Today we share one of the unique wine stories out of Texas. Houston native Randy Hester knew he wanted to make wine after working in the fine wines division of a major distributor. Hester discovered it was more than just sales for him – he wanted to be in a profession where he could create with his own hands and share the fruits of his labor to elevate the wine drinking experience. In order to gain the right education, training and experience to achieve their goal of making a difference in the Texas wine industry, the couple moved to California in 2006.
After moving to Napa, Hester began as a 36-year-old intern at Cakebread Cellars, eventually working full-time, and coupled his training with viticulture and enology courses at Napa Valley College on nights and weekends. Though his formal education was essential to his growth in winemaking, Hester credits his craft to the world class winemakers that he was fortunate enough to work with, including highly acclaimed winemakers such as Andy Erickson, Michel Rolland, Mike Hirby, and Helen Keplinger, at various distinguished producers including Colgin Cellars, Caldwell Vineyard, Realm Cellars, and Marciano Estate. The Hesters launched Lightning Wines in 2011 and focused on making Grenache and other Rhone varietals. As the final step to the 10-year plan, C.L. Butaud Wines was created in 2014 with a focus on creating high-quality wines that proudly utilize 100-percent Texas grown grapes. Their first Texas harvest took place in 2014 before the couple moved to Austin, Texas in 2017.
C.L. Butaud is an homage to Randy’s great grandfather, named Clet Louis Butaud, who was known as Frenchy. The new wines are a beautiful homage and are consistently very good. I particularly enjoyed the 2021 C.L. Butaud Tempranillo (OB, 91) which shows a beautiful texture and really nice flavor range. Learn more about theses excellent wines at https://clbutaud.com/ and here are my reviews of the new C.L. Butaud wines.
2022 C.L. Butaud Wines ‘Blanc de Noir’ Rose- Made from Mourvèdre, this offers a soft mouthfeel with juicy melon and Yakima cherry notes alongside good tension on the palate. This is really good, nicely textured stuff. Drink 2023-2026- 90
2021 C.L. Butaid Mourvedre- The 2021 C.L. Butaid Mourvèdre is a really nice showing from this vintage. This is brimming with bright red fruit flavors alongside smoky accents and shades of citrus rind on the palate. Enjoy now and over the next few years. Drink 2023-2029- 90
2021 C.L. Butaud Tempranillo- This 2021 Tempranillo is neatly textured, displaying blood orange zest flavors alongside pulled pork, red currants and shades of white pepper on the palate. Enjoy now. Drink 2023-2029- 91