My profound and humble thanks go out to Noah, who reportedly discovered winemaking after his ordeal with the flood, and to all who preceded me in experimenting, refining, and passing on the knowledge I attempt to reflect herein. My debt is enormous, even though my reward has been but a few thousand gallons of homemade wine. Ah, but what wines I have produced, and therein lies the true reward!
Texans have been making wines for a long, long time. Although the state boasts some very good commercial wineries, frankly, I prefer my own. My very first "Texas" wine, a mission fig and raisin, was passable after a year, but mellowed to a sherry consistency after three years in the bottle. A friend introduced me to a red wheat recipe, which aged at one year to the smoothness and taste of a sipping bourbon. The diversity of flavors and sheer self-satisfaction are reasons enough to make one's own wines. For those of you wanting to attempt it for the first time, or for experienced winemakers simply looking for another recipe, I hope you'll both find this site useful.
