L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2017 www.italoamericano.org 32 L'Italo-Americano S tepping inside, my first inhale held that heady, exciting aroma of wine cellar – a perfect welcome to the cozy, crowded front room. I sad- dled past the small grouping of millennials who were chatting and laughing as they enjoyed a t a s t i n g , a n d m a d e m y s e l f a t home as I took in the old family photos that lined the walls. W h e n t h e r o o m b r i e f l y cleared, Lynn, who was single- handedly running the show on this surprisingly busy winter afternoon, offered a friendly greeting and afforded me free- dom to roam about the original interior of the structure where a g e d o a k b a r r e l s r e p o s e d bunkbed style on one side and shiny-proud modern steel tanks stood guard along the southern wall. Rustic brick arches, hand- fired tile, and roughhewn beam work, along with the old-world family wine presses, flavored the space just enough to allow good standing with any respectable Italian fattoria. Production here is small by many winery standards, but by d e s i g n , a n d l i m i t e d t o a b o u t 30,000 cases a year with grapes harvested from the 12 actively producing acres of land, supple- mented by grapes from Sonora and Brenham, Texas. In fact, Thomas makes the trips to these areas to hand select the grapes that will go into Val Verde label PAULA REYNOLDS w i n e s . F r o m t h e g e t - g o , t h e Qualia approach has been quali- ty over quantity, and the legacy lives on. Currently the winery offers a nice selection of 11 varietals and blends, including a Sangiovese, a pure Lenoir, and a most inter- esting Dry Rosé crafted espe- cially for the wine club mem- b e r s b y M a u r e e n Q u a l i a , Thomas' daughter, who current- ly teaches classes in oenology at T e x a s T e c h U n i v e r s i t y – Fredericksburg, Texas. Yes, you can major in "Wine"! "So how were they?", you ask? Well certainly, I had to expe- rience a tasting for my readers' benefit (you're welcome), and I can attest that my sipping selec- t i o n s w e r e m o s t e n j o y a b l e . Despite the rather strong oppos- ing view of a lady to my right, I found the 2015 Lenoir to be quite a statement maker --- bold, confident, assured, and complex --- a proud testament to its ori- g i n s a n d t h e Q u a l i a v i s i o n . Maureen's 2015 Dry Rosé was also quite notable – a beautiful p e a c h y - p i n k w i n e , r i c h a n d complex bringing grapefruit and h o n e y s u c k l e t o g e t h e r i n a unique, not-too-sweet way. And let's not forget the popular 2015 S ier r a M ad r e, a mar r iag e o f M e r l o t , T e m p r a n i l l o a n d Sangiovese that produced a very satisfying blend of rich fruit and friendly complexity. Of the five I tasted, these three were my f a v o r i t e s ; h o w e v e r , t h e Sangiovese was quite nice – lighter than expected in color, but offering a bold, smooth fin- ish – while the Merlot was a bit too dry for my personal prefer- ences. The Texas wine industry has boomed of late, coming from less than 90 acres of vineyard p r o d u c t i o n i n 1 9 7 0 t o o v e r 4,000 within the last couple of y e a r s . A d d t o t h a t o v e r 3 5 0 a c t i v e w i n e r i e s , a n d T e x a s comes in at Number 5 for wine p r o d u c t i o n i n A m e r i c a . Meanwhile, the nonno of them all, Val Verde Winery, humbly reigns as the oldest still-in-pro- duction winery in the State of Texas. And personally, I give them credit for setting the bar admirably high for the distin- guished quality of wines being produced in Texas today. W h e r e d o t h e Q u a l i a s g o from here; how do they manage to keep quality alive, yet be cut- ting edge enough to keep the public's interest in the rabid- pace expanding wine industry in Texas today? Michael Qualia generously found a little time to chat with me by phone, and I took away that a good part of what will carry the family name and prod- uct into future generations is just that – family that continues to work as a team, family that con- tinues to strive to continuously improve their product, and fami- ly that values and honors the vision and traditions begun by Frank over 130 years ago. And let's not forget diversifi- cation: Thomas is keeping busy these days with Arbequina olive oil production, a dream he set to fruition (literally) about 9 years ago. With a third successful har- vest completed last fall, the oil typically sells out by end of year, and looks to be the begin- ning of another great Qualia tra- dition in this Texas border town. I couldn't help but notice that the bottle label bears "Quaglia Orchards" --- welcome back, missing /g/. I took my time leaving the grounds that Saturday late after- noon. The low sun played peek- a-boo through the gangly vines, bathing a couple in golden light as they sat under one of numer- ous towering pecan trees, sip- ping and talking in the chilly air. I wandered to the back fence, peering through the wire squares at the neatly planted regiments o f g r a p e s . T h e y g r a c i o u s l y s c o o t e d o v e r j u s t e n o u g h t o embrace the newcomers, the islands of Thomas' olive trees. What lovely piece of Italy in a most unlikely place in Texas. Francesco Quaglia would be mighty proud. Louis and Thomas Qualia at Val Verde Winery TEXAS ITALIAN COMMUNITY Val Verde Winer y: Francesco Qualia and Texas' Oldest Winery The Qualia family still values and honors the vision and traditions begun by Frank over 130 years ago Continued from the edition of March 9

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