No visit to Texas Hill Country would be complete without a stop in the German immigrant-settled town of Fredericksburg, which wears its heritage proudly and also boasts its more recent position as the heart of Texas wine country. On our March trip to Texas, we were fortunate to have a brief but very pleasant day in and around this charming town, whose traditional main street is crowded with all kinds of shops, tasting rooms and eateries.

Our first stop of the morning was at Hill Country Herb Garden, located on the outskirts of town. While it did feature an herb garden (though still a bit bare in early spring) under graceful oak trees, this complex offers much more to guests: 14 charming cottages for visitors,   a restaurant, gift shop and a day spa.

We then moved on downtown, where the 19th-century buildings are constructed mostly from the local limestone and really make you feel as if you’ve traveled back to the Old West. We strolled by the lovely two-story Pioneer Memorial Library and admired the sturdy edifice, complete with tower, of the former Bank of Fredericksburg, now a hat shop selling the ubiquitous Stetsons. Before pausing for lunch, we also stopped in at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, whose solemn stone exterior never hinted at the beauty of its interior.    

Of course, we had to try German fare for lunch, and Altdorf Restaurant & Biergarten fit the bill perfectly. On this chilly, breezy day we sat indoors rather than try the outdoor patio/biergarten and were warmed by the hearty offerings. Harry always likes to order a Reuben sandwich when it’s on the menu, as he did here, served on really nice marbled rye.   I very much enjoyed my zwiebelschnitzel (pork) served with smoked bacon and a delicious caramelized onion sauce and spatzle and rotkohl (red cabbage). The cabbage provided a nice counterpoint to the rich, creamy sauce and spatzle.  Sister-in-law Barbara chose a dish I had been considering, the Hackbraten, bacon-wrapped pork and beef meatloaf served with a jager sauce (a mushroom-based brown sauce), spatzle and green beans.   We all left very satisfied and ready to sample some other unique tastes in the area.

Just a short distance down the road from Fredericksburg is the town of Stonewall, and there we sampled wine at Adega Vinhö (“wine cellar” in Portuguese) Winery. The winery sits in the middle of acres of vines and offers several appealing outdoor sitting areas as well as a mid-century modern tasting room, where we settled in and were graciously served by friendly, knowledgable staff. The place had a fun, funky vibe, and we appreciated the selection of classic ’60s and ’70s LPs spinning on the turntable.

From there we drove just a short distance to two side-by-side treats: Chocolates El Rey and OroBianco Italian Creamery. Chocolates El Rey sells Venezuelan-origin chocolate, both a variety of bulk chocolate for making one’s own confections as well as a nice selection of specialty bars and other goodies. We appreciated that our visit began with a brief video detailing how the chocolate is produced, which we watched as we sampled bites of seven different types of the chocolate they produce here. Me being me, and chocolate being chocolate, needless to say I did not leave empty-handed.

We weren’t done trying treats, as right next door stood OroBianco, which proudly claims to be Texas’ first and only water buffalo creamery. They offer several flavors of gelato (very creamy and sweet) but also sell several different varieties of (water buffalo milk) cheeses and cured meats. And if that weren’t enough of a draw, just out back in a large pasture grazed two yearling water buffalo who were not nearly as interested in us as we were in them.

I saw just enough of Fredericksburg on my brief visit to know I’d like to return for a longer stay to sample more of its considerable charms.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor