Porsches and a Texas Winery

WRITTEN BY: J. CURTISS PHOTOS BY: IVAN HRISTOV, ED FINNER, KANDACE HEIMER

I know you may have heard folks say that Texas wine is in a class all by itself. But keep reading as there is more to the story, and I think you'll be surprised and even like the wine.

First, I want to extend a BIG thank you to Fredna and Gary Manney for organizing our Porsche driving tour to the Kiepersol Winery, located in the piney woods near Tyler, Texas. Notably, this is their fourth annual tour to Kiepersol, and I'm already looking forward to next year's tour. There were thirteen cars registered for this event, and our starting point was the ubiquitous Buc-ee's off Highway 290 in Waller.

We departed around 8:15 AM with Fredna and Gary leading the way in their stunning all-black Cayman S. Their route took us on multiple twisted ribbons of asphalt and through small towns to our first stop, the Lone Star Olive Ranch near Madisonville, Texas. This remarkable enterprise is owned and operated by two tenacious ladies: Christine and Cathy. Their website tells us that: "From 2005 until February of 2021, Lone Star Olive Ranch was not only successful, it became a business enterprise recognized and respected among peers and consumers in Texas and across the United States for its products, services, expertise, values, and integrity."

Sadly, the freeze of 2021 killed virtually all their 14,000 olive trees. However, they have replanted and have purchased and pressed olives from others in an effort to continue to make Lone Star Olive products. They also use their equipment to press olives for other growers and have an olive-growing consulting business. During our stop at the Olive Ranch, we were treated to olive oil candied bacon skewers, olive oil infused chocolate fudge cake and various seasoned olive oils. All these olive products and oils were available for tasting, and my wife and I were impressed to the extent that we bought four bottles of olive oil—two roasted garlic and two Italian medleys seasoned.

With our appetites now wetted, we drove into Madisonville for lunch at TX Burger. Our trip through town just happened to coincide with their annual mushroom festival, and I bet many of the folks that saw our procession of thirteen Porsches thought we were somehow part of the festival. I would never have associated Madisonville with mushrooms, but reportedly they grow a variety of mushrooms there and produce some 28 million pounds of white mushrooms each year. It's no wonder that Madisonville has a mushroom festival each year!

From Madisonville, our string of Porsches snaked their way to the Kiepersol winery near Tyler, Texas. This is actually an estate winery, which means their wine is comprised of grapes grown only on their property. Reportedly, this is the only estate winery in Texas. Kiepersol has so many fascinating qualities that I don't know where to start, and I also don't have the space in this article to cover them all, so the following is super abbreviated. The winery was started by an extraordinary man, Pierre de Wet, from South Africa, who immigrated to the United States in 1988 with his two young daughters, Marnelle and Velmay, clinging to each pant leg. Pierre didn't know how to speak English, but he knew how to grow things and was hired by various farmers to help grow and harvest their crops. In short order, his exceptional knowledge of growth translated into substantial wealth. After comfortable savings had been accumulated, Pierre and his oldest daughter, Marnelle, collaborated on establishing a winery. Marnelle actually spent a year or so as an apprentice at a winery in California. As Marnelle gained knowledge of the wine-making business, she would submit notes and sketches of the California winery to Pierre back in the Piney woods of Tyler, and he would execute the ideas into reality. Soon a winery coupled with a bed and breakfast facility and restaurant emerged and was named Kiepersol after a tree in South Africa. The origin of the name Kiepersol is intriguing, and I encourage you to read about it and the Kiepersol story at: Kiepersol.com. In addition to wine, they have expanded to making spirits, including Bourbon, Rum, Vodka, Gin and Tequila.

Our Porsche group engaged in a private tour of the winemaking facilities, and our tour guide provided an overview of the fascinating history behind the origins and ongoing operations of Kiepersol. We were also served samples of their various wines and bourbon. I'm not a bourbon drinker, but after the tasting session, we purchased a bottle of bourbon along with a bottle of Syrah.

Dinner that night was scrumptious, entailing four courses that were expertly paired with wines and spirits. After dinner, we merely walked to our bedroom suites conveniently located on campus—no driving in the dark! The next morning Debbie and I were treated to Kiepersol Eggs Benedict, a variation on the traditional eggs benedict, with breakfast potatoes and filet mignon. After our delicious breakfast, we decided to cap off this sensational tour with a drive on a portion of the historic Camino Real or King's Highway on our way home in Katy, Texas. We already look forward to next year's Kiepersol tour and hope you will join us! J