Kim McPherson does not do things the way most winemakers in Texas do them. No pinot noir and merlot for McPherson, no attempts to duplicate French or California styles in a climate and soil that is completely different. Instead, he makes some of the state’s most interesting, intelligent and value-conscious wines for his McPherson label, focusing on warm-weather grapes such as sangiovese, syrah and viogner.
He honestly and sincerely believes Texas can produce great wines, provided Texas wineries and winemakers take into account the state’s unique growing conditions.
“I’ve been preaching this for 10 years,” McPherson says. “You have to plant to the land, not force the land to take what you want to plant. That’s the only way we’re going to get any respect.”
McPherson brings almost three decades of winemaking to this approach. His father, Texas Tech chemistry professor Clinton “Doc” McPherson, is one of the founding fathers of the Texas wine industry. His brother Jon is a respected winemaker in California. He has been the winemaker at Lubbock’s Cap Rock Winery since the mid-1990s, where, fortunately, his contract allows him to make wine for his own label.
There isn’t much of it — no more than 1,200 cases a year for the past four years — but it is available here, and it’s well worth looking for. Of particular interest:
• McPherson Sangiovese 2002. Sangiovese is an Italian varietal that loves hot weather, which McPherson has turned into a smooth red wine that can hold its own with anything from spaghetti and meatballs to prime rib.
• McPherson Viognier 2002. A white wine for everyone who is tired of chardonnay and pinot grigio. It’s soft, but not so soft that it doesn’t taste like it was made in Texas.
• McPherson Tre Colore 2002. Crummy name, but a terrific red wine blend made from syrah, carignan and viogner. The first two provide sturdiness, while the latter somehow makes it all work out. Ideal with roast chicken.
