Fredericksburg Get-Away – Part 1
Our Trip to Fredericksburg, Texas
After multiple
technical difficulties, I can finally post about our Halloween get-away.
Jarrett planned a trip to a surprise destination to celebrate my birthday that
weekend. On Halloween evening, we headed out to historic Fredericksburg,
a small town with a rich German history just west of Austin and San
Antonio. We arrived at Metzger Sunday House, a bed &
breakfast originally built by the Metzger family towards the end of the 19th Century.
The Metzgers were farmers living far from town, so they built this small home
in Fredericksburg to allow them to do their shopping on Saturdays and go to
church on Sundays. Sunday Houses were actually so common in
Fredericksburg that the town now boasts an abundance of similar bed &
breakfasts.
The Metzger Sunday House. A nice little B&B |
Arriving at the
Metzger house was like taking a step back in time. It has historical
furniture which you are actually expected to use (unlike in many museums, where
you can’t even touch the furniture), but with modern accommodations. So,
you can take your step back in time without having to deal with the
inconveniences of that time. I was very grateful of these accommodations
the next morning. Fredericksburg had temperatures in the 40s at night.
According to Jarrett, that night I, being accustomed to 90-degree weather, was
curled up in a pretty tight little ball trying to conserve what little heat I
could produce. He got up at when he saw this and turned on the heater.
Inside the Metzger House and 2 signs explaining the Metzger family name |
That morning,
Jarrett and I woke up starving, so we headed out to the Old German Bakery &
Restaurant. Fortunately, the Metzger Sunday House is also conveniently
located just a block away from the Historic District, where the Old German
Bakery is, so we were able to enjoy our delicious German pancakes in no
time. We really recommend this place. Although it is packed, if
you’re willing to share a table with strangers, you can be accommodated
quickly, and the service is great. Not really knowing our German food,
Jarrett and I were about to order two German pancakes each, but fortunately our
waitress explained to us how big they were. She was right. We were
full after just eating one of those pancakes, but that didn’t keep us from
buying some delicious freshly-made éclairs to snack on later on.
The Old German Bakery located on the main strip |
After coming
back from breakfast, I hung out in the front porch of the house, which features
a swing and comfortable seats. It was refreshing to peacefully sit
out-doors for a bit, before Kay Kay from Majesty Tours, picked us up to begin
our activity for the day – wine tasting. We visited four vineyards.
Linda enjoying the weather while sitting on the front porch |
First we
visited Becker Vineyards, which are relatively new, yet seem to follow the
classic vineyard traditions. I’m sure if you’re an experienced
wine-taster, this is the place you want to visit. They mostly grow their
own grapes (as opposed to most others, which import them from Lubbock). As we were to do in the next three vineyards,
we tasted six different wines before being taken on a tour where we were shown
the process of making Becker’s wines. We finished our visit to Becker’s
vineyards with an outdoors lunch in a beautiful long porch literally right next
to a vineyard.
Inside Becker Vinyard. Look at all the wine barrels stacked |
Next we visited
a vineyard with an image completely opposite to that of Becker’s vineyards –
Fat Ass. Fredericksburg’s newest winery focuses on making wine enjoyable
and understandable to wine newbies, such as Jarrett and me. Most of their
wines are on the sweet side. Their peach wine tends to be the most
popular. If you have the chance to visit Fat Ass, then make sure to get a
bottle of that peach wine because sometimes they run out of it.
Fat Ass Winery. One of the youngest wineries in Fredericksburg |
We followed by
visiting Hilmy Cellars, which is more for those people who like dry
wines. The place also features delicious food you can order and eat
in their beautiful porch. It’s a nice, intimate winery. I think
it’d be a great place for a date.
Hilmy Cellars. The entrance is mahogany and weighs over 500 pounds |
Finally, we
finished with 4.0 Cellars, where you can choose the wines you will taste based
on your preferences. For example, we like sweet wines, so we chose the
sweet wine menu and tasted six different sweet wines. Our assistant there
was very informative yet approachable at the same time. After chatting
with her and another couple on the tour with us, we proceeded to looking at the
cheese and chocolate, which you can add to your tour ticket. We made sure
to leave with an excellent Gouda cheese.
4.0 Cellars: 3 wineries and artisan foods all rolled into one place |
At the end of
the wine tasting tour, Kay Kay drove us back to the Metzger house, where Jarrett
and I properly proceeded to eating our delicious éclairs and taking a nap
before dinner.
What have your experiences been in Fredericksburg ? Also,
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I want a Hill Country getaway
ReplyDeleteIt was nice. It was the first I've experienced cool weather since moving back to Texas.
DeleteDo you have a desire to return to Lost Maples during the fall?? You seemed to enjoy that in the past. The Hill Country has so much to offer. Duck chasing in Boerne..
ReplyDeleteI would love to hit Lost Maples again for the leaves changing, but I feel like I missed most of the color changes.
DeleteOnly knew about Sunday House Turkeys. Never knew the meaning behind Sunday House. If we could all be so lucky to own a Sunday House.
ReplyDelete