I stood in the middle of a quiet North Texas neighborhood, staring at a quaint Victorian home with lace curtains and a porch that looked perfect for sipping sweet tea. This is Vinita, the 1887 home of the man who arguably saved the world’s wine industry—Thomas Volney Munson.
No giant tasting room. No vineyard views. Just a humble house with a Texas-sized story.
Inside I met up with a docent from Grayson College, the stewards of Vinita. They explained how a tiny insect named phylloxera wreaked havoc on Europe’s vineyards starting around 1863, destroying 40% of French grapevines and sending the wine world into panic.
Enter T.V. Munson, a Denison horticulturist with an eye for resilient roots. Munson had spent decades trekking Texas, cataloging native grapes that had evolved to survive in tough, pest-filled soil. French winemakers knew of Munson’s expertise, and they requested he send some of his grape hybrid rootstock to France, where it was grafted onto French vines.
The new hybrids flourished and ended the epidemic. To this day, nearly every grapevine in France sits atop American roots. For this, Munson was awarded the Legion of Honor, France’s highest distinction. Not bad for a small-town Texan.
The Vinita home, tours of which can be arranged through the college, displays artifacts from Munson’s life, including detailed grape illustrations and the tools he used to work the vineyards that once surrounded the historic home in Denison, along the Red River north of Dallas.
If you want to taste Munson’s legacy, you can toast a glass of wine at nearby Homestead Winery or visit Ironroot Republic Distillery, which makes French-style brandy. After all, Munson’s feat saved cognac, too.
Denison, better known as the birthplace of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, is off the beaten path, but for wine lovers and history buffs, it’s a must-sip experience.
