2008 Austin Street Muscat Blanc

2008 Austin Street Muscat Blanc

Several weeks ago, my wife and I enjoyed a great Brennan Vineyards Wine Dinner.  We departed this event with a bottle of Brennan’s Austin Street label 2008 Muscat Blanc.  This is a light desert wine that was paired with a peach champagne sorbetto at the dinner.  I believe Vianei Robinson sums it best when in 2006 she reviewed the Austin Street Muscat Blanc for the Abilene Reporter News and commented, “It has the classic floral aromas of the Muscat grape and a light sweetness that is refreshing, not cloying.”

Muscats are one of my wife’s favorite wines.  Our first introduction was a Becker Vineyards Muscat Canelli eight years ago.  After this, we happened upon a wine tasting storefront in the DFW airport and had our first taste of Sister Creek Vineryards’ Muscat Canelli.  More recently, in 2008, we returned from an extended wine touring weekend with a bottle of Texas Hills Vineyards Orange Muscato.  Overall, my wife favors Sister Creek Vineyard’s Muscat Canelli, but Brennan’s Austin Street Muscat Blanc is a close second.

While the Brennan’s grow their own Muscat de Alexderia grapes, the Muscat Blanc is made from Reddy Vineyards fruit.  Reddy Vineyards is just east of Brownfield, Texas and produces grapes for several wineries around Texas, most notably Haak Winery’s 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon which received several awards.  Dr. Vijay and Subada Reddy have been growing grapes since 1997.  According to a May 2009 High Plains/Midwest AG Journal article, the Reddy’s started with five acres and their current operation has 105 acres, 105,000 plants, that produce 400 tons of grapes in a year.   The Reddy’s website details that 4.5 acres has Muscat Canelli, or as the French refer to it Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains.  These were planted in March of 2004.  In a September 2008 Lubbock Avalanche-Journal article, the Reddy’s indicated they plan to expand their current vineyard operation by another 60 acres over the course of five years.

Brennan’s Austin Street 2008 Muscat Blanc was a great close to an excellent dinner.  If desert wines are your forte, I’m confident you’ll enjoy this Muscat Blanc.

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Brennan Vineyards Wine Dinner – Pairings

Brennan Vineyard’s Wine Dinner on September 11, 2009 start with assorted cheeses, crackers, and fruits paired with a choice of Brennan’s Austin Street labeled wines: 2008 Comanche Rose or 2008 Three White Chicks.  The 2008 Three White Chicks was among the last of those bottled and rare treat consider it is no longer available for purchase.  The 2008 Three White Chicks is a fun blend of Semillon, Chardonnay, and Viognier, which the Brennan’s were delighted with the response this particular wine had throughout the year.  The 2008 Comanche Rose is what the Brennan’s refer to as a “True Rose made from Nero d’ Avola and Muscat of Alexadria” grapes, according to their Fall 2008 Newsletter.  Previous vintages of the Comanche Rose have won a gold medal at the Texas Open and a bronze medal at the Lone Star International Wine Competition.

As dinner started, a fresh green salad was served followed by a spiked cream of squash soup.  Pat Brennan, winemaker and dinner host, paired this course with the Brennan Vineyards label Viognier.  By Pat’s own admission in a GOTEXAN wine cast on Viognier, the Rhone varietal is the “signature white wine of Texas.”  Brennan Vineyards produces the fruit for Viognier for several other wineries in the state.  Along with other Brennan’s Viognier that have garnered awards and metals at Houston Rodeo International and Lone Star International, the 2008 vintage received a silver medal at the Indy International and at the Finger Lakes International.

For the main course, guests had a choice of grilled beef tenderloin with Henry Bain sauce and creamed potatoes or ginger glazed mahi mahi with yellow saffron rice.  Both were accompanied by sauteed onion and aspoaragus.  Both dishes were paired with Brennan’s Austin Street label Red, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.  The 2005 vinage received a Bronze medal at the Dallas Morning News Wine Competition.

To complete the dinner, peach champagne sorbetto with ginger cookie was paired with Brennan’s 2008 Austin Street Muscat Blanc.  While Brennan grows Muscat of Alexadria, they purchase fruit from the high plains to make their Muscat Blanc.  Surprisingly the pairing with the sorbetto balanced the sweet normally encountered with Muscat.

While the dinner and wines were excellent, seated at a table with two other couples who were attending their first wine dinner truly complimented the evening.  One couple was from Brownwood, Texas and the other from Whitney, Texas.  Sharing our impressions of wine, food, and travels, the three hour affair drew to a close before anyone realized.  Whether with friends, old or new, an evening of fine food … paired with excellent wine … paired with great conversation … makes for a most enjoyable evening.

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Brennan Vineyards Wine Dinner

Brennan Wines served Sept '09

This past Friday evening, had the opportunity to travel to Comanche, Texas and enjoy an evening of food, wine, and conversation.  Brennan Vineyards hosts a monthly Wine Dinner on the second Friday of each month (except in August) that pairs Brennan wines with a delicious dinner prepared by Chefs Steve Harris and Steven Puckett of Steves’ Market & Deli of Brownwood, Texas.  Pat Brennan and his wife Trellise guided the participants through the pairing process that included wines such as a Brannan’s signature Viognier, Brennan’s Austin Street label wines Three White Chicks, Comanche Rose, Red, and Muscat Blanc.

Brennan Vineyards … “Sophisticated wines from Texas roots”

Wine making is actually Pat’s second career.  He is a retired physician from Fort Worth, Texas  that initially came to Comanche in 1997 to purchased the McCrary House and shortly there after the adjacent 33-acres as a weekend getaway.  In 2002, Pat planted 5 acres of grapes and sold the fruit to regional wineries such as Beckers Vineyards in Stonewall, Texas.  The success of the fruit prompted Pat to move to Comanche in 2004 and start his own winery.  The Brennan’s constructed a state of the art winery next to the old stone homestead and also the 3,700 square foot Austin Events Center that has a commercial kitchen and a flexible dinning hall space that accommodates roughly 250 people.  Gary McKibben, with Johnson/McKibben Architects and fellow winemaker himself (Red Caboose Winery in Meridian, Texas), helped the Brennan’s design the winery.  The homestead that was their weekend getaway become the tasting room when the winery opened it’s doors in 2005.

With the original 5 acres of grapes at the winery, Brennan also has a vineyard located in Newburg Texas (14 miles southwest of the winery).  It should be noted that Brennan Vineyards is located at the junction of Texas’ most acclaimed wine making and tourism regions, the Texas High Plains and Texas Hill Country.  Brennan wines have received high praise from enthusiasts and regional and national competitions.  Wine enthusiast Wes Marshall wrote in his book “The Wine Roads of Texas” (Maverick Publishing Company, 2007) that Pat “is making phenomenal wine.  He’s done it just from day one.”  Brennan Vineyards also serves as the homebase for the Way Out Wineries, a collection of eight wineries that stretch from the northern Texas Hill Country to just south of the metroplex.

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