Crump Valley Vineyards Review
Address: 127 Crump Lane Sulphur Springs,Texas 75482.
Phone Number: 903-975-2327
Tasting Hours: See website for wine tasting details.
Region: Texoma AVA, Texas
Reviewer: Becky Parr
Review Date: 5/5/2014
Reviewer: Becky Parr
Rating: 4
The Review
Crump Valley Vineyards‘ tasting room is, fittingly, located on Crump Lane! It’s very cute and inviting from the outside, with a picnic table out front and a many-windowed building. Unfortunately, Sulphur Springs doesn’t provide much of a view. A large portion of the interior is a porch which we learned had been recently enclosed. I’m a little afraid it’ll be blazing hot with the Texas sun on it in summer afternoons, but in the spring it was a lovely place to sit and have a glass. It has a bit of a covered porch/bistro feel. The tasting counter is very small, and I’m not sure how they managed before enclosing the porch. We also got to see some of the bottling area, which is right behind the tasting counter.
The People:  There was a group of four sitting at the picnic table outside when we arrived. We learned later that one of the picnickers was Travis Crump, the winery owner; he waved at us on the way out. I felt kind of bad for breaking up the party, but the lovely Diana came in to pour a tasting for us. She’s as sweet as can be. Also, the way she talks about the winery, she’s obviously very much invested in it, and she knows the wine and the processes inside and out. She let us peek into the barrel area and talked about the triple-sterile-filter process the wine goes through the day before bottling. We really appreciated the time she took with us.
The Wine:  We tasted seven wines, and I really appreciated Diana’s pacing; we sat in the lovely covered porch area and sipped, and she brought out a bottle or two at a time and explained each and let us take our time. She poured dry wines in one glass and sweet wines in another, which was nice. We started with a Cabernet Sauvignon, which I thought was an odd choice to start, but then again in Texas, Cabs are much lighter than in other places. This one was indeed on the light side, so once I tasted it, I didn’t mind that it led off. Diana explained that it was oaked, but not for very long. Next came the Chardonnay, which was also on the lighter side; it’s a crisp wine aged in stainless steel, rather fruity. I really liked the Merlot. It had a spicy character and almost seemed a bit sweet on the finish. I think newbies to red wine might like this one.
The Vin de la Vigne was described as a semi-sweet white, and is a blend of Chenin Blanc and Viognier. It had a nose of apple and just turned sweet toward the end. My one complaint was that I wished it were colder. I could see this one being great straight out of an ice bucket by the pool in the summer.
Now we come to sweet wines, of which Crump has three. We all know sweets are not my favorite, but I didn’t hate these my husband said I didn’t make my “sweet face” when I tasted them. The Neon (no, it’s not a neon color) was sweeter toward the end and just fruity at the beginning. The Belle, a sweet red, was sweet but not syrupy. I really wish I’d liked the Phat Cat just because of the name, but it was too sweet for me. Steve, however, wanted to bring a bottle home, and the only reason he didn’t was because he knew he’d have to drink it all by himself!
We also learned that the wine from the on-site vineyard, the Blanc du Bois, is ready for bottling. So now I guess we have to go back soon so we can taste that too!
The Experience:  This was a very fun and relaxing stop. I loved talking with Diana and hanging out in their newly covered patio area. We also learned that Crump Valley Vineyards serves food not just munchies, but real food! Diana mentioned people who regularly come in for lunch, so that’s an extra added benefit. I could see it as a great place for parties, too. I’m so glad we detoured off Interstate 30 between Dallas and Arkansas, and I’d recommend that others do the same.