Those who follow this list annually will notice a few return players, and that indicates that these are not only superb wines, but consistently superb. Bending Branch is the only winery new to the list. The major grapes you should look for in the Texas wine section are grapes originally from France’s Rhône valley, Italy’s Tuscany, and Spain’s northern half – specifically, whites like Albariño, Viognier, Roussanne, Gre­nache Blanc, Marsanne, and Vermentino; or reds like Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah, San­giovese, Dolcetto, Barbera, and Tem­pra­nillo. These are in alphabetical order:

White Wines

1) BRENNAN VIOGNIER

2) DUCHMAN FAMILY VERMENTINO

3) MCPHERSON LES COPAINS

4) PEDERNALES CELLARS VIOGNIER RESERVE

5) SPICEWOOD VINEYARDS SAUVIGNON BLANC

RED WINES

1) BECKER VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON RESERVE – CANADA VINEYARD

2) BENDING BRANCH TEXAS TANNAT

3) BRUSHY CREEK VINEYARDS TEMPRANILLO

4) FALL CREEK SALT LICK VINEYARDS TEMPRANILLO

5) PEDERNALES CELLARS TEXAS HIGH PLAINS TEMPRANILLO

This article appears in 2013.

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Wes Marshall is the author of What's a Wine Lover To Do? (Artisan) and The Wine Roads of Texas (Maverick), as well as the Executive Producer of the PBS television series of the same name. Wes has written for The Austin Chronicle since 1999, covering wine, cocktails, food, and travel.