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Notes from the Lone Star International Wine Competition (2025)
It was an exciting day for wine producers from Texas and beyond: Medal day! After a one-day qualifying round, the Lone Star International Wine Competition judges reconvened on Thursday morning to choose the best of the best. There were still dozens of wines in the running, and many potential medals to be awarded: Gold, Double…
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Local Sips: CRÚ Food & Wine Bar (Plano, TX)
Wine Fairy here, checking in with another recommended watering hole in our big old town of DFW! Read on for a local’s guide to CRÚ Food & Wine Bar in Plano’s Legacy East shopping center. I’ve been going to CRÚ’s Plano location for approximately forever. My wife and I celebrated our first over-21 Valentine’s Day…
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Forget groceries–let’s go wine tasting at the Whole Foods bar
If you crave the surreal experience of getting tipsy in the meat department of a grocery store, then have I got the recommendation for you: The Whole Foods Market taproom. Grocery store taprooms are not a new idea. Whole Foods opened their first in-store bar in 2009 and have them in many of their roughly…
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DFW Wine Events: June 2025
Dallas, I hope you are thirsty because June has more wine activities than you could possibly believe. (June 14th is National Rosé Day!) I hope you’re hungry, too–because the wine dinners are positively blooming on the vine. Every month at The Wine Fairy, we assemble a list of local happenings you won’t want to miss.…
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Local Sips: Bar Vino at Buon Vino Cellars (Plano, TX)
Want to drink great wine while feeling like you’re inside a secret club (because you kind of are)? Let me clue you in on one of DFW’s hidden wine oases, Buon Vino Cellars. Buon Vino Cellars is a concierge wine store and locker club located just off the Dallas North Tollway. Normally, it’s a bottle…
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Awesome Assyrtiko: 7 reasons to love this great Greek grape
Assyrtiko is having a moment–and for fans of aromatic, mineral-driven white wine, that’s great news. As fresh and food-friendly as Sauvignon Blanc but with a character all its own, Assyrtiko is native to Greece. It’s grown in other parts of the Mediterranean–including Lebanon– and has even spread to the New World. Assyrtiko is simply delicious,…
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Texas Winery Bingo (Free downloadable game cards)
Liven up your Texas wine trip with this fun, free scavenger-hunt game! Up to six people or teams can play Texas Winery Bingo. Each card lists objects and words you’re likely to find while doing tastings at Texas wineries. To play, each player or team marks off the squares as you find them. (Complete rules…
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A taste of heaven at Eden Hill Winery (Celina, TX)
Just north of Dallas, where the tollways end and the cornfields begin, is a little slice of wine paradise. Towering vines, friendly staff, and distinctive wines make Eden Hill Winery a delightful day trip from anywhere in the Metroplex. The 10-acre property is equipped with a tasting room, wine-making facilities, and two acres planted with…
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Bordeaux + Tuscany Tasting with Château Giscours and Caiarossa
Wine Wednesday got a serious upgrade with a selection of bold blends from Bordeaux’s Château Giscours and Tuscany’s Caiarossa. Reps from both estates were in Dallas this week and swung by The Wine Authority with some crates of their marvelous red elixirs. Giscours and Caiarossa had just been featured in a “Bordeaux Meets Toscana” winemakers’…
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Review: Rowdy Creek Ranch Texas Merlot (2022)
Gather ’round the chuck wagon, ’cause today I’m pouring a 2022 Texas Merlot from Rowdy Creek Ranch. Located in Gilmer, Texas (about 20 minutes northeast of Longview), Rowdy Creek Ranch is a 450-acre country resort that opened in 2022. A 22-acre winery is on site. The property is equipped with a venue and event space,…
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Exploring Texas’s Bay Breeze Wine Trail
Bay Breeze is Texas’s newest named wine trail, Texas Wine Lover blog reports. It was organized in 2017 and currently includes five wineries in Southeast Texas. What’s a wine trail? Basically, it’s a group of wineries that are close enough to hop around on a day or a weekend. Bay Breeze is one of the…
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Review: Palivou Estate Single Vineyard Nemea (2021)
From ancient vineyards near the ruins of Nemea, to a patio overlooking a parking lot in suburban Dallas–such was the fated journey of this bottle of red wine. And I am so grateful it made the trip. Palivou Estate’s flagship wine is a welcome discovery. Both fruit-forward and elegant, it’s a testament to what native…