Turning a longtime hobby into a business, co-owners Brenda and Franco Knoepffler opened Gadela Wines, a production winery and tasting room, on Feb. 24, just north of Creekside Village near The Woodlands.

Gadela, which the Knoepfflers translated to “glory to God in the highest,” is a name the couple has been holding onto for nearly 20 years, waiting for the right opportunity to use it. After years of making wine at home for personal consumption, the couple decided to use the name for a winery where friends and family can gather.

“I want people to feel like they’re at home when they’re here and just relax,” Franco Knoepffler said.

Knoepffler said he enjoys introducing customers to new types of wine and seeing customers who do not normally like wine find something they like.

“A couple of people have come in [for tastings] and it’s completely changed their perception,” he said. “To people who say, ‘I don’t like wines,’ I tell them, ‘It’s not you don’t like wine, it’s that you haven’t found the wine you like.’ Everybody likes wine.”

In the tasting room, Gadela’s lineup includes three white wines, two red wines and an ice wine, which is a sweeter dessert-style wine. Because the winery does not have an attached vineyard, Gadela wines are made with grape juice sourced from the Texas highlands and domestic vineyards.

“Ninety percent or more of the wineries in Texas import juice … and that’s what we do,” he said. “We process everything here. We do everything from fermentation to filtering to bottling, corking [and] capping.”

Knoepffler said the wines made in the on-site production facility take several months to process before being transferred to barrels for aging—a process that can take up to six years before the wine has matured in taste. Each batch of wine is blessed with holy water before it is moved to aging barrels, he said.

Customers can stop in for a guided tasting, which include samples of multiple wine styles, or they can enjoy a glass or a bottle to split with friends or take home. The winery also sells a selection of cheese and snacks to pair with the wines as well as a selection of three red wines from Messina Hof, a Texas-based winery. Wine bottles range in price from $17 to $28.

For now, the winery is open Thursday through Saturday. Knoepffler said he hopes to one day expand hours, however, the business will not be open Sundays to allow the employees to spend the day with their families or at church. He said he also plans to add special events, such as painting classes, ladies’ night and karaoke.
Knoepffler said it is a goal to give back to the community though the business. Teachers who visit and show their identification will receive a 10 percent discount. Additionally, 10 percent of all profits will go to the Knoepffler family’s church.

“We are very involved in our church and our parish,” he said. “When people ask, ‘Are you [running the business] by yourself?’ I say, ‘No, I have two partners—one is my wife and other partner is the Holy Spirit.’ That’s our commitment.”

Gadela Wines
8311 Ginger Drive, Spring
832-928-3688
www.gadelawines.com
Hours: Thu. 4-8 p.m., Fri. 4-11 p.m., Sat. 1-11 p.m., closed Sun.-Wed.