10 Cute Small Towns In The US That Stole My Heart This Year
NOVEMBER 2024 BY ASHLEE FECHINO
I’m a writer who travels around the US, experiencing things to do, places to stay, and restaurants to eat at. It’s exciting when I visit destinations that make me go, “I love this place!” I want to share those places with you.
Here are some of the best small towns I’ve visited in the last year to add to your vacation bucket list.
SEPTEMBER 23, 2024 BY LUCY SIMON
9 Beers Winemakers Drink When the Last Thing They Want to Drink Is Wine
Winemakers are actually fueled by cheap beer. Winemaking and harvest is sticky, loud, and tiresome business that involves early mornings, heavy loads, and lots of machinery. The wine produced makes it all worth it, but so does a cold beer at the end of a long harvest day. It’s a brief respite before an 8 p.m. bedtime and waking up before dawn to do it all over again. […]
A light lager is the choice for winemaker Krystal Patel of Meierstone Vineyards in Texas Hill Country. An Italian lager like Peroni has the crisp flavor profile and low ABV (4.7% ABV) Patel looks for after a long harvest day. But she’d also gladly sip a Bud Light or Tecate.
“I drink beer regularly during harvest because it’s a refreshing change from being surrounded by the aroma and taste of wine all day,” says Patel. “Admittedly, my palate for beers is not developed like it is for wine. As long as it’s cold and bubbly, I’m happy.”
NOVEMBER 2024, BY LORELEI HELMKE
Krystal Patel is the great, great, great granddaughter of Jacob Brodbeck, one of the early settlers and founders of Fredericksburg. There is a bust of him in the Marketplatz, the town square. Brodbeck invented an airship that actually flew in 1865, well before the Wright Brothers. And the engineer and inventor also invented a grape destemmer machine.
MAY 2024
The Maven of Meierstone: Krystal Patel shares why she left tech to take the reins of the family farm.
Krystal Patel is a striking blond who exudes Texas charm and hospitality. The seventh-generation Texas native had a successful career leading strategy and operations for a tech company before going into the family business, as owner and winemaker at Meierstone Vineyards. Although they seem worlds apart, she explains, “My love for cellular and molecular microbiology and chemistry earned me an undergrad degree, after which I transitioned to business with an MBA, and later a Certified PMP layered with lean six-sigma training.
MARCH 1, 2024
Meierstone Vineyards: A Legacy of Farming, Ranching and Wine-Making in Texas Hill Country
Meierstone Vineyards stands as a unique example of a family-owned and operated business that has successfully adapted to changing times.
Nestled in the picturesque Texas hill country, Meierstone Ranch is a testament to the enduring legacy of the Meier family. This sprawling estate, spanning over 550 acres, has been in the family for over five generations and continues to thrive as a working farm, ranch, and vineyard.
JANUARY 2024
Fourteen Texas Wines Struck (Double) Gold
Fourteen wines from across Texas were awarded prestigious Double Gold medals at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo™ 2024 Rodeo Uncorked!® International Wine Competition, held November 10-12 at NRG Center in Houston.
A Double Gold medal is awarded to wines that receive a Gold medal rating by all five judges. The Competition handbook describes a Gold as a wine “of outstanding quality…
NOVEMBER 2023
The Best Wineries to Visit in Fredericksburg, Texas
In the heart of Texas’ renowned Hill Country, Fredericksburg’s wineries have carved out a reputation that’s hard to ignore. While Texas has always had a hand in winemaking, it’s Fredericksburg that’s recently taken center stage, thanks to an influx of both seasoned and emerging winemakers eager to make their mark.
Yet, a trip to Fredericksburg’s wineries is so much more than just sipping on fine wines. Nestled within…
NOV/DEC 2023 BY MADELINE HOLLERN
What to Do in Fredericksburg
Interact with giraffes, attend a constellation party, and spend the night in a geodesic dome at this Hill Country haven.
…or sign up for a quarterly star party with an astronomer at award-winning Meierstone Vineyards. (Fredericksburg is a designated dark sky community, so the constellations are especially bright at night.)
