Texas Travel: My Visit to Alta Marfa Winery and Vineyard Tasting Room plus Mystical Marvelous Marfa

3 Alta Marfa wines with pairings for Texas Wine Month

Texas is a big state with a diverse landscape across its territory so believe it or not, there’s plenty of places that wine grapes grow– including near Marfa in west Texas! 

TBH, with all the BS in Texas with regards to women’s reproductive rights and immigrant rights, etc etc, I’ve been saying NO WAY JOSE to Texas travel and wine samples. But so many Texans are standing up, and with friends headed to TX in April for the eclipse, I decided to go, and of course I wanted to include wine tasting on the trip. With October being Texas Wine Month, I figured it was time to write about the wines of Alta Marfa.

For my eclipse trip, I met up with a bunch of my Burning Man friends at at Faywood Hot Springs in New Mexico  where about 30 of us camped for two nights (highly recommend this place!), then we headed to Marfa TX for two nights at the Tumble Inn RV park.

Marfa Prada Store and my beloved VW van

 
I came to Marfa because I had heard about the art installations. My experience of Marfa reminds me a bit of Burning Man: intrigue, beauty, creativity, and friends around every corner. You just have to open your eyes and see.
The three photos that follow were all taken within two miles of where we stayed. We did a lot of walking today! I did almost 7 miles– and I drove my van for part of my adventure!

Tumble Inn RV park art with Gwendolyn Alley

 
The Tumble Inn RV Park was on the edge of town and an easy walk to downtown Marfa and art displayed out front and in the field next door.
 

art near Tumble Inn RV park

 

We had one full day at Marfa and we had such fun exploring the town together. It once was thriving but post World War Two, the population dwindled.

Artist Donald Judd renovated, restored, made a home, and developed a reputation for art here, and now, while few in permanent residents, there’s lots of tourists and artists. 

sun sets on Marfa TX

We were definitely attracted to Marfa because of the art scene which you can learn more about here:

A bunch of us love wine (and some in the group have a wine bar at Burning Man!), so after we visited art galleries, Cactus Liquors with tastings and where I bought some Mezcal for Marshall and TX gin to share with the Frey family), plus we stopped at a distillery, I convinced everyone to follow me to the Alta Marfa Wine Bar.

Alta Marfa wine bar with friends

TBH, I am seriously rethinking Texas wine after my visit to Alta Marfa! Small production (1-2k cases), low intervention wines made by a trio: sisters artist Lauren and Chef Katie Jablonski and her husband Ricky Taylor who turned his back ground in chemical engineering into winemaking.

Alta Marfa owners and winemakers: sisters artist Lauren and Chef Katie and her husband Ricky.

So good!! Low alcohol, good acidity, vibrant and fresh! The tasting room offers Chef Katie’s excellent food also which pairs well with hot days and cold wines! They are growing grapes on volcanic soils at 5400’ nearby but haven’t released wine yet made from these grapes. They did try to make wines from the grapes that were originally growing there, but disappointed with the results, they grafted the vines over to more promising Portuguese varietals.

Yes those are pruners!

 
The family that prunes together stays together? What a wonderful surprise to meet these three Alta Marfa winemakers and taste their wines and learn about the vineyards they planted mostly to Portuguese grapes in the Davis Mountains AVA which offers volcanic soils! In fact there’s volcanic rock in the Marfa desert pavement!

Alta Marfa grape sources

 
While the Davis Mountains AVA looks big on the map, not a lot of grapes grow here right now. But watch out! These three are making great low intervention wine from grapes grown within a six hour drive at their winery in Marfa, and soon they will be making wine again from their own fruit. I loved their cider too!
 
From their mission statement, “In our own vineyard we are learning to farm in a way that promotes soil health and minimizes degradation of the environment. We believe this approach to farming results in the most delicious wine, the longest-lived vines, and the happiest farmers. Our goal is to seek out, partner with, learn from, and help develop other farmers who share these same values.” 
 
 

my tinned fish plate paired well with the Alta Marfa “Picnic” wine — scroll for more info

 
Should you go to Marfa, check out their tasting room which has been open just over a year. If you arrive before 230p, you can get an espresso and pastry as they share the space with a cafe that serves in the morning. While I planned on this trip to visit Texas, AZ and NM wineries, I sure didn’t expect to find wines made in Marfa— and marvelous wines too! The wine and food there was definitely my jam — natural, unusual, and paying attention to sustainability– and I bought five bottles to bring back! 
 

