For almost three decades, the Texas wine industry has been maturing like—you guessed it—a fine wine. And nowhere else is this more apparent than in the Texas Hill Country.
Many of the area’s 100 or so wineries are along what’s been dubbed the 290 Wine Trail, a 32-mile stretch of US Highway 290 between Johnson City, hometown of President Lyndon B. Johnson (named not for him but for a distant cousin), and Fredericksburg, founded by German settlers in 1846.
Around one million people visit the area annually, many coming to sip wine and other adult beverages—more on that in a moment—and enjoy some of the prettiest countryside in the state. (As of mid-October 2020, most of the wineries noted below were open. Of course, they may be limiting tours and tastings due to the pandemic, so call before visiting.)