Uncorked: Discover world-class wines in unlikely places

Randy Hester left a comfortable job at a prestigious Napa Valley winery that critics adorn with 100-point scores. He left to make wine in Texas, and his boss had one question.

“Are you sure about this?” Hester said he was asked. “I was told that no one had ever quit the organization. That was 2013. But we are from Texas. My wife and I always had a goal. The day we stepped into Napa, we knew we’d take everything we could get and bring it back home and raise the bar in the home state.”

Just like the Power Four Conferences in college football – the Big 10, SEC, ACC and Big 12 – the domestic wine scene has its “Power States.”

The Big Three of California, Oregon and Washington soak up the oxygen of America’s wine world. But there’s also the mid-majors – just like there’s good football played in the AAC, MAC or Mountain West – there’s 47 other states also making wine.

“We want people to get past the stigma that their wine has to be from California, Washington or Oregon,” said The Infinite Monkey Theorem CEO Nicki McTague, whose urban winery in Denver sources fruit from the Centennial State’s Western Slope and Palasade’s region. “I don’t know when or how we break that stigma, but I think we are getting there. There are people producing amazing wines outside those traditional places.”

Hester (of C.L. Butaud) is a leader in the mid-major scene. But he’s not alone. Trailblazing, maverick winemakers across the country are looking to build a reputation for their local wine industries.

Whether it’s Texas, Virginia, Colorado, New Mexico or Illinois, there are outstanding wines to discover.

“We are trying to make wines of the world and not wines of Texas,” Hester said. “We want to make wines from Texas that stand on the world stage.”

Like Hester, Jon Ruel left Napa Valley in search of a new opportunity. He tasted the Early Mountain 2019 “Rise” and felt a connection to the Virginia winery.

“When you go to emerging regions – Texas, Arizona, Colorado – the average wines might not be very good, but there’s high quality in the best wines,” said Ruel, president of Early Mountain. “We’re an underdog, the lower league to use the sports analogy, but with the right talent, the right terroir, our wines can play at a world-class level.”

A photographer by trade, Rachel Stinson Vrooman left New York City and dove into her parents’ venture at their eponymous winery Stinson Vineyards. There are challenges to working outside the big-three states.

In Virginia, harvest ripeness doesn’t always dictate harvest. This year, Hurricane Helene brought nine straight days of rain. Fortunately, fruit already came in at Stinson.

“This harvest was definitely two extremes,” Stinson said. “We had a drought the second half of the summer going into early fall. But then we ended up having one of the rainiest second [halves] of September ever.”

There’s also the challenge of winemaking infrastructure. Ruel thought a wine was ready to be bottled at Early Mountain, and suggested imminent scheduling of a mobile bottling unit.

Back in Napa, a company would arrive ASAP. In Virginia, he was told no one would come until December. It’s a dilemma Hester has faced in Texas, as well as a lack of custom crush facilities and even a lack of cooperation between growers and other winery owners.

All are part of the uphill climb winemakers face. What’s fascinating is that all made spectacular wines that are unique representations of where they are grown – a showcase for their terroir as wines worthy of a larger audience.

TASTING NOTES: THE MID-MAJORS

C.L. Butaud Blanc de Noir 2022 ($48): Pear, grapefruit and sunny days are bottled up in this “white wine” made from mourvedre, a red grape.

C.L. Butaud Farmhouse Vineyards Tempranillo 2021 ($58): Take the taste challenge: enjoy it side-by-side with a rioja from Spain and take notes.

C.L. Butaud “Cease and Desist” Red Blend 2021 ($48): A tempranillo blend: there’s deeply pronounced cherry and spice on the nose. Flavors of dark cherry and cinnamon stick emerge, but the velvety mid-palate has a light touch.

C.L. Butaud Desert Willow Mourvedre ($48): Bold and determined to leave an impression with dark fruit, smoky cherry and pronounced baking spice.

Early Mountain “Rise” Red Blend 2019 ($135): Flavors of plum sauce, loamy earth, currant, black cherry, espresso, dark chocolate nibs and garden herb emerge. A classic wine with well-integrated tannins, a lingering finish and a desire to make an impression on the world stage.

Stinson Rosé of Tannat 2023 ($25): “We’re always looking for varieties that maintain acidity here,” Rachel Stinson Vrooman said. “Tannat is an extreme example on the red side, similar to petit manseng for whites, it has a bracing acidity.”

Flavors of ripe peach skins, strawberry, watermelon and herbal hints.

Stinson Monticello Sauvignon Blanc 2023 ($24): Underripe pear, green notes and a round mouthfeel in the mid-palate. Stinson Vrooman said she’s not afraid to embrace the savory notes pyrazines bring. Half of the wine is fermented in concrete eggs to “build the body.” The other half gets a cold stainless-steel ferment. It’s the ideal blend for aromatics and body.

VARA, Silverhead Brut Zero Dosage ($27): From New Mexico and sparkling wine master Laurent Gruet comes a crispy, fresh sparkler with green apple and hints of tart citrus on the finish.