Taste of Texas: Burgers and Big Reds
The next Taste of Texas pairing will feature Burgers and Big Reds (wines, of course). This will be held in the Texas Wine Collective Event Center, Sunday, 21-July-2024, with sessions at 12:30 and 2:30 pm. The pairing has been designed for attendees to taste a range of wines from the TWC portfolio specifically paired with three different delicious burger creations highlighting one of the most popular comfort foods in Texas. The burger bites to accompany the wines will have been created and prepared by TWC operations manager Amber Saidler and Chef Marshall and the TWC Cork and Fork Food Truck staff.
BTW, the next Taste of Texas pairing will be Sunday, 25-Aug-2024 - BBQ and Wine.
Check the website to make your reservations: www.texaswinecollective.com. Please join us!
Reservations and prepayment are required.
Proposed Menu:
Mushroom Swiss Cheese Burger
Lost Oak Winery Merlot 2020
Texas Wine Collective GSM 2021
Whiskey Glazed Blue Cheese Burger
Brennan Vineyards Super Nero 2019
McPherson Cellars Petit Sirah Block Series 2019
Luther Burger with Cheddar and Bacon
Brennan Vineyards Protectors Red Blend NV
Lost Oak Winery Meritage 2020
The history of hamburgers in America can be traced back to the 19th century when German immigrants brought with them a dish called "Hamburg-style beef.” The term "hamburger" comes from the city of Hamburg in Germany, known for producing and exporting high-quality beef. The modern hamburger as we know it likely originated at state fairs in the U.S. between 1870 and 1900, especially in the Midwest. But the history of hamburgers and ground meat goes much further back in time, so let’s explore some of the origins of America’s most popular sandwich.
Chopped meat served inside a bread roll or between slices of bread is nearly as ancient as civilization. The foundation for a ground-beef sandwich was laid with the domestication of cattle in Mesopotamia around 10,000 years ago. History suggests that ancient Egyptians ate ground meat and mounted soldiers often consumed raw or cooked meat patties that could be eaten with one hand while continuing to ride. In the 1200s Russian soldiers adapted this concept to include raw meat, onions, and eggs called steak tartare.
A 1st century AD Roman cookbook described a minced meat patty blended with crushed nuts, heavily spiced and cooked over a flame. Minced or pounded beef delicacies from Hamburg, Germany spread when the area grew as an independent trading city in the 12th century. In the 15th-16th centuries hashed beef was made into sausages throughout Europe. Trading ships from the port of Hamburg brought back the steak tartare concept from Russia, and enterprising folks began to cook the patties into an early version of hamburger steak, sometimes served between two slices of bread as a simple meal
A mid-1700s cookbook described “Hamburgh sausages” served on toasted bread. In Germany, a minced meat patty on bread called Rundstuck Warm was popular in the 1870s. This was the Hamburgh Steak prepared by pounding a slice of round steak to break down the fiber after which it was wrapped around finely minced onions fried in butter, seasoned with salt and pepper, and broiled.
Political unrest in the mid-1800s shook the German Confederation spurring significant immigration to the United States. [Remember, Fredericksburg was founded by German immigrants in 1846.] With those immigrants came German food, beer gardens, and professional butchers offering a wide range of meat preparations. Because Hamburg was well-known as an exporter of high-quality beef and other meats, restaurants began offering a “Hamburg-style” chopped steak.
Our menu today will begin with a well-seasoned slider burger topped with mushrooms and Swiss cheese, served with two medium-bodied red wines.
Lost Oak Winery Merlot 2020 Texas High Plains AVA
This 100% Merlot was sourced from Diamante Doble Vyds, Tokio, TX, Terry Cty. The fruit was machine harvested; fermented in SS tank; aged 18 mo in a mix of French and American oak barrels with just a touch of cherry wood; bottled @ 14% ABV, 0.0% RS (dry). Winemaker Jim Evans has a long history of producing delicious Merlot wines – remember the wonderful Double Diamond bottlings from years past? Jet Wilmeth grows top-quality Merlot fruit in his Tokio, TX, vineyard (over 3,500 ft above sea level), about ten miles west of Brownfield and only 50 miles from the New Mexico border. Merlot is noted for rich black cherry aromas and flavors with subtle hints of fresh garden herbs. The finish offers moderate tannins and notes of black tea leaves. Pair with rich cheeses, chicken and pasta dishes, smoked pork ribs, bacon or chopped brisket macaroni and cheese, and rosemary shortbread bars with dark chocolate. This is a wonderful Burger Wine.
Texas Wine Collective GSM 2021 Texas
Varietal wines of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre were produced from mechanically harvested grapes sourced from both Texas High Plains and Texas Hill Country vineyards. After fermenting separately in stainless steel tanks at controlled temperature, the wines were aged in neutral oak barrels for 24 months. Selected cuvées, Syrah 41%, Mourvèdre 36%, and Grenache 23%, were blended by Jean Hoefliger and Consulting Winemaking Team exclusively for Texas Wine Collective and bottled at 13.9% ABV. The wine offers typical aromas and flavors of red berry, black plum, aged leather, and clove spice. The mouth feel is velvety smooth with hints of tobacco and cocoa powder on an easy, medium tannin finish. Pair with charcuterie, grilled chicken or pork, simple pastas, and your favorite hamburger combination.
