The Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association and the Texas Wine Marketing Research Institute collaboratively hired MKF Research – the country’s premier market researcher for the wine industry – to update the economic impact numbers of the Texas wine and grape industry. 

The final report assessed the 2007 total economic impact of the Texas wine and grape industries at $1.34 BILLION (yes, that’s billion), a 35% increase over 2005. 

For a copy of the full report, click here.  For a synopsis and comparison between 2005 and 2007, click here.

TABC to Publish Rule for Comment on Winery Festival Permit on June 11
By Dacota Haselwood, Chief Governmental Affairs Officer

The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission voted favorably on Tuesday, May 25 to publish for comment on June 11 rule 33.15 – Use of Winery Festival Permit.  Since early September 2009 when SB 711, authored by Senator Jane Nelson of Grapevine and sponsored in the House by Representative Charlie Geren of Fort Worth, http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlodocs/81R/billtext/pdf/SB00711F.pdf went into affect TABC has been regulating the winery festival permit using informal policy similar to that reflected in the proposed rule. 

If you have comments/questions, please contact Dacota Haselwood at dacota@twgga.org or 210/867-2576. 

The Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, with the help of several members, has developed a new name and marketing campaign for a type of Texas wine entitled Portejas®. Members of TWGGA can use the Portejas® name on selected bottlings by entering into a licensing agreement with the TWGGA.  What is Portejas®?  Essentially, it is a Red or White wine made primarily from Texas grapes and either fermented or fortified above 14% alcohol.   Members who use the Portejas® name in their labeling agree to pay TWGGA a small licensing fee of $1 per case, up to $500 per calendar year in which the wine was made.

The goal is to grow the Portejas® brand so that it becomes recognizable all over the State of Texas and beyond.  Click here for the complete licensing agreement.   You can help support the Association by using the Portejas® name and creating name recognition  “For Texas” in your region.  It’s a great opportunity to promote a product that is uniquely Texas, showcases your great wine, and helps TWGGA at the same time.

Thank you to Monty Dixon of Bar Z Wines for the Portejas® idea and name, and to Dave Stacy of Circle S Vineyards for helping with the paperwork and registered trademark.  Call Jodie Post ffor more information, 817-424-0570 or email at jodie@twgga.org.

Handling and Marketing of Perishable Commodities

Rick Garza, Coordinator for Commodity Programs with the Texas Department of Agriculture, spoke at TWGGA’s recent annual conference on the importance of being properly licensed in the handling and marketing of perishable commodities.  "Perishable commodity," for purposes of this license, means "fresh produce grown in Texas and generally considered a perishable vegetable or fruit." The term "handle" includes buying for resale, selling, offering to sell, processing, acting as a broker for, or shipping for the purpose of selling.

 The following link outlines the details of the program, and includes the necessary forms and contact information within TDA. 

http://www.agr.state.tx.us/agr/program_render/0,1987,1848_5610_0_0,00.html?channel=5610
For additional information, contact Rick Garza at (512) 936-2430, or Rick.garza@TexasAgriculture.gov

Click Here for the TWGGA Position Paper on the Perishable Commodities

Texas Uncorked
By U.S. Sen. John Cornyn

You’ve heard it described as medium heavy, sweet and low in sulfates. Its presence pre-dates the arrival of the first Anglo-American settlers to Texas. And today, its industry pumps millions in revenue into the Texas economy each year.
While crude oil may first come to mind, this liquid is Texas wine. More than three centuries ago—long before the first wine grapes arrived in Napa Valley— Franciscan priests brought grapevines from Mexico and planted the first North American vineyard at Ysleta, perhaps the oldest town in Texas, along the Rio Grande near present-day El Paso.  These grapes provided the priests and missionaries with sacramental wine for the Eucharist.
Over the next 200 years, the El Paso Valley would be recognized by travelers for its grape-growing capabilities and wine production. The concept of viticulture did not really gain traction in the rest of the state until settlers from European countries like Spain, Italy, and Czechoslovakia brought their interest in wine and the European vinefera vines to Texas. These European vines did not take well to the Texas climate, local pests, and fungus, however, and many of these initial efforts did not survive.
After these setbacks, German immigrants who settled in the 1840s in South and Central Texas—founding Hill Country cities such as Fredericksburg and New Braunfels—learned to adapt their process and incorporate local Mustang grapes, a high-climbing vine native to Texas and well adapted to heat. By adding more sugar during fermentation, they produced commercial wine and are largely recognized as the most successful wine-makers in Texas history.
Meanwhile, back along the Texas-Mexico border, an Italian immigrant, Frank Qualia, found success with the Lenoir grape, a Spanish black grape, in Del Rio, Texas. He started the Val Verde Winery, and today, as the only Texas winery to survive the Prohibition, it remains the oldest continuously running winery in Texas and still uses the Lenoir grape.
One of Texas’ most famous grape breeders was horticulturist Thomas Volney Munson, more simply known as T.V. Munson. A native of Illinois, Munson moved to Denison, Texas in 1876. While he devoted much of his life to the study of native American grapes, his work on rootstock development would earn him international acclaim. In Denison, Munson researched and developed rootstock that was resistant to phylloxera—tiny, yellow insects that feed on roots of grapevines and had severely damaged many native American grapevines. In the late 19th century, a phylloxera epidemic devastated the French wine industry—destroying almost two-thirds of France’s vineyards. Little did they know the solution to their problem would come from an American horticulturist in Denison, Texas. Munson’s phylloxera-resistant rootstock saved the industry in France and in gratitude to his contribution, the French government named him Chevalier du Merite Agricole of the French Legion of Honor, and the city of Cognac, France became a sister city to Denison. Today, Grayson County College’s West Campus houses much of Munson’s research and work.

After the Prohibition, the Texas wine industry was slow to get back on its feet. But as the grape culture began to boom in the U.S. in the 1970s, so did the number of vineyards that began popping up across Texas—beginning with the establishment of the Llano Estacado and Pheasant Ridge wineries near Lubbock. Today, Texas is home to nearly 3,700 acres of family-owned vineyard land, including eight American Viticulture Areas—wine grape-growing regions that have been identified by the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. Texas is America’s fifth-leading grape and wine producer and the industry contributes more than $1.35 billion to the state’s economy.

In its February issue, Bon Appetit magazine lists Becker Vineyards in Stonewall, Texas as one of seven of its favorite wineries off the beaten path. As our state’s wineries and vintners continue to gain national and international attention, fortunately, we don’t have to travel far to enjoy the unique Texas wine culture. Wine trails through vineyards across the state occur throughout the year. In late February, the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association holds its Annual Conference & Trade Show which brings together members of the industry from every region of Texas.
The Texas wine industry is yet another hallmark in Texas’s long history of ingenuity and achievement. Let’s toast to the men and women who have built up this industry and wish them many more years of success.

Sen. Cornyn serves on the Finance, Judiciary and Budget Committees. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee's Immigration, Border Security and Refugees subcommittee. He served previously as Texas Attorney General, Texas Supreme Court Justice, and Bexar County District Judge.

Lobbyist Kyle Frazier Legislative Articles & Notes

Click here for a 2008 State Election Recap.

Article on How a Bill Becomes a Law in Texas.

Notes on the Texas House Speaker Race

TV Munson Enology Program - Fall 2010 Course Schedule

A new dimension has been added to the TV Munson Viticulture Enology Program through state funds provided by the Texas Department of Agriculture. The Munson Program at Grayson County College was awarded funds to provide training seminars in enology at sites across the State of Texas. The following schedule provides information on the seminars that will be held at vaious times and sites during the spring semester.

For more information on the Fall schededule and how to register - click here.

Karen Ross, executive director of the California Winegrape Growers Association
Per Gabe Parker and Cord Switzer

We have a distinct opportunity as a result of the transition in presidential administrations.  The current executive director of the California Winegrape Growers is under consideration for the position of Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture.  She has been very helpful to our organization as it began and continues to grow our federal advocacy effort.  There is not a Texan under consideration and we have solicited feedback from our state officials about the situation. 

After board vote, a letter under Neal Newsom’s signature was mailed to the Obama Transition Team in support of Ms. Karen Ross’s potential appointment. Click here to view the letter.