As a native Texan, I had some reservations about an overnight to Fredericksburg. But! I now wholly endorse the place because this was an amazing 24 hours filled with surprises.
The intention was a holy-grail visit to French Connection Wines, a winery I’ve been stalking since they opened last September. The place is every bit as thoughtful and well-branded as its instagram account suggests. Even better, the darling owner Sheri was our server as we sat outside on a covered porch on a 105-degree day and enjoyed a fabulous French cheese plate with great French wine styles made from all Texas grapes. My surprise favorite: the skin-contact pinot gris (which I can’t find on the website but I swear it exists) and the Counoise, a new-to-me grape.
On the way to the historic home we stayed in, we stopped in to check out the brand-new, opened-the-day-before winery Kalasi Cellars. Turns out, the owner knows people I know from several eras of life, making it an extra cool serendipitous stop. Here, we tried another new-to-me grape in the Teroldego which was young but delicious, and bound to get better.
One fabulous upscale German bistro dinner at Otto’s later (who knew that was a thing?), we retired to the adorable El Jefe (part of LBJ’s estate?).
The next (mid-)morning, we stumbled upon Woerner Warehouse which has two things going for it: THE MOST AMAZING PIZZA EVER and a setting inside a fabulous antique decor store.
It’s a farm-to-table bakery, so not only is the crust perfectly buttery and airy and crispy all at the same time, but the veggies atop taste fresher than fresh and the tomato sauce is like someone literally squished a tomato from the garden, added fresh garlic, and put it on your perfectly-baked crust. I would literally drive back just for that pizza. Skip the coffee though.
On our way out of town, we decided we might as well stop by Grape Creek Vineyards, because when in Rome … but the surprise gem was sibling winery Heath Sparkling Wines. I had no idea there was so much difference in champagnes, and this was highly educational for me. Who am I kidding—the wines were also just phenomenal. And with under 1g of residual sugar in most, probably the healthiest sparkling wine you can find! I bought some.
And now I know what I’m missing out on, and have to go to Fredericksburg much more frequently.
Also … faraway friendos: I HAVE AN ITINERARY FOR YOU! I love you.