Wine Graft

The weekend of April 8 marked the 14th Annual New Vintage Wine Trail in Grapevine, a wine bash celebrating Texas' new releases. But it also marked the debut of Grapevine's La Buena Vida Vineyards under new ownership. Earlier this year, The Puente Group, parent company of two La Bodega Wineries in DFW Airport's terminals A and D, purchased the 11-year-old, 1.8-acre La Buena Vida tasting room and display vineyard in Grapevine along with the La Buena Vida, Springtown and Walnut Creek wine labels from Dr. Bobby Smith, who founded the winery in 1972. "It's great to have a real piece of real estate to work with versus our wonderful but lovely airport leases that we are always stuck to," says Puente Group President Gina Puente Brancato, who declined to disclose a purchase price. As part of the deal, Smith retains La Buena Vida's production facilities and 25-acre vineyard in Springtown, as well as the Smith Estates wine and Scarborough Mead labels.