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Wine of the Week: Delaney Vineyards Texas Rose

When we went to Texas over Labor Day, we visited the Delaney Vineyards and tried their refreshing Texas Rose. It was so good that I even brought a bottle home with me and decided to make it the Wine of the Week. I had no idea that Texas had a wine industry, but according to the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, Texas is the site of the first vineyard established in North America by Franciscan priests circa 1662. Who knew? Imagine my surprise when we had a delightful day at the vineyard in Texas. I just thought it would be too hot to grow grapes there, but the climate is actually a lot similar to California’s climate.

The Delaney Vineyard is over 20 years old and Jerry Delaney owns two vineyards, one in Grapevine, the other in Lamesa. The Texas Rose wine is a blend of Chardonnay, Muscat Canelli and Petit Verdot grapes from their Lamesa vineyard. It’s received a number of medals in wine competitions and I can see why. It is a fresh blend with fruit and honey notes.

Texas Rose would be great with some Texas BBQ and they even came up with a fun drink called the “Jerry Delaney.” Think Arnold Palmer and mix ½ Texas Rose and ½ lemonade. In the cold winter of Michigan, I’m already dreaming of summer with a Jerry Delaney in hand. If you have a chance to visit the vineyards, I highly recommend it! The winery looks like an 18th century French chateau and is a fun place to hang out with friends for the day.

Have you tried any of the Delaney Wines or any other Texas wineries? Let me know your favorites.

For more Wine of the Week posts, click here.

Wolverines in Texas – Vacation Recap

Over Labor Day weekend, John and I traveled to the great state of Texas to see our Michigan Wolverines take on the Florida Gators in the Advocare Classic. A number of friends came along to cheer on Michigan and we had such a blast so I thought I would share some of the fun highlights.

Our first stop on Friday was a trip to Delaney Vineyards in Grapevine, Texas.

I was surprised to find a winery in Texas because it is so hot, but apparently they have a few regions that mimic the California coast and actually produce some fantastic grapes. They had a nice facility and have been around for more than 20 years. They have a few of the vines onsite and you can walk through them and taste some grapes right off the vine. My friend Chandra (who recently joined us for a guest post) was also on the trip:

After our tasting we were able to purchase bottles and sit outside which was a fun afternoon activity. Safe to say we thoroughly tried a nice selection…

Saturday was game day and we decided to purchase tickets to the official alumni tailgate which turned out to be a great idea mostly because of the air conditioning. It also included food and drink and they had a fun lineup of former players and music to keep it exciting.

The game was so exciting and we won making the whole experience even better. AT&T Stadium is huge!

On Sunday we visited the historic Fort Worth Stockyards.

We did some shopping and were right on time to see the cattle drive.

Of course I found a winery for us to stop in at. Cowtown Winery was the perfect refresher on a HOT day.

We stopped by Cooper’s Old-Time BBQ for all the meats before we hit the rodeo. Make sure to bring your appetite. The Stockyards Rodeo was the main attraction. There were barrel races and all kinds of tricks. At the end they had bull riders and one of them almost got trampled! We thought he broke his ankle, but his boot had just come off. It was intense!

I really needed to invest in a cowboy hat to protect me from that Texas sun. I am not built for that kind of heat! We had a fantastic time in Texas and I wish we could have spent more time exploring. Who knows maybe Michigan will play there again soon.

What are your favorite spots in the Dallas/Fort Worth area?

For more Travel recaps, click here.