Alta Marfa wine bar

After Marfa, we drove to different places in Texas to watch the eclipse, and I headed to the beautiful, green Texas Hill Country to meet up with Frey Winery family, folk, and friends which you can read about here. 

When I told Sue it was Texas Wine Month and I wanted to do the wines I bought in Marfa Texas from Alta Marfa, she said ok but we’ve got to be creative! Here are three unusual wines and unusual pizzas to go with them. Cheers!

3 Alta Marfa wines and pairings for Texas Wine Month

Wines

  • 2022 Alta Marfa “Appenheimer!”

  • 2022 Alta Marfa “Picnic” 

  • 2020 Alta Marfa “Maderized” dessert wine

Menu 

  • fig and caramelized onion pizza
  • mushroom squash risotto and venison sausage pizza 
  • arugula salad with shaved carrots, parmesan, lemon dressing 
  • fig cookies with maple chili

2022 Alta Marfa “Appenheimer!”

2022 Alta Marfa “Appenheimer!”

ABV: 12.3%
SRP: sold out 
Grapes: Pear, Apple and Grape
purchased from Alta Marfa with an industry discount 

Appearance:  Cloudy, pale orange, pale amber, platinum rim

Aroma: Smells like cider, pear, apple, grape stem, cardamon, 

Palate: Very unique, pear, tart green apple, clean and refreshing, bright acidity, taste like something I would like on a hot  late summer day, you can feel the pear texturally,  

Pairing: The peppery arugula shines with the wine, very nice pairing with the salad, the flavors of the dish are intensified while the wine is tamed by the food, our venison squash pizza also worked well with the wine, the herbal qualities in the squash base and the venison sausage was enhanced by the wine, the fig pizza was outstanding with this wine the gat cheese and the sweet caramelized onion with balsamic and the fresh rosemary were just a perfect companion for the wine, the complexity of the wine and the pizza are very harmonious together, all of the different fruits respond with this fruit pizza.

2022 Alta Marfa “Picnic”

2022 Alta Marfa “Picnic” 

ABV: 13.47%
SRP: sold out; 2023 $25 (and less than 11% ABV!)
Grapes: Orange Muscat
purchased from Alta Marfa with an industry discount 

Appearance:  Quite cloudy, lemon drop, platinum rim

Aroma: Aromas shift and morf, orange juice, pomelo, jalapeno jelly, pickle juice, chamomile, green bean, 

Palate: Lemon tart, white stone fruit, orange oil, honeysuckle, green bean, jalapeno jelly, well structured interesting wine, bright acidity, 

Pairing: The sweetness of the wine is enhanced by this spicy peppery salad, lemon pepper comes out in the salad while orange juice and oraOnge oil pop in the wine, the pairing had lovely contrast which made it such a great pairing. The wine also well with the squash pizza. It is all about how well the sage in the squash elevated the wine, the rich gamey complex venison sausage becomes a magical comparing when placed together, the fig pizza and the wine was also perfect together, the figs are sweet and then drizzled with the balsamic glaze and then the sweet caramelized onion brings it all together so nicely and are enhanced by the wine, we like how this wine is enhanced by herbal elements in food, the fresh rosemary sprinkled on top of the figs elevates the wine and the wine elevates the pizza.

2020 Alta Marfa “Maderized” dessert wine

2020 Alta Marfa “Maderized” dessert wine

ABV: 21%
SRP: $45 
Grapes: 100% Tempranillo from Robert Clay Vineyards
purchased from Alta Marfa with an industry discount 

A blend of the 2020 and the 2021 Tempranillo which was fortified with brandy and left outside in Texas in a neutral barrel for two years. Inspired by sercial style madiera, this wine can be opened, recorked and enjoyed over months they say. TBH, I don’t think my bottle will last that long but I can try! We opened it on a Monday, then I shared some with a friend on Thursday with chocolate chip cookies– oh my! 

Origin: Mason, TX

Appearance:  Cloudy, amber, very vibrant and beautiful, sparkling

Aroma: Orange oil, herbal, chamomile, fenugreek, green tea, fennel fronds, floral, citrus blossom,  

Palate: Orange creamsicle, supper smooth, and pleasant, cooling and enjoyable, cardamon, cardamon candies that you scoop into your palm after enjoying Indian food, very nice

Pairing: We loved the wine with the fig crescents, the wine and the cookie become more interesting together, the little bit of kick puts a little spark to this lovely combination. 

ALTA MARFA WINES in the California sun!

 

Please Comment! I'd love to hear from you!