Driftwood Estate Winery

4001 Elder Hill Rd, Driftwood, TX 78619, USA

Address:	4001 Elder Hill Rd, Driftwood, TX 78619, USA
Phone:	+1 512-858-9667
Site:	driftwoodwine.com
Rating:	3.6
Working:	11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM 11AM–6PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 4

Robert Ossian

Definitely going to return. The drive was straightforward until we started going on our off-roading trip. We went from a four lane road (usually 2 lanes but for some reason it expanded to 4 just before the turn) and then went to caliche. That road turned of and immediately became a VERY rough ride. I hit one crater way too fast and I immediately started to get driving lessons from my wife. As the road started to get steeper, the ruts and holes got deeper. Soon I was wondering if I needed to shift the suburban to 4WD. Eventually, we made it to the top and the parking lot started to open up. Im sure that the road was hammered with the recent rains and they will go hit it with a grader. At the entrance of the Winery, we were greeted by a Hays County Constable. He was standing at the entrance, just hanging out. Dont know if he was hired by the winery or if the county felt it was the best use of his wages. Either way, it was a bit unsettling. Maybe that was someones purpose. It was the first time I had been to this winery and I dont have a lot of experience with them, so I was a relative newbie. I went to the wrong counter and order a drink and he sent me back to the correct one. Inside, theres a long table by a fire place to chat & drink. Up the stairs you can go to the cash registers to the left (to buy bottles) or to the bar looking thing on the right to go thru a multi-variety tasting. Pick wisely. We bought a bottle of the 2014 Orange Muscat and a bottle of the Rose (sorry, dont recall more details). Both of them were excellent. We sampled each and brought the rest home (dont tell the Constable if that was illegal!). We enjoyed our wine outside. There were numerous nice tables, seating areas, chairs, etc. We found a quiet corner overlooking the wonderful views across the Hill Country and had the longest continuous conversation weve had in years. Did I say we left our teenagers at home? We finally left when a group of kids on school recess drove us off. Ok, they werent on recess but the kids wanted their fun and we must have been within their game boundaries. Until the end, we had a wonderful time with wonderful wine. Definitely going back. Was seriously thinking of joining their wine club. However, since there is scant pricing posted anywhere I figure if I have to ask, Im not going to afford it.

Arielle Olfers

Im disappointed in the service we received at Driftwood Estate Winery - absolutely pathetic. There were 6 of us females and we had a designated driver in a black Mercedes van. They kept saying we were a bus. I had already called ahead to confirm we could arrive in our larger vehicle after reading other bad reviews, and a female told me absolutely as long as we were a private group with a designated driver. We showed up and an incredibly rude OFF DUTY constable named Ray said to "get out." I told him he was being rude and he said "turn your car around and get out" and then told our driver "get me out of here!" This would be acceptable if we were drunk and behaving poorly but he was rude and disrespectful off the bat. Nothing disgusts me more than a chauvinistic man. He should be spoken to immediately. I then called the Driftwood Estate Winery and a male manager said "yep sorry bout it" and fed me a line about how they dont accept groups after a certain hour. We were not on a tour or part of a "group." Im sorry, last I checked most people dont go to a winery to drink alone? 6 people seems like a small number of friends to me...and I double confirmed that when I called. The worst part was that he put the phone down and let me sit on hold while he proceeded to laugh and make fun of us with people in the background. I waited for 5 minutes when I finally realized he too was a disrespectful man who didnt seem to think he needed our business. He purposely left me hanging - what kind of customer service is that? Unwelcoming to out of town visitors - horrible experience. After reading reviews Im seeing this is apparently (in their eyes) an acceptable way to run their business. Im all about local businesses but these people dont deserve anyones money. They prefer drunk drivers and dont like women. We all have families, husbands and kids to go home to and we had a driver simply because we were trying to avoid driving under the influence. We will take our money elsewhere. I hope the Dripping Springs police department sees these reviews throughout this page and see that this establishment is promoting DRUNK DRIVING. I will be reporting this to the TABC.

Bryan Bullis

I was at Driftwood Winery with my wife when the reviewer below was there. We go every year, but will never return again. The two girls that the winery claimed had to be cut off and leave had just walked up together at the same time as my wife and I and they were neither loud nor drunk, they were chatting with us. The bartender served them when they walked in and then told them they were drunk and had to leave. When the ladies went to find out if there had been a mistake since they had just walked up the staff immediately started acting hostile and belligerent towards them and even started insulting the bride (who was not one of those being ejected). The two ladies in question showed they werent drunk and even offered to not drink or go wait in their transport while the rest of the group finished the tasting. The staff kept insisting that the girls were being unreasonable, rude and drunk but we were right there, the ladies were being completely reasonable and offering solutions. The only time one of the ladies was hostile was when the staff started insulting the bride for no reason. The staff then called in the constable who immediately threaten to arrest them for being unreasonable. Sorry Constable, but its not 1918, you cant arrest young women for "being unreasonable" and sober. The two ladies in question were a black woman and a white woman who walked in together with their arms linked. Its quite clear that THAT was the driftwood staffs actual issue. If interracial lesbian relationships offend you so much Driftwood Staff, maybe you shouldnt assume any women who walk in together are in them. We also watched the second bachelorette party carry their passed out, half-nude bride into the bathroom and vomit on the grounds but they were served a full tasting, not ejected from the property and were not treated with so much disrespect. The wine is not good enough to watch the staff treat people so poorly.

Ruby Kissoyan

1) The drive up is absolutely beautiful, so we stopped to take a couples seflie before we arrived in the parking lot. =) 2) The design of the grounds just. makes. sense. in all regards. Parking is plentiful and once you park, restrooms are easily accessed before walking up to the tasting room. The restroom location is perfect for those first arriving or for those leaving and only a few steps away at any other time. Pretty important item to consider for winos, Id say! 3) After hitting the tasting room, you pay for the tasting and any additional glasses or bottles of wine youd like, then you move onto the outdoor grounds to enjoy your libations and views over the vineyards. But first, see if you can find Mama Kitty and give her some good pettings, because all wineries should have a winery cat or 5!!! 4) The wines werent the absolute best of the best Ive ever had, but I may not be the right person to ask since Ive become more interested in whites, sparkling sweeter wines. Dont ask! I use to only drink very dry reds. But I was very pleased with the choices we made with the white/sparkling and sweeter wines. 5) Final thought. If you are not a complete wine snob and just want to go to a down to earth type of winery with beautiful views, this is the spot. If you are a wine snob and are not down to earth, this is probably not for you.