The 290 wine road to Fredericksburg
Photo: Jon Lebkowsky from Austin, Texas, USA / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Highway 290 between Johnson City and Fredericksburg is the second most visited wine road in the country, and the trick is to pick four and skip the rest. This runs it west to east so you end closest to home, with the German main street for lunch in the middle.
Texas Hills Vineyard
The Johnson City pioneer on the road to Pedernales Falls, a quiet first pour before the crowds.
Garrison Brothers Distillery
The Texas bourbon original in Hye. Tours run through the day; the tasting barn is the one everyone photographs.
William Chris Vineyards
All Texas fruit, seated tastings on the porch of a 1905 farmhouse. Book ahead on weekends.
Otto's German Bistro
Lunch on Main Street: duck schnitzel and a Texas wine list that proves the point. Reservations most days.
Fredericksburg Pie Company
Two blocks from Otto's. Peach when it is in season, buttermilk when it is not.
Becker Vineyards
The lavender fields and the big stone barn, the most photographed stop on 290 and still a good glass.
Pedernales Cellars
A deck over the Pedernales valley for the last pour of the day. Tempranillo is the one to take home.
If you have time
Luckenbach, Texas
Ten minutes south of Hye, a dance hall and a post office and a picker circle under the oaks. Go if the sun is still up.
Enchanted Rock State Natural Area
The other reason to come out here. Sunrise hike, then the wineries. Reserve a day pass; it sells out on weekends.