bottle and experience it for yourself!

 

Looking Forward

As we look further out on the horizon, there will be a steady release of new red wines.  Of course, our favorites and anchors of our wine program such as Alluvé, Barranca and KanKar will continue their rich legacy

For Vina Vita wine club members, you have choice on each club shipment and you can always order more than your minimum quantity while enjoying your membership discount. Be sure to customize or add to your selections to fit your palette, and remember to try our new release wines. We want you to enjoy what you receive, try new wine adventures, and live Vina Vita! 

 

Cheers to the Wine Life!  

 

A New First - 2018 Hensell Allocation

2018 Hensell Allocation!

Probably the most frequent question I’ve heard in the tasting room the last 5 weeks is “when will Hensell be released?!”

We understand.  We’ve been anxiously waiting too!  Great news though: 2018 Hensell is ready for release!

Our big question was how should we do this?  Waiting till September for the next scheduled club release seems too far away.  Especially since Hensell Rosé is one of the quintessential summer wines in Texas!  So, we’ve decided to do something new and present a new club membership perk:

Allocation

We are offering each club member the exclusive benefit of early-access to Hensell.  

Each member has the opportunity (but not the obligation) to purchase between 3 and 12 bottles of Hensell!  Simply log into your Kuhlman Cellars account, navigate to the Allocation section of your profile, confirm your bottle counts, add to your cart, and hit checkout.  Simple!

You have until July 4th for the early-access Hensell pre-release.  After that, it will be made available to general release in the Tasting Room.

But wait….there’s more exciting news!

We’ve also heard from our members who sometimes can’t make it to the winery.  So, we are hitting the road this summer for a Hensell Roadshow! We will bring your allocation bottles to events held in major cities in late June!

If you’ve accepted the allocation, make plans to join us at one of the different events where we will sample Hensell and other Kuhlman Wines!  Each location will also have a special Hensell food pairing which you can purchase to enjoy with a glass of Hensell. The best part is we will bring your Hensell to you (and any other wines you might want as well).

As always, be sure to bring friends!  You can find the RSVP information here.

2018 Hensell Rosé

For the 2018 Hensell, we continue pursuing our goal of exquisite Provence styled dry, aromatic roses.  We’ve also changed the fruit blend, with this year being hand harvested Grenache and Cinsault from our great partners at Farmhouse Vineyards blended with some of our Estate grown, hand harvested Carignan.  

Hand harvesting provides the most gentle handling of the fruit to preserve the delicate nuances while also conveying the most winemaking control to Bénédicte, our winemaker.  Having grown up in Provence, Bénédicte's rosés are true to style and beautifully transport us all to the south of France and the epicenter of rose in the world!

This wine will be a certain palate pleaser for anyone seeking a refreshing, crisp, aromatic easy drinking wine.  Enjoy with salads, shrimp & grits, BLT’s, as well as BBQ, duck & sausage gumbo, and Tex-Mex. Or, simply enjoy on a porch swing, poolside lounge or an evening relaxing with friends.  

Enjoy!

 

Growing Grapes in Texas Ain't Easy

Whew, we made it past May 4th!  Why the sigh of relief? We are celebrating because in 2013, Texas had a devastating frost decimating the 2013 grape crop!  

Growing Grapes in Texas Ain’t Easy

We’ve been watching weather forecasts and our vines with prayers and fingers crossed since late February.  At the end of February, you may recall a frigid cold snap, where luckily our vines were mostly asleep and so were unaffected.  Some of our friends and neighbors in the hill country weren't as fortunate and suffered losses.

As is said of Texas weather, if you don’t like the weather, just wait a minute! And now as the threat of frost is removed, our eyes turn to hail.  

Hail can wreak terrible damage on a vineyard (or house, car or really anything) in a short amount of time.  Already, two of our three Hill Country vineyards have been hit with hail. Twice in one week, the Cobb Family Vineyard suffered damage from a hail storm.  Most recently, the thunderstorm of May 3 also brought hail to our newest vineyard of Petite Sirah at Barons Creekside, right inside Fredericksburg. Luckily, damage to both vineyards doesn’t appear to be significant and we will adjust our canopy management to adapt.

We still have a fair bit to go in terms of springtime hail threats, but we keep crossing our fingers and waiting the Texas minute!.  There are plenty of worries in farming that are threats out of our control: we have “tropical rain events”, severe heat waves, animal predation and a host of diseases.  In 2017, the tropical rain event was Harvey, which brought an astounding amount of rain to Texas. Luckily for the vineyard, we had harvested our Hill Country fruit before his arrival,

We take our challenges as a reminder of our connection to the land we farm, the community that supports us, and the miracle that is the resulting fruit. In every bottle there is a story: a labor of love, a commitment to faith, and the rewards of perseverance.