Exploring the origins of hamburgers in the U.S. is filled with fun and interesting legend and lore, some of it even true. In mid-19th century America, preparations of raw beef, chopped, chipped, ground or scraped, were a common prescription for digestive issues. After a New York doctor, James H. Salisbury, proposed in 1867 that cooked beef patties might also be healthy, the “Salisbury Steak” was readily adopted. These minced beef and onion patties were served on a plate, not bread, and were supposedly first made with beef from choice cows like those raised in the countryside around Hamburg, Germany. Around the same time, the first meat grinders came into use (Salisbury endorsed one called the American Chopper) setting the stage for an explosion of readily available ground beef.
The Menches Brothers immigrated from Germany and settled in Hamburg, NY. They were vendors at the 1885 Erie County Fair (in Buffalo, NY) where they ran out of sausage and substituted ground beef in their sandwiches, calling them hamburgers after their town of residence. Another vendor, Charlie Nagreen of Seymour, Wisconsin, known as “Hamburger Charlie,” introduced meatball sandwiches at an 1885 county fair making it easier for customers to eat while walking around. These were dubbed hamburgers and earned him his nickname. Note: When I first moved to Fredericksburg there was a Charlie’s Hamburgers restaurant on south Washington Street where Nury’s Restaurant is now located. Charlie’s made a great hamburger and I miss the place. However, I am relatively sure there was no real connection between Hamburger Charlie of Wisconsin and Charlie’s Hamburgers in Fredericksburg.
Hamburgers have a strong connection to the Lone Star State. A Texas newspaper from 1894 contained an early mention of a hamburger documented in the advertisement: "Hamburger steak sandwiches every day in the week at Barny's Saloon, Moulton," a Texas town between SATX and Houston. Further, Texas historian Frank X. Tolbert credits invention of the hamburger to Fletcher Davis of Athens, TX, who sold the sandwiches in his restaurant in the 1880s and purportedly brought them to the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair where they became a hit at his Old Dave’s Burger Stand on the midway. The burger-on-a-bun was not the only food item that found its first wide audience at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair as waffle ice cream cones, cotton candy, peanut butter, and iced tea were also introduced to millions of Americans.
Some have credited a Danish immigrant, Louis Lassen, with selling the first hamburger in 1895, a ground beef patty made from steak scraps served between two pieces of white toast at his Louis' Lunch Wagon in New Haven, Connecticut. Similarly, a story by Michael Wallis, author of "Route 66, The Mother Road", noted that Oscar Weber Bilby of Tulsa, OK, served hamburgers on his wife’s homemade yeast buns as early as July 4, 1891. These hamburgers became even more popular when Bilby offered them at his Weber’s Root Beer Stand. Before this time the burger patty was typically served between slices of bread, something we know as a “patty melt.” Today, we think of a patty melt as a burger with sauteed onions and cheese between two slices of bread, typically rye bread, to which sauerkraut is often added and the sandwich is then buttered and fried.
Other restaurants have played a role in further developing and popularizing the hamburger. Dyer's Burgers of Memphis, TN, in 1912 is credited with deep frying their burger patties using a cast-iron skillet. A fry cook named Walter Anderson, co-founded White Castle in Wichita, KN, 1921, and trademarked the name “slyders” for his small burgers that originally sold for 5 cents. White Castle has received a lot of credit for creating the hamburger bun in 1916, but Bert Gary of Clarinda, Iowa, claimed to be the “daddy” of hamburgers by using buns instead of bread many years earlier (1901-1902).
Around this time in history another hamburger variation became popular, a Sloppy Joe. A chili-like mix of ground beef, tomato-based sauce, and sometimes vegetables, was cooked and poured over a bun, bread, bagel, English muffin, even potatoes, rice, or pasta. This was an easy preparation and offered another simple way to enjoy ground beef. If your Sloppy Joe is served over a bun it becomes a hamburger eaten with a fork instead of by hand.
For today, a whiskey glazed slider burger topped with blue cheese is offered with two rich, fuller-bodied red wines.
Brennan Vineyards Super Nero 2019 Texas
This delicious red is a masterful blend of Nero d’Avola 50% from Newburg Vyd, Comanche Cty; Syrah 14% and Malbec 14% from Comanche Vyd, Comanche Cty; Montepulciano 14% from Diamante Doble Vyds, Tokio, Terry Cty; and Carmenere 8% from Lahey Vyd, Brownfield, Terry Cty. The fruit was mechanically harvested; cuvées fermented separately in SS tanks; aged an average 16 months in used American and French oak barrels; blended and bottled @ 14.5% ABV, 0% RS (DRY). Nero d’Avola is the most important red wine grape in Sicily, originating near the seaport town of Avola. Medium ruby color with aromas of fruit punch, red plums, and raisins. The flavors are tart cherry, tobacco, and cinnamon spice with nuances of cigar box, black tea, rose petals, and tarragon. The acid balance and soft tannins lend a velvety finish. Pair with veal scallopini, BBQ pork ribs, jalapeno poppers and good ol’ hamburgers.
McPherson Cellