McPherson Cellars May 2011 Dockline Issue

     Hey Y'all ! We're glad to see you back here. The weather's great in Montgomery and several new shops are opening. The Antique Festival is coming up April 30th and May 1st and we will be serving our homemade sangria (AKA "Rockin' R Ripple") on Saturdays along with homemade lemonade on the porch. Lots of stuff to look at here at The Rancher's Daughter...no excuses for stayin' home sittin' on the couch! If you are new to this column, we have been featuring Texas wineries. As you may already know, we only carry Texas wines and this month we're going to let you know about McPherson Cellars out in Lubbock.
     The McPhersons have been a pioneering family in grape growing and wine making in Texas for over 40 years. The family patriarch, Dr. Clinton A. "Doc" McPherson, is one of the "Fathers" of the modern Texas wine industry. In 1976 "Doc," a Chemistry Professor at Texas Tech University, and Bob Reed, founded Llano Estacado Winery in Lubbock, the first post-prohibition Texas winery. Today "Doc" remains one of the state's prime grape growers and was the first in Texas to plant Sangiovese in his Sagmor Vineyard. Kim's mother, Clara, while a professor in Texas Tech's Department of Food Science, established the university's Hotel Restaurant Management degree program. His younger brother, Jon, has been a winemaker in the Temecula area near San Diego, CA, for over twenty years.

Kim graduated from Texas Tech with a degree in Food Science and then completed the enology and viticulture program at the University of California at Davis. He worked in Napa Valley before returning to Lubbock as winemaker for Llano Estacado from 1979 until 1985 and for Cap*Rock Winery from 1990 until 2007 where he also made McPherson Cellars.
      Kim and Jon have produced wines together in California under several labels including Il Fratello and Cucamonga Cellars. Kim's Texas wines have won over 450 medals in state, national and international wine competitions including two Double Gold Medals at the prestigious San Francisco Wine Fair. He continues to play an innovative and dynamic role in the development of the Texas wine industry. Kim and "Doc" were inducted into the Who's Who in Food and Wine in Texas Hall of Fame in 1999 and Kim created the McPherson Cellars label in 2000 to honor his father. Kim converted the historic 1930's era Coca

Cola bottling plant in downtown Lubbock into a winery and McPherson Cellars opened in the fall of 2008. It is one of the most beautiful, modern and efficient wine facilities in Texas. Kim believes in "planting to the land" so his focus is on Rhone, Italian and Spanish varietals. Under the McPherson Cellars label he produces the following wines from grapes grown on the Texas High Plains including Sagmor Vineyard and in other areas of Texas: Sangiovese, Viognier, Tre Colore (a Rhone style red blend of Carignan/ Mourvedre/Viognier), dbs (an Italian style blend of Dolcetto/Barbera/Sangiovese), Rose of Syrah (a dry Rhone style rose), Cabernet Sauvignon and two specialty wines, Chansa Single Cream Sherry and La Diosa Sangria. His first Tempranillo blend will be released in early 2011. A second McPherson label, Hook, Line & Sinker, was released in early 2009 and is made up of White and Red, both blends, Blush Rose and Sweet Red.
      You can find McPherson Cellars wine at The Rancher's Daughter, where we represent over 50 Texas wineries and over 100 varietals. Come in and taste "Doc" and Kim's wines or one of the many others that we have on daily tastings. We hope that you enjoy this column and as always, if you have any suggestions, we welcome them. Y'all come see us at The Rancher's Daughter, "Texas' Only Texas-Only Wine Shop". Harry and Rendy Kerr, native Texans and Montgomery residents, can be reached at 202B McCown Street, Montgomery, Texas 77356 (936) 449-4100.