My Meeting with Landon Winery

Part of the 'About' page of the Landon Winery web site

by Andrew Chalk

At the Drink North Texas Wine Festival I had an experience unlike any other. I wandered up to the Landon Winery booth and noticed they had a Chardonnay. I asked the sullen-looking guy behind the counter (he did not sound at all happy. He appeared to be having a bad day and intent on taking it out on people who visited the Landon booth) where the grapes came from. 

“Washington State”, he said.

“What is it doing at a Texas wine show?” I asked. I was incredulous, you don’t have a “Drink North Texas Wine” festival to push wine from other states. 

Then followed this conversation…

Sullen Landon Man: “They don’t grow Chardonnay in Texas”

Me: “Several growers do”

Sullen Landon Man: “They don’t sell the grapes”

Me: “They do. For example, Fall Creek buys some of theirs from Mason County”;

At that point I decided that I did not trust anything I was being told and made an exit to the next booth.

This is a revealing encounter. This guy made a set of claims that he either knew were false (AKA, a lie) or that he was misinformed about. If the former, he assumed the person he was talking to was so ignorant that what he claimed did not have to be true. If the latter, who in the Landon Winery organization misled him?

Does this happen all the time to ordinary consumers just getting into Texas wine?

I would not buy anything from him. In wine, knowing your producer is important. 

I have asked Bob Landon for feedback.