Alphonse Dotson (shown here with his wife Martha) with Damian Mandola both grew up in the wards of Houston. Damian’s grandfather owned the grocery stores that Alphonse’s parents shopped at. “They were a blessing for us because they were the first grocers that would give us credit,” Alphonse explained.
“But he’s a lot older than me!” Damian laughs. There’s lots of good cheer between the crew. It’s also a nice piece of news for Texas wines, because Mandola has decided to carry the Dotson’s wine “Gotas de Oro” in all his restaurants and stores. “I think it goes perfectly with Italian cheeses and even better with chocolates,” says Mandola. Indeed, I agree. It’s one of Texas’s premiere dessert wines. In fact, slap a French label on it and it would probably go for about three times its $25 price. If we’re lucky, Mandola and some of his fellow restauranteurs and fine grocers will decide to carry even more of Texas’s better wines. Drink local indeed.
This article appears in May 11 • 2012.
