Festival of Food, Wine and General Merriment

Jen and I have been seeing our anxiety climb and tolerance decline as we have gotten further into the huge landscape project we initiated and now the garage getting closed in for a game room and kitchen final remodel touches, well, we needed to get the hell out of Dodge before we choked someone. We had reserved this weekend a couple of months ago on a whim that it would be fun. But as we have gotten closer to it, we realized a premonition must have been involved because never a time before has been needed for an escape.

Day 1: About halfway on the drive to Fredericksburg Texas, which should be five hours by car, we were trying to decide if we did the right thing. The drive ended up being seven hours pulling the trailer, half hour to setup, and the realization that I should have gotten the refrigerator going on gas some eight hours prior, and then the big one. We decided we would eat some leftovers, only to realize we had no pots or pans, silverware, plates, bowls, utensils, dish drain and mat, trashcan, or drinking water. We were hooked up to water and even filtered, but I told Jen I didn’t feel good about drinking from the fresh water hose that had been stored for near two years.  This trip now was an extension of the chaos at home. Luckily, Fredericksburg has grown and commercialized a lot over the last thirty plus years and Walmart was available to rescue us and turn this trip from camping back into glamping. God knows, we need our conveniences to come home to after the day’s frivolity. However, nothing is simply accomplished in one trip, so we have to go back to Walmart and grab the items that were missed due to my impatience and rushing Jen through the store. I admit it, it was my fault!

Day 2: We broke into my gallon of distilled water to have coffee. Somethings are more important that a CPAP at night, and coffee is certainly at the top of the list. A little breakfast, each of us going on separate walks with Lucy to tire her out, a few laughs, a little straightening up and unboxing of the new goods and wares from Walmart. Dressed and ready for some tasting of food and wine. Antiquing, German restaurant, Luckenbach, and if we can squeeze in, the LBJ National Park for our park passport stamps. We’re off!!

Made Walmart our first stop to get the essentials out of the way. You know, things like stuffed animals for Lucy, Life water, and a trashcan. Headed downtown and the amazement began. Jen and I have been to our share of resort towns. We also have too many times before seen towns get caught up in modern day cool and trendy and lose that time when they were a secret to those willing to venture off the beaten path. Fredericksburg is the same. When I came before, there were mostly old antique stores lining both sides of Main Street with wooden boardwalks and buildings older than the wares being sold inside. A place for you to do some picking and haggling over long lost treasures that you remembered seeing at great grandmas as a little kid. This is what I remembered, it’s what I sold Jen on in coming here. Getting here and seeing the reality of commercialism and the catering to the rich, it certainly seems to have lost a little of its common man charm. You still see the common man; they are usually the ones with wide eyes as a result of seeing the prices. They are the ones turning their heads to look at a pair of $300 jeans with fifty slashes in each leg. I perceive what he is thinking is how much he could have sold countless pairs of jeans thrown away because of the same look. But Jen and I, being the self-proclaimed wine snobs (beer snob too), we were right in our element. Getting the German sausage lunch out of the way with a wonderful dark beer, we dedicated the rest of the stay to wine tasting. We drove by the Wine and Food feast, we saw, we looked at each other, and both said no way. The line was two blocks long to get into what looked like a nice setup. Even getting a souvenir wine glass, a wine bag, and tasting for four pours at $25 apiece was not tempting enough. We have done a few of these and they are ok, but we have come home with wines that sat in the wine column for years not because of some need to age in the bottle, but because when we were sober and opened it, we gagged and wondered what were we thinking? We walked the streets, went into a few shops, enjoyed the crowded sidewalks mostly still covered with the old overhangs, sat on a couple of benches watching the people walk by admiring the sharply dressed and wondering if I looked as bad as some of the attire witnessed. I used to call this game Looney Bin. I imagined everyone was crazy except Jen and I. It becomes pretty comical the reactions of others when they know they are being watched. We ended up at a winery that had a tasting locale downtown. We had a wonderful server named Shannon who was well versed in the wines she was pouring as well as the wine in general. Relaxing, just sitting there sipping six different varietals (me white, Jen red) and enjoying the cool breeze on a warm day, still enjoying the game of passing folks on the sidewalk. We decided the festival was not in the cards and Jen made reservations for Sunday at three wineries. Thinking about going by Luckenbach still, worried though hearing that the general store is only partially still there. Oh well, I can still get my picture taken with the statue of Hondo Crouch and compare to myself thirty plus years ago. I did hear they have musicians playing weekend day right near it and heard you never know when someone famous will show up and play a few songs with whoever is serenading for the day. Kicking back the rest of the day watching college football while Jen gets a long overdue nap and lazing around. General merriment, food and wine accomplished for the day, just a little altered from the plan but a success of a day.

Day 3: We woke with both sleeping in a little bit. Drank coffee, watched the morning news and slowly got ready to go. We had decided to visit three wineries, but as always, we were prepared to alter plans as we went through the day. This is one of the best virtues that we have adopted in retirement, the ability to live life slightly unplanned. It sure simplifies everything and reduces the stress of thinking you have to get things done. Afterall, my retirement motto has been “Why do today what I can do tomorrow!”. A twenty-minute drive to our first winery, William Chris. We didn’t have any idea what to expect about Hill Country Wineries. Should we compare them to those we know in California? Maybe we should allow them to stand on their own merits, which seemed a more promising outlook with less possibilities of being disappointed.

What a surprise! William Chris was amazing as we had a tasting with another couple that was a food and wine pairing. Smart move on Jen’s part as the gentleman guiding us through the experience was very good and knew his wine and the subtle nuances of the virtues of the wine. Fantastic facility, wonderful view, and a great couple from Georgetown Texas to share our time with. Both of us left this place happy, slightly intoxicated, full, and ready for more. Onward to our second venue called Augusta Vin. Where William Chris exuded its success of a family business and dream of thirty years in the making, Augusta Vin exuded corporate money and excellence that comes with a drive of a company to succeed by growing itself to a fully functioning self-producing vineyard to winery to consumer methodology. Wines were very good and the charcuterie board of meats, cheeses, fruits and vegetables was a great compliment to the wines. Another success! Leaving here we decided to cancel the third location about halfway to it and detoured to Luckenbach to see what it was about thirty years after the famous song.

Well, even Luckenbach has been able to cash-in on the popularity of the area, however, it has greatly diminished what it stood for in the old days. You now come to the edge of the general store area and enter a parking lot inviting you to walk in, pay to enter, and ultimately realize there is nothing really to see but a collection of old buildings and folks standing around listening to acoustic singers outside the general store. I think the Luckenbach store on Main Street of Fredericksburg holds more of the historic charm Luckenbach used to serve up.

Day 4: Head home day, but after some reflection of the whole Fredericksburg scene. Slightly disappointed that the old antique line boardwalk streets have given way to money and the rich version of what they think small town quant is. Another Vail, Aspen, or maybe Solvang has been created in the Hill Country of Texas complete with high-end sales stores, souvenirs, quality restaurants and small cottage homes exceeding a million dollars. The real estate market alone has ruined the old country charm and, under my breathe, I curse it. But on the other hand, we now have a place not so far from home to come and enjoy wine and compete in the tourist elite activities of other places we love. I think the more we go, the more we’ll find our place in it all, but for now, driving home, I’m left with a little melancholy of another part of my youth now gone forever.