The First Vineyard

This first vineyard, one of only 5 or 6 in the state at that time, proved to be an invaluable source of information, although its commercial production was limited. One of the first realizations that became evident from this planting was that Texas wines, unlike California, were destined to be heavily influenced by the terroir. This term, which literally means the "soil" or "land", is more widely taken in the wine industry to mean the flavors conveyed from all of the soil and site elements to the wine.

Of the many terroir factors available for discussion, the most prevalent in Texas is the high mineral content where particularly high calcium levels play a crucial role. This role varies from a welcome one to an adverse factor depending which grape variety is grown there and how it is vinified. Varieties that may have been thought to be dull in mineral neutral soils like the US West Coast, sometimes become "bright" and complex wine producers, while some respected varieties, like Cabernet, which has a high capacity to transfer mineral compounds into its juice, become harsh as varietal wine, and need to be blended, in the European style.

Although California relies heavily on its excellent climate to produce perfect sugar/acid balances, Texas relies mainly on its terroir and secondarily, on its climate in one important regard: different grape varieties have different minimum respiration requirements, as determined in the first vineyard block. Respiration can be thought of as similar to the process in humans, where the vine "breathes in" during the day and "breathes out" at night. The limiting factor here is that each variety has a different minimum overnight temperature and corresponding number of hours needed at that temperature to respire completely. Therefore, if a grape like Tempranillo, needs a minimum of 8 hours per night at a temperature of 65 degrees or less to respire completely during the summer/fall ripening cycle, then this requirement rules out areas where the overnight lows barely touch 70 degrees, like most of Texas at that time of year.

The Discovery of the Palomino

Finally, one of the early bright spots in this first group was the lowly Palomino, once the most widely planted grape in Spain and primarily used for Sherry production. In the early wine trials from 1984 to 1988, its unique nectar-like fragrance and dense concentration made it a stand-out, but its shy production of less than one ton per acre was below economic feasibility to support a winery operation by itself. Therefore, the search continued for companion varieties. Although a number of grapes made drinkable wines, none of the others were deemed to be capable of premium wines by Mr. Gatlin, and the vineyard was abandoned. However, one thing was clear: the varieties that were the best candidates were those found in southern regions of Europe, especially tracing down the Italian and Iberian peninsulas and this became the focus of his future plantings.

The Inwood Estates Vineyard

In 1997, Dan and Rose Mary Gatlin bought a large lot in a then-undervalued part of Dallas where they remodeled the house for their residence and established a 245-vine completely "urban" vineyard. This became a local point-of-interest, and some early Palomino-Chardonnays were produced from there non-commercially as the yield was less than 50 gallons per year.

In late 2005, the Gatlins moved from this property, but the name stuck as the winery was being built in another part of the city. The current owner of the Inwood Road property took an interest in continuing the urban vineyard, and the 2006 grapes contributed to one barrel of "Urban Dallas" Palomino-Chardonnay, which was available by Christmas 2007.

The Tempranillo-Cabernet

The hunt for other wines continued and after a total of 5 vineyards, Dan Gatlin put in a block of Tempranillo at Newsom Vineyards in Yoakum County, Texas. Newsom Vineyards is now the grower of both the Tempranillo and Cabernet which go into the Inwood Estates flagship wine. This location was chosen by Mr. Gatlin for its ability to meet the Tempranillo's respiration requirement which is a function of the elevation at over 4000'.

However, being almost 400 miles from the winery, the grapes are field-crushed within minutes of being taken from the vine. This captures 100% of the flavors instantly as harvesting takes place at night in the cold desert air around 58-60 degrees. The must can then be transported while on cold soak with zero degradation. Inwood Estates is the only winery in Texas which field-crushes, and Mr. Gatlin learned this technique from a famous Napa-Valley winemaker in 1978

Inwood Estates Today

The business was established in 2004, and the winery built in 2005 which housed the first in-house crush. The 2003 and 2004 wines were custom crushed at Wales Manor Winery in McKinney, Texas where Mr. Gatlin served as winemaker for both vintages of Tempranillo-Cabernet. The 2003 Temp-Cab and the 2005 Palo-Chard were released August 1, 2006 to a great reception of restaurant customers in Texas' four largest cities: Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio.

2004 Tempranillo-Cabernet (64% Tempranillo - 36% Cabernet)

The 2004 Temp-Cab was in French Oak cooperage and was bottled after a minimum of 26 months total, sometime in early 2007. This vintage was the type of year every winery desires as harvest came around the middle of the season with perfect chemistry. The wine had the powerful "Red-Fruit" characteristics (Cherries, Raspberries) that Inwood Estates will always be known for.

2005 Tempranillo-Cabernet (65% Tempranillo - 35% Cabernet)

The 2005 vintage was a very long season and unusually cool year with harvest in October. Such long hang times on high-mineral soils result in high-structure wines that need longer aging in oak and become great lay-down wines that develop lots of complexity (like most Bordeaux, for example). 2005 was perhaps the best year seen in Texas.

2006 Tempranillo-Cabernet

2006 was a drought year, the diametrical opposite of 2005. The berries came in small due to some dehydration and the crop was reduced. The must was so thick the pumps were having trouble. The logistics of dealing with must this thick was a challenge at every turn, however, the resulting wine was one of uncommon concentration and power. This type of year will be analogous to what happened in Bordeaux in 2003 and the result will be the same: less elegance than 2005 but a big, in-your-face kind of wine that is a high attention-getter; the kind that always stands out in competition and ratings.