Sandstone Cellars Winery
Owners Scott Haupert, a Yale graduate and professional violist with a career in LA studio
performance, and partner Manny Silerio, an accomplished merchandiser, were drawn to the
little rural town of Mason in 1994. With family recipes from Manny’s mother, Santos, the two
opened the highly regarded restaurant, Santos Taqueria, on Mason’s quaint town square in
1998. It was the same year that Harvard graduate and former venture capitalist Don Pullum
planted the first vineyard, Akashic Vineyard, in Mason. You don’t know exactly why, but you
know that Mason is a place where the elements of creation are gathered. Mason has attracted
artisans, writers, sculptors, musicians and painters, including Bill Worrell, who’s painting
Kindred Spirits graces the Sandstone Cellars label. With Don as winemaker, Mason’s first
winery opened next to the restaurant in 2004. Its mission is to ref lect the terroir of Mason,
the special taste of this town. The first release, a 2004 Syrah, was described by the San Antonio
Express-News as a “sleek, medium-bodied wine hinting of violets on the nose, spice and cedar
on the tongue, with a delicate balance of acid and tannin on the palate.” Chef and writer Terry
Thompson-Anderson agrees with Don’s comparison of the Syrah to a Côte-Rôtie. The second
release, 2005 II, is a blend of eight Mediterranean grape varieties, praised by Texas Food and
Wine Gourmet as world-class. You can experience the creativity, the food and wine with an
overnight stay at Scott and Manny’s adjoining guest house, Lucia’s Hacienda.
Current Ratings