Our Soured Experience at Landon Winery, Grapevine

Oh, boy. Where do we begin at Landon Winery in Grapevine, Texas, a winery that is supposed to be one of the most popular wineries in the state?

Our experience here went from bad to worse over multiple visits. Why multiple visits? Well, we were in the area exploring local wineries for a few days, so we decided to give this Grapevine winery the benefit of the doubt and return. Maybe the server was having an off day. Because, surely, this could not be the service standard here.

Location & Atmosphere: What to Expect  

Landon’s Grapevine winery is in a great location, right in the heart of things on the town’s Main Street. Inside, you will find a good amount of seating and a casual atmosphere. Guests can stand at the counter and sip or take a seat at one of the freestanding tables.

Outside, there’s a nice patio that has a definite Texas feel to it. We imagine sipping wine under the overhanging bulb lights next to the fireplace at night is a draw for wine lovers.

There are six Landon Winery locations throughout Texas; this review is specifically for the brand’s location in Grapevine, Texas. We are unsure if the other locations operate at the sub-par level of Grapevine.

The Wines of Landon Winery  

Unlike a lot of other Texas wineries that work with a huge swath of grapes, Landon Winery mostly works with French grapes sourced from Napa and Texas vineyards. You will find Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Viognier, and a Meritage blend. They also have a sweet Riesling, Pinot Grigio, Tempranillo, and Rose of Syrah on offer.

Wine tastings range between $20 and $27 per person, and this was a bit odd, but you can only order a maximum of two tastings, even if you have more than two people. We found this strange.

Our Experience at Landon Winery, Grapevine, Texas  

Whether you’re visiting a local winery or a destination-worthy restaurant, never underestimate the impact friendly, customer-focused service can have on your experience. Having said that, our experience at Landon Winery was awful, and a big part of that comes down to the service.

Put plainly, our server had an attitude. Here’s what happened over two visits to this winery.

The first time we visited Grapevine’s Landon Winery, our server set the mood, and her attitude meant that mood wasn’t a good one. The wine tasting was average, and we left unimpressed. We kept wondering: how can a winery with so many locations be so popular if this is how guests are treated?

We wanted to give the winery the benefit of the doubt, so we decided to go back to see if we would have a better experience. Unfortunately, it was another bad experience with another employee. We left wondering: what is going on here?

To make matters worse, the wine served during the tasting had turned, and they refused to pour from a new bottle so that we could rate wine appropriately. To be clear, we weren’t looking for free pours or extras; we just wanted to taste the wines as they were intended to be tasted.

In a nutshell, the wines were old and had been open for three days.

After looking at other reviews of Landon Winery, we realized that it wasn’t just us. So many reviews of this place mention rude service.

Landon Winery Wines Were Almost Impossible to Rate:  

As we mentioned above, it was impossible to give a comprehensive rating to the wines in our tasting at Landon because most of the bottles that were opened had turned. Usually, servers are happy to open a new bottle for a customer – and you would think that a winery as popular as Landon Winery would easily be able to pour through a newly opened bottle.

One theory we had is that this Grapeville winery isn’t seeing the foot traffic it’s used to seeing. You would think a winery with six locations has in-demand wines, so what’s the big deal in opening a new bottle?

The other theory we had is that this server is just clueless. So maybe this approach to customer service is limited to Landon Winery’s Grapevine location.

Of the wines we tried, only two were able to be rated:

Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, 78 PTS  

The nose was muted, and the wine lacked complexity. It’s drinkable but also a ‘meh’ wine. There is nothing to get excited about, and for almost $50 a bottle, we think you can do better for a Texas Cabernet Sauvignon.

Cabernet Franc 75 PTS

This wine did not impress. There is lots of blackberry on the palate, but nothing else to write home about.

Closing Thoughts  

If you want to go wine tasting in Grapevine, Texas, unfortunately, we cannot recommend Landon Winery. We believe you will have a much better (and friendlier!) experience at Bingham Family Vineyards, which is just a block away. Save your time, save your money, save your palate, and avoid this place and its horrible service.

While the location in downtown Grapevine is a good one, the turned wines and lack of friendly service create an overall negative experience.