|
WE ARE
A Boutique Texas
Micro-Winery
Terry and Caris Turpen are the owners, and Caris is both the winemaker and lead chef - we are family owned and run.
We have a tasting room where you can taste our wines, and our gift shop has many items made by local artists - we do our best to find unique items that promote what we call "The Culture of the Table" - food, wine and friendship. Our goal in wine tasting is to help you find something you like - don't worry about "not being a connoisseur" - nobody is born knowing about wines...it takes trying them to figure out what you like and perhaps even why you like it - we're here to help.
Bistro LightCatcher offers lunch and dinner Friday thru Sunday. Besides our ongoing lunch and dinner menus, we create weekly specials that match with specific wines. We do on-site catering for wedding
receptions, parties and private dinners, as well as our Winemaker's
Dinners. We
love pairing wines and foods and providing a cool place to enjoy
them.
On the winemaking side, we
are dedicated to making small lots of very fine wines. We use
Texas grapes to craft wines that showcase the best
each vineyard has to offer. Fine
wines are begun in the growing of the grapes - you can't make a great
wine from mediocre fruit. We source our grapes from the best vineyards,
and our winemaking practices are devoted to developing delicious, pleasure-enhancing
wines thru clean, subtle and thoughtful winemaking. We now release a total of 3500 cases
of 12 - 15 different wines.
The winery has several areas available
for rental for
various events, from bridal showers and birthdays to wedding receptions, fundraisers and corporate
meetings.
Come visit us, taste some wine, have a bite to eat and see what "La Vie de Vin" (The Wine Life) is all about.
Who We Are
Our
Wines
Events
Facility
Rental
Bistro LightCatcher
Gift
Baskets
Hours
and Directions
Press
FAQS
Wine
Club
Home
ONLINE
STORE 
Our MySpace Page
Our Facebook Page
|
 
Caris and Terry
We
offer wine tastings 7 days a week, lunch Friday thru Sunday and dinner Fridays and Saturday evenings, and the opportunity
to relax and hang out. We sell wine by the glass or bottle to
drink
here and/or take home, and have comfortable seating indoors and
out with an atmosphere that fosters art, music, wine, food and
Come for a wine tasting, lunch and glass of vino, Jazz Sunday (live jazz the 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month), an elegant and relaxed dinner,
or just for some time on the Terrace.
Come by yourself, with a sweetheart, or meet friends
- we have a
spot for you.
The Winery |
The Tasting Room |
 The Front Arbor
|
Caris
Co-owner
Winemaker
Executive Chef
"Winemaking
is Art and Science, stirred by Mystery."
Originally
from the San Francisco Bay Area, I have lived in Fort Worth
since
1990.
My dad was from Moran, Texas, near Albany (north of Abilene
in Shackleford County), 4th generation Texan. My mom was Greek-American
from San Francisco.
Her grandmother
was the family winemaker in Greece and then in New York. I
love
that I come from winemaking heritage - and I think it's funny
I didn't know that until I had been making wine for five or
six
years.
I am a creative person. I spent
25 years in the film industry doing camerawork.
I got tired - of the long hours, of the politics, of the....
oh, well, lots of things. I started winemaking as a hobby when I was working as Visual Effects Supervisor on the TV series WISHBONE (for which I won a Daytime Emmy™ in 1998),
as a way
to have a little fun making something I enjoyed. (WISHBONE was shot in Plano and Allen, north of Dallas). An interest
blossomed, a passion developed and a talent emerged. I went
back to school
and worked on a degree in Enology and Viticulture (winemaking and grapegrowing). I made wines, lots of wines. I worked for
a
commercial winery. Terry and I saw that it was possible to
start our own little winery, and we elected to begin a second
career
- one that, hopefully, will see us through to the end of
our working days. I love the sensory experience of wine and
food, and I love
the emotional and spiritual experience of sharing those with
friends.
|
Terry
Co-owner
Host
'I
want every guest or customer to leave with a smile on their
face.'
Terry
put himself through college tending a wine/beer bar in Commerce,
Texas. He learned lots of things that he's been able to apply
to the winery - how to make people feel welcome, how to pour
a
generous glass of wine, and how to talk to the many types of
folks that come thru our doors. But these things are in his
nature anyway.
He likes people. He loves good conversation. He is a natural
teacher and can explain all about the winemaking process. At
home he makes
a mean martini, which, after some days, we really need.
Terry's martini
shaker and barware collection is now on display at the winery.
|
The LightCatcher Mascot
Chai
was a stray who adopted us and we fell in love with her. The winery
is her full-time home and she earns her keep by keeping us clean
of crickets and other pests. She has been service trained and
certified.
She is a poly-dactyl (many-toed) cat, with six toes on each front
paw. She can hold a pencil but isn't really a great writer yet. We
hold out hope.
We
support animal fostering and adoption. Chai and our home kitties and dogs are all rescues who found their way to a loving home - most are not so fortunate. Spay/neuter your pet and help
them live a long and healthy life, and avoid adding to the unwanted pet population.
CATTAILS.ORG is a local health & management organization for feral kitties. Visit their website to learn about the work they do, and how to volunteer or donate to this hardworking group.
Return to Top
© all rights reserved
|
Winery & Tasting Room Hours:
Sunday thru Thursday
12 - 6
Fri • Sat 12 - 10
Bistro
LightCatcher Hours:
Lunch: Fri • Sat • Sun 12 - 3:30
Dinner: Fri • Sat - seating
5:30 - 9
seating after 8 pm by reservation only
For reservations call:
817-237-2626
We do not take reservations thru email.
• Tasting
Room
Taste three wines for $5
Wine
tastings are done as you arrive and want to taste.
No reservations are necessary,
and there is no need to be worried it's a formal affair - it's not!
We're here to help you find something you like.
• Gift Gallery
Wine accessories and creative tablewares,
art and craft, many
made by local artists.
• Barrel Room and Terrace
Seating inside and outside
for relaxed dining and hanging out.
Cryssie
Tasting Room &
Events Manager
Some of our awards
Caris
November 2008 - Caris is an artist in several forms - wine, food, photography, film, paint, and clay. She was commissioned to sculpt a bust of Thomas Volney Munson for placement at the school she attended, the T.V. Munson School of Viticulture and Enology in Sherman, Texas and at VINITA, the Munson family home in Denison that has been restored and will be dedicated as the museum about Mr. Munson's viticulture work. In early November the first completed casting and assemblage was installed at VINITA. The second bust will be installed at the college.
July 2 - July 6th 2008, Caris was one of four Texas winemakers chosen to represent our great state at the SMITHSONIAN FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. She explained to visitors what it's like to be a Texas winemaker, and paricipated in moderated panel discussions about subjects like being a woman winemaker, and the state's present and future winemaking potentials. This festival chooses one country and one state to feature each year. This year, it was Texas and Bhutan, along with NASA.
American Idol Star Anoop Desai &
Famous Texas Winemaker Kim McPherson
in the Texas Winemaking Booth at the Smithsonian
Folklife Festival, July 2008
Featured:
Texas Food, Wine and Music
NASA - 50th Anniversary
The country of Bhutan
I met Anoop in Washington, D.C. in July 2008 - as a folklife and music student, he was a volunteer for the festival and was designated the helper for our tent. He moderated the panel discussions, interviewed winemakers, helped set up every morning and break down every evening, and was a fantastic guy - helpful, kind, funny and genuine. It was so exciting to see him on AI - regardless of what he does in life, I know he'll be successful.
|