Unabating blue sky and searing hot sun, day after day. Coming from the cools of an ever-changing Waikato climate, it’s quite a shock to the system.
I’ve landed in a small town called Grapevine, 25 minutes either way from Dallas and the home of rodeo, Fort-Worth.
While it has a fruitful name, its history is colourful. Two of the country’s most notorious outlaws, Bonnie and Clyde, were regular visitors and fans of the town. Mayor William D. Tate – who has been in office since 1988, making him the longest-serving mayor in Texas and likely the country – says the pair were a “big part of our community”.
“They had a lot of friends here, spent a lot of time here. They danced at the Stumble Inn, ate at our restaurants. And of course, they killed the first two Texas highway patrolmen that were ever killed in the line of duty, this south side of town, which was the beginning of the end for them.”
The origins of the town’s name are anything but unique; when settlers arrived in the area in 1844 it was covered in mustang grapes, native to the southern United States. Keen to create an identity, local leaders sought to take advantage of the name and, 36 years ago, Grapefest was born. Now it’s the second-largest wine festival in the country.
Paul W. McCallum, or “PW”, as he’s affectionately known, set up Grapefest in 1986, wanting to change the face of the then mostly farming town. His plans upset many locals who weren’t as keen to embrace change. But McCallum says that before Grapefest brought new life to the area, many local businesses were closing down.
“Decay goes on if you don’t try to do something about it,” he says. “When you got a name like Grapevine it’s not difficult to come up with Grapefest, so I said, ‘let’s do something with wine’, everyone loves alcohol.”
When the festival began in the 80s, there were 18 wineries in Texas - now, there are more than 460.
“The whole idea was to get people to come to Grapevine, rediscover Grapevine,” he says, and pre-Covid, more than 265,000 people hit the streets over the festival’s four days.
The town’s cosy main street is transformed, with stalls lining the middle of the road while local businesses open their doors, put tables on the footpath, and get into the spirit of the festival.
At Grapefest, you can judge wine, you can match it with food, match wine with glasses, you can even enter a grape-stomping competition where roughly 8kg of grapes are stomped on for two minutes.
Live music is a major feature of Texan life and Grapefest boasts four stages where bands play till late, while there’s karaoke in the town’s Harvest Hall.
There’s a strong family-friendly vibe to the activities and even a specific kids’ section to keep them busy.
But for the adults, there’s no shortage of experiences. The bubbles flow on the Champagne Terrace where you can sit among the oak trees and be serenaded by a musician. Then there’s the VIP section, where more than a dozen wineries are set up for punters to enjoy tasting.
By far the most popular event is the People’s Choice Awards - the largest consumer-judged wine competition in the United States. Grab a ticket, either general or VIP, and sample wines from around 50 wineries over a couple of hours, with a goodie bag in hand that includes cheese, fruit, and crackers.
Grapefest committee member Mark Terpening says Kiwis venturing over for Grapefest will experience “a taste of Texas”.
“You’re going to get a lot of people who are friendly and want to have a good time. You’re gonna have some people who enjoy a drink but you’re also going to find an environment where you can bring the kids and not worry they’re going to see something they shouldn’t. The music is top quality, too.”
He says he has yet to see many New Zealanders at the festival and sends a welcoming invitation for more to head over.
If you can’t make if for Grapefest in September, Grapevine still has much to attract Kiwi visitors.
You can take a step back in time and visit the oldest farm in Tarrant County, the historic Nash Farm, preserved by the Grapevine Heritage Foundation. The original homestead is open to the public and you can experience a meal 1800s-style from its original wood-burning stove or feed the charmingly friendly, and endangered, Gulf Coast sheep.
In town, there's the Historic Downtown centre where you can learn about the cotton trade, at the Grapevine Cotton Ginners museum.
For a shopping fix, Grapevine Mills is one of the largest malls in Texas, home to Legoland, Sea Life aquarium, and every other outlet store imaginable.
You can spend a day with Grapevine Food Tours at any time of the year. We visited local business Off the Vine as part of our tour, and were greeted by owner Holly Donnelly holding a rather large sword. She was about to take us through the art of sabrage: chopping the top from a bottle with a sword.
Sabrage dates back to Napoleonic France. In modern-day Texas, Donnelly has an array of fancy swords for sale. The method is used for sparkling wines as the atmospheric pressure from the cork opening pushes all of the glass outwards, leaving your tipple safe.
The key to proper sabrage? Make sure you remove the covering and the cage and that you’ve lined up the bottle’s seam with the sword. As she demonstrates, a “one, two, three” and a swift shove upwards, and the top of the bottle is sliced clean off.
While there’s plenty to keep you occupied in Grapevine itself, if you have time you should get to an NFL game.
The party starts early. They call it “tailgating”, as originally people would open the back gate of the bed of their pick-up truck and break out the beers, the barbecue and the music. Now, whether they’re in a truck or a Tesla, people still arrive at the games early, park up with their grills, chilly bins, even televisions, and enjoy drinks with mates all day.
Some fans go inside the stadium, others stay in situ with their feet up in their camping chair, live-streaming the game.
Thirty-odd minutes from Grapevine is the holy grail of the rodeo, Fort Worth. You can get there easily via the Grapevine Vintage Railroad. Pay a visit to the historic stockyards where, twice a day there’s a cattle drive with longhorns strolling a 500m stretch of the main street, while hundreds of people crowd the footpaths, to catch a glimpse.
The bars are pumping, the cowboy hats are everywhere, and steak is the main ingredient on most menus.
Where to eat:
Mac's on Main, 909 S Main St #110, Grapevine
Mason & Dixie, 603 S Main St Suite 303, Grapevine
Esparza's Restaurante Mexicano, 124 E Worth St, Grapevine
Napoli's Italian Kitchen, 309 S Main St, Grapevine
Texas Star Dinner Theatre, 816 S Main St, Grapevine
Farina's Winery & Café, 420 S Main St, Grapevine
Where to drink:
Harvest Hall, 815 S Main St, Grapevine
Messina Hof Winery, 201 S Main St, Grapevine
Cross Timbers Winery, 805 N Main St, Grapevine
Hop & Sting Brewery, 906 Jean St, Grapevine
Where to stay:
Embassy Suites by Hilton Grapevine, 2401 Bass Pro Dr, Grapevine
Gaylord Texan Resort, 1501 Gaylord Trail, Grapevine
Checklist
GRAPEVINE TEXAS
GETTING THERE
American Airlines’ direct service from Auckland to Dallas Fort Worth runs until March 28, resuming from October 29. aa.com
DETAILS
This year’s Grapefest takes place from September 14-17. For more about the festival, and the town itself, see grapevinetexasusa.com
This suburb is skipped in favour of flashier spots, but shouldn't be discounted.