Stone Trough Mercantile

Stone Trough Mercantile in Cleburne, Texas, is a wine bistro and local-food market rather than a conventional winery tasting room. Kevin and Stephanie Maxwell run the business with their children, Cole, Kendall, and Hayden, connecting Texas wine with meats from their own Fingerprint Farms. Experienced winemakers around the state produce wines for the Stone Trough label, leaving the family focused on the farm, market, and bistro.

The wine selection stretches from dry Dolcetto, Tempranillo, Negro Amaro, and Sangiovese to off-dry Chenin Blanc and lightly sweet Muscat. Bianco Alzato combines Marsanne and Muscat Canelli in a dry white blend. The separate Vinophiles Cellar adds Texas producers including Hilmy Cellars, Hye Meadow Winery, and Perissos. Back at the farm, Kevin's growing experiment is the “Vicharden”: grapevines interplanted with orchard trees, blackberries, and vegetables rather than standing alone in vineyard rows.

The strongest reason to visit is the connection between the glass and the meal. Many bistro dishes feature Fingerprint Farms meats, while the market carries the family's beef, chicken, lamb, and turkey alongside local honey and sourdough goods. Dinner service runs Thursday through Saturday, with Saturday brunch adding dishes such as biscuits and gravy and chicken and waffles. This is a meal-centered wine stop, not just a place to sample bottles.