This weekend is going to be special — renewing a relationship with a friend you haven’t seen in years … cultivating a blossoming new friendship … or just looking to share something different. In Santa Fe, you’ll find the perfect gem in the Hervé Wine Bar, part of the Lescombes Family Vineyards, on San Francisco Street, two blocks west of the plaza. Your choice is simple. It’s sophisticated. It’s intimate. And it also shows you know wine.
Lescombes: Premier winery in New Mexico
Lescombes Family Vineyards, which operates the wine bar as well as four D.H. Lescombes locations statewide, is the premier winery in New Mexico, producing prize-winning wines.
New Mexico is where wine in America began
You may not know it, but the Spanish Colonial province of Nuevo México was the first wine-growing region in America. Franciscan and Capuchin monks needed sacramental wine for Mass, but Spain was a long way from the New World. Wine was slow to arrive and costly. So, they smuggled Mission grape vines, Vitis vinifera, into New Mexico in 1629 to make their own. The Spanish crown was opposed but could do little to stop this silent revolution against its wishes.
That’s how it began. By the late 1800s, wine production in New Mexico reached nearly a million gallons annually, nearly twice what New York State produced. Competition from California cut into that production, while Prohibition in 1920 put an end to it entirely. It wasn’t until the 1930s wine production was renewed in New Mexico.
Lescombes have been making wine since the 1880s
The Lescombes family, now in their sixth generation of winemakers, planted their first vines in Algeria in the 1880s. That’s where Hervé Lescombes, family patriarch, learned the art and science of winemaking. Algeria’s revolt for independence in 1962 drove them back to France, where they established a new vineyard in Burgundy. Perhaps it was competition or perhaps the love of the desert, but Hervé and his family immigrated to the U.S. in 1981. Within a year, he planted his own vineyard in Pyramid Valley, just outside of Lordsburg. Today, the vineyard property is 240 acres, with 220 acres under cultivation.
Desert climate ideal for growing grapes
“The climate here makes it possible to grow some of the best grapes in New Mexico,” says Florent Lescombes, president of Lescombes Family Vineyards based in Deming. Florent is the younger of Hervé’s two sons. The older brother, Emmanuel, is the viticulturist. While Florent gave his heart to the business, Emmanuel gave his soul to the soil.
Lescombes has an annual capacity of 620,000 gallons in their winery facility. At the vineyard, they grow Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Moscato, Pinot Grigio, Merlot, Chenin Blanc, and dozens of other varietals.
State-of-the-art production
From harvest to bottling, Lescombes employs the most modern, state-of-the-art processes and yet maintains the sense of hand-crafting its wines, including using traditional oak barrels for maturation. If you just must know how it’s done, the winery offers tours that not only inform your mind but also tantalize your taste buds.
Wine Bar menu perfectly pairs wine and food
If you’re still undecided, consider this: the Hervé Wine Bar offers a menu that will complement and enhance your taste bud’s experience. There’s the Hervé Board of cheeses and cured meats. There is an Apple and Goat Cheese Salad, Baked Brie, the Hervé club, and more. Just enjoy your favorite wine and nosh or sample a number of wines, perhaps finding a new favorite or expanding your repertoire.
Just want wine? Order online
If it’s only bottled wine you’re looking for, you’ll find all varietals on shelves in the Hervé Wine Bar. Or you can have Lescombes award-winning wines delivered right to your door. Their wines are categorized to help you find the style of wine you enjoy. Order through the secure online wine store. Shipping is not available to some locations due to local regulations.
Life in New Mexico is always good — that’s why you’re here — but you can add a zest to that life with the enjoyment of Lescombes local New Mexico wine … and food … at the Hervé Wine Bar.
Hervé Wine Bar
139 W. San Francisco St., Santa Fe
lescombeswinery.com
Story by Bud Russo • Photos courtesy D. H. Lescombes
Story Sponsored by
LESCOMBES FAMILY VINEYARDS
This article was posted by Cheryl Fallstead
