mcreynolds winery

We have made several wasted trips to those mega winery tourist traps out on US 290 East of Fredericksburg. We were ready for an Old School wine tasting and were happy to find the McReynolds winery. This is really a mom and pop operation run by two smart octogenarians. Most of the charm here is in Mac's story telling and sense of humor. The dude took over this operation that he originally built in 1983, in 1994. We tasted five wines at a most leisurely pace. We ended up buying 2 - the Sauvignon Blanc and the Syrah. It's a seven mile drive from US 281. This is a relaxing informative wine adventure.

This small family owned winery has been opened since 2000 and have been cranking out Texas wines every since. Founded by Mac and Maureen McReynolds, their winemaking beginnings actually started off in California. After visiting, learning, and working at various wineries, they purchased their own five acre estate in 1989 and thus began their small part in the Texas wine making pioneer history. They have had some success with their own personal vintages in the 1990's as medal winners before opening. The tasting room is located in a decorative small log cabin style home. With views of their surrounding vineyard, it makes a peaceful place to sip and relax. Earlier visitors may remember their tasting room located in the metal frame building which is used to produce their wines. Today, you can sample four wines when you visit the tasting room plus you get to take your glass with you as a souvenir. Their Sauvignon Blanc is sourced from California and is a smooth and enjoyable wine that can be paired with food or enjoyed on its own. They have a ten year old Merlot (2004) made from grapes sourced in the Hill Country. Keep in mind, a wine that old may be a bit "strong" for some as this is not overly oaked, yet has some acidity to it. They have a 2008 Syrah made with Washington grapes - "steak material" wine. Lastly, is their red blend made from estate Ruby Cabernet, Syrah, and Sangiovese varietals. The folks here are pretty cool and enjoy chatting with you when you stop in to enjoy a glass. Say hello to Sangria when you step in, too, who is the official wine dog who likes to lay in front of the doorway. She may give you the official sniff inspection when you come in, but it's just her way to happily greet you.

You won't sample a lot of different wines here, but the hospitality is what really sets this place apart. A small intimate tasting room and you will probably hear all sorts of storytelling here. Really enjoyed the visit and the wine tasting.

Guess you have to love "uniqueness" if you want to experience this particular vineyard's small wine tasting room. It's the "most funky" one we've recently encountered along the Texas Hill Country Wine Trail, and we've toured 11 local vineyards, so far. Driving into this vineyard's grounds via our "Heart of Texas Wine Tours" driver (Annie) and being greeted by their little, nervous, barking mongrel dog in the parking lot, we then 'roused' the 2 'senior' proprietors from their homesite, and entered its wine merchandise-laden tasting room.The rustic, merchandise-crowded, inside decor with its claustrophobically-small wine tasting reception table, almost "turned me off" to the wine tastings... I think their wines should be the primary focus of the tasting room... Are the owners trying to pursue a different winery “style” in terms of their business marketing strategies? Our tour guide mentioned that she had only included this particular winery because it was in the area of where we wanted to tour, due to its proximity to Dripping Springs where we had to drop off a family member, who had to catch an afternoon Bergstrom International Airport flight. My companions, however, found the male senior proprietor to be entertaining with his stories about Russia and how the couple met (2nd marriage), and his wife was informative about their winery's history, rise to success, and subsequently, the popular production of their wines. At the wines' lecture's conclusion, six free clear-glass wine glasses with the McReynolds' logo were included in our large group's tasting fee. In our group of 10, our Chicago guest excitedly "claimed" them as she didn't have an apartment set of her own, and she'd never visited Texas before. Wonderful memento for her!

We happened to get there at a slow time, and were the only ones there; so we got to have a nice visit with the owners (Mac and Maureen).Mac was gatrcious enough to take us a tour of the winery, and gave us tank and barrel tastings of each of their wines. He then invited us to join him and Sangria (the most appropriately-named winery dog) for a glass of wine on the porch as we watched the sunset. Super nice people and nice wines, too!

The wine was very good and the owners were very friendly. Nice outside seating area and pretty vineyards to see.

My fiance and I spent the day traveling the Texas Hill Country visiting wineries. Of the five places we stopped, this was the most enjoyable. The owner came out and served us samples of all their wines and drank along with us. Discussing the winery and how him and his wife got into the wine business. The tasting room is in a little log cabin filled with antiques and old memories of their life. We spent about an hour visiting with him. We got to keep the wine glasses we used and bought 4 bottles of excellent wine. I would recommend you include this stop on your trip to the wineries.