Pedernales Cellars — Attraction in Fredericksburg

I’ve been to Pedernales many times before with my mom. We love the wines and think the views are incredible. I was so excited to bring a larger group of friends and their moms to Pedernales as part of a mother/daughter weekend. This winery was our third stop on our tour that I had booked a private tasting for a month in advance.

I had booked for 18 people so we could have a guaranteed table to sit and easily order what we wanted to drink. We got a private room, considered the library. At this point in the day, some folks no longer wanted to taste since it had been a long day. Others wanted to order a whole glass or bottle instead of tasting. Only 8 people tasted even though I had reserved for 18. We still appreciated having the private room and ordered plenty of bottles and glasses to compensate for the tastings.

I was a little disappointed after our tasting that our server did not go out of our way to explain each wine or even care to introduce herself to the larger group. I understand our group was large and a little loud, but she was very quiet and we all had to ask what we were being poured and get a description of the wine. It seemed like she wanted us to figure things out for themselves.

When we were nearing the end of the tasting, I flagged to our sever that I had been charged for 18 tastings ahead of time and wanted to see how I would get credit back for the 10 people that had not tasted. She told me that I needed to give 24 hours in advance to update the reservation if not everyone was tasting.

I was shocked to hear this. Several people had ordered bottles of wine and glasses that overcompensated for the cost of the tastings, but they still had to pay for those things separately. We requested to speak to a manager to get a better understanding.

The manager, who’s name was either Marissa or Melanie, came into the private room and reiterated what the server said. Essentially, we would have thrown away nearly $220 because they had set up the room for 18 only to taste. We eventually came to a resolution that $80 would be comped in the form of 3 bottles.

This manager through all of this conversation was very rude and defensive. She was not in the least bit accommodating or showed any empathy for what happened at all. When she left the tasting room after talking to us, she slammed the door shut so loud that it rattled the room. Our entire group sat there, speechless, after that behavior. We left to get back on our bus, all in all, very disappointed in how our visit turned out.

I’m still out over $140 for goods and services that were not provided nor refunded back to us. I love the wine here, but will not be paying a visit back to the winery again. We had a much better experience for our large group at wineries like Signor and Baron’s creek where they were more accommodating to our experience and...

Walked in at 4:15 and closing Time 6 and was told would not be waited on. Wow just wow! We visited years ago and wine club members of Several wineries in the area and now i know why have never been back. Had an AMAZING experience at Williams Chris without reservations and then visited this winery. Wow! Horrible customer service! Two people standing Around w no one in the tasting area. Will never attempt to visit again. 😡

**UPDATE…. And in response to owners reply we were never offered ANY sort of service ….. A warm welcome perhaps …. Could have been very welcoming and explained that situation and said that we were more then welcome To enjoy a glass or bottle out on the patio etc. The staff is just not welcoming at all! We had the SAME experience w this winery YEARS ago on our first visit. We did a tasting just hubby & I so no rowdy “partying” etc and went out w a glass after to sit on patio. The wind blew my glass over and it broke so hubby immediately ran in and asked if i could get another glass (not wine) just the glass and the guy behind the bar (tasting area) just gave us the worst look and stare and a 17 yo kid or young guy that works there was as sweet as could be and gave hubby one. Idk what is up w this winery but we travel all Over the U.S and we always make Jokes about Pedernales because we have not been to ANY winery ever where we felt This “Un Welcomed”! I think they definitely need to evaluate their...

I am new to wine and wine drinking and decided to try Pedernales because of a great interaction with staff at my own job. Brenna and Ashley were so friendly and outgoing that I promised to go visit.

Let me tell you, I was so impressed. I am new to the industry and learning, and my wife knows even less. The server/tasting room asdociate, Brooke, was so patient and extremely knowledgeable. They were filming something for PBS, so the tasting room was temporarily closed. This was not bad at all, because the view was so beautiful. When we did go in, I saw the tasting room was clean (not clean/dirty but clean in the interior design sense) and beautifully laid out.

Ashley served us as well to help out when it was busy and did excellent. From experience, I would say Brooke, Janene or Brenna would be a great choice as I have personally had excellent interactions with all three and demonstrate behavior I rarely see in the service industry--friendliness, knowledge and a welcomeness. My wife told me she felt welcomed and not talked down to, which has sadly happened at far too many places. Will definitely make the 90 minute...