BECKER VINEYARDS IS ON A MISSION TO START A MOVEMENT AND EARN A MICHELIN STAR
WORDS BY ASHLEY BROWN
With Michelin-star chef Jean-Claude Balek at the helm, Becker Vineyards is setting out to be at the forefront of developing a Texas Hill Country wine cuisine, bringing the culture and philosophy of the wine and food lifestyle — guided by the spirit of local products and sustainability — to Fredericksburg.
Becker Vineyards was established in 1992 by Dr. Richard and Bunny Becker. They shared a love of wine, fine dining and international travel. Bunny, known as the soul of the winery, passed in 2019. And when Dr. Becker was looking for a general manager to run things, he wanted to bring someone on board who shared his vision for the art of pairing wine and food to bring out the best in both.
Dr. Becker found that in Patrick Connelly, whose roots run deep in the wine world of Napa where he grew up on a cattle ranch that also grew grapes. As a teenager, Connelly worked for Margrit Biever and Robert Mondavi, the renowned wine family of Napa. “What Margrit Biever started then was so ahead of its time for the American culinary world,” says Connelly. “We now think of Napa Sonoma, and it’s synonymous with wine and food. I was really blessed to watch and have my career follow that and learn from the original Mondavi philosophy.” Today, California is the epicenter for “wine country cuisine.”
Chef Jean-Claude explains the concept of wine country cuisine. “It’s a different thought process in developing the dishes,” he says. “A lot of famous chefs develop dishes for their ego, their future, their popularity. But in a winery, you have to gear your menu outside of your ego. The dishes have to pair with the wine.”
Chef Jean-Claude photo by Ralph Yznaga
In Europe, it’s just a known thing that wine is part of the meal,” adds Connelly. “It comes with it like salsa does with chips. That’s a newer concept for America. People might drink wine with a meal, but they’re not thinking about the cuisine in relationship to wine in a harmonious and balanced way.”
The goal of bringing on Chef Jean-Claude for Dr. Becker was to bring an appreciation for the food and wine relationship to Texas. “Food is really important to being able to taste wine,” he says. “There’s a reason that French food tastes like it does.”
It even goes beyond the gustatory. “If we learn what wine does for the whole concept of eating — how it slows you down, how it makes you think about the food you’re eating, how you spend more time in the kitchen with people you love — that’s a very special thing,” says Connelly.
When Becker Vineyards began the search for a chef to pave the way for this ambitious endeavor, they had high standards. So they employed a well-respected recruiter who usually recruits CEOs for Fortune 500 companies, but happens to love food and does the occasional “chef search” on the side.
When Chef Jean-Claude came to the vineyard to serve a five-course trial meal, Connelly says there are two things that sealed the deal: when Chef pulled a truffle out of his pocket — (“That’s badass,” Connelly laughs) — and when Dr. Becker took his first bite of his vichyssoise — a soup made of cooked and puréed leeks, potatoes, onions and cream.
“When he cooked that first meal for us, our wine had never tasted better,” says Dr. Becker of the experience. “And I like Jean-Claude’s affect; he’s as much of a Texan as someone of his background could be, and his commitment to local is music to my ears. Here you’ll taste wine made from grapes grown in our region paired with food grown in our region, prepared by someone who knows how to do this.”
Chef Jean-Claude has spent four decades honing his craft. His training started in San Francisco, where he apprenticed with a French chef who guided his early career. He then went on to kitchens in Napa Valley “to learn speed,” and to the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco “to learn finesse and California cuisine.”
He was always drawn back to Napa, though. He loved how every restaurant had its own little farm and a connection to the community. Rather than ordering shipments of expensive products to be flown in (as any high-class chef can), he revels in things like the sweet lady who lives down the road from the restaurant and who stops by with the best cherry tomatoes you’ve ever tasted in your life.
Photo by Becker Vineyards
Even during a stint as executive chef at Google, he was known for food guided by the principles of sustainability and supporting local farms and food ecosystems. Coming to Becker Vineyards was an easy decision for him. He’s already received all the career accolades he’d hoped for; now he just wants to work with people who share his passion. Just three months in, he’s already connected with many local farmers and artisans — including Rowdy Roost Family Farms, Enchanted Mushrooms and Five Roots Farms — who provide most of the food they serve at the vineyard.
To showcase this Hill Country wine cuisine in the making, Becker Vineyards already has a number of programs and events in the works. Great Chefs of Texas, inspired by Mondavi’s Great Chefs of France, brings in the state’s best chefs to cook for 100 guests. They also host a monthly Chef’s Table for about 40 guests, with a seven-course tasting menu.
Having retired from his practice as a doctor this summer, Dr. Becker is enjoying his involvement in tasting the food from Chef Jean-Claude and the wines from the vineyard — and is committed to striving for success with this new passion project. “There’s not a winery in America who has earned a Michelin star … and we want to,” says Connelly.
In all they do, they are guided by a philosophy of wine not as something daunting or “fancy” but accessible and enjoyable, and of food as a nourishing, delectable way to celebrate our sensory experiences, our local ecosystem, as well as one another. Cheers to that!
About the Contributor
Writer and editor Ashley Brown lives in Wimberley with her family of rescues: a dog, two cats, and two donkeys. In addition to animal welfare, her passion is exploring the Hill Country’s natural beauty, small farms, eateries and drinkeries.
