At Sister Creek Vineyards, taste wine in a restored cotton gin

Chris LeBlanc looks over casks of wine at Sister Creek Vineyards in Sisterdale, Texas8. Pam LeBlanc photo

If you’re looking for an alternative to the busloads of partiers who flock to the wineries around Fredericksburg, detour over to Sister Creek Vineyards in tiny Sisterdale, Texas.

You’ll find some great wine, without the crowds.

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I stopped at the winery, which opened in 1988, on my way to Comfort earlier this week. It’s housed in a restored 1885 cotton gin, worthy of a stop on its own. Inside its rustic doors you’ll find roughhewn timbers, stairs that lead to a secret hatch door, lots of wine and a friendly proprietress named Leticia who will pour you samples.

Sister Creek Vineyards is housed in a restored cotton gin. Pam LeBlanc photo

I visited on a Tuesday, when Leticia was pouring three reds – Cotton Gin Red, a four-blend Reserve and the Vintner’s Collection cabernet sauvignon. My palette is far from sophisticated, and while I liked the $42.95 cab the best (full bodied and bold!), the $28.95 Cotton Gin Red came in a close second. I wasn’t a fan of the Reserve, which costs $35.95. A chardonnay and muscat were also available.

Visitors can pick up a laminated information card and take a self-guided tour through the facility, which is located between two cypress-lined (and now mostly dry) creeks midway between Comfort and Kendalia.

Wines are aged in 60-gallon oak barrels for up to three years. We wandered among them, then found our way back to the tasting room, where we chatted with Leticia, whose husband has been the head winemaker here since it opened.

Bottles of award-wining wine line the shelf at Sister Creek Vineyards. Pam LeBlanc photo

Sister Creek Vineyards, 1142 Sisterdale Highway, is open for tasting from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. For more information go to https://www.sistercreekvineyards.com.