NOVEMBER 16, 2023 by RODEO HOUSTON
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2024 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition, showcasing the finest achievements in wine production across the globe. This year’s competition was held Nov. 10-12 at NRG Center and featured 2,985 entries from 22 countries.
NOVEMBER 2023
Meet the Patel Family
After 2020, I realized life was too short and I needed to live life’s passions or it was going to pass me by. So, I decided to quit my perfectly good career in tech to start making wine. I recall the look on my boss’ face when I found this newfound direction during my resignation. Delving headfirst, I marched up to the Texas High Plains to put boots on the ground and started building relationship with grape farmers.
OCTOBER 23, 2023 BY KASMA TASTINGS
Exploring with the Texas Wine Month Passport
To me, the Texas wine region is growing and consistently trying to find itself. With its very dry, unpredictable, continental climate, it can be hit or miss on a variety of grape varietals. […] Either way, as Fredericksburg, TX continues to grow, its winemakers and vines grow along with it. I’ve learned it all about finding the style, grapes, and personality to find what you like. You also don’t know until you try! Of the wines I had this month, here are my top favorites:
- Meierstone Vineyards— Very new winery led by a women winemaker — Krystal. She turned her family’s farm into a winery and is willing to…
OCTOBER 6, 2023 BY GENEVA DIAZ
Our Guide to the Best Weekend Ever in Houston (October 6–8)
There’s so much to do in Houston, it’s sometimes hard to land on the perfect activity to unwind from a hard week’s work. Houstonia’s Friday column, Plan My Weekend, is here to help. Stop scrolling through endless “things to do” ideas and follow our curated, day-by-day plan for the best weekend ever in Houston.
But this week, we’re heading to Hill Country to…
SEPTEMBER 29, 2023 BY ROSIE NEWBERRY
Celebrating Texas Wine Month In October With Texas Hill Country Wineries
Kate LaFleur, Communications Coordinator with Texas Hill Country Wineries, joined Studio 512 to talk about their upcoming Texas Wine Month Passport. Kate says, “Texas Wine Month is October and the annual passport event will be happening this year for the entire month, 1st through 31st, at over 45 wineries in the beautiful Hill Country…
AUGUST 2023 BY ANDRE BOADA
Wine Dogs: Tail Wagging at Meierstone Vineyards
Man’s best friend” is the common colloquial phrase to describe man’s passionate companionship with domestic dogs. Its first recorded use, dates to Frederick the Great, King of Prussia in 1772, but it was later popularized in a poem by Ogden Nash. Yet Krystal Patel, Meierstone Vineyard’s owner and winemaker, says…
MAY 31, 2023 BY SCOTT HALL
PODCAST: Ep17 – HC – Meierstone Vineyards
Join me on a hill country history lesson. One of the newer wine destinations in the hill country is called Meierstone Vineyards and their roots truly run deep. They are on a 5th generation working farm that is 555 acres and their family has …
MAY 8, 2023 BY BETH LUBERECKI
What to Do in the Texas Hill Country’s Fredericksburg (with or without the Kids)
With its rich German heritage and growing wine industry, Fredericksburg has plenty to offer families and couples alike.
APRIL 19, 2023 BY ROBIN CATALANO
Where to Eat, Stay, and Play in Fredericksburg, Texas
About 70 miles north of San Antonio and 70 miles west of Austin, along the rolling Edwards Plateau of Texas Hill Country, Fredericksburg is a historic city of about 11,000 that has dominated “best small town” lists over the past decade.
APRIL 2023 BY THE SCOUTS GUIDE AUSTIN
WINE & DINE, YALL // Whether you’re a wine lover looking for a day trip to an idyllic vineyard or an oenophile wanting a weekend getaway spent exploring upscale tasting rooms, look no further than the Texas Hill Country.
To help you navigate the very best spots to eat, stay, and sip while exploring the 290 Wine Trail, we’ve scouted a few of our favorites.
DECEMBER 20, 2022 BY AMIE NEMEC
Fifth Generation Ranch Meierstone Vineyards Joins the Texas Wine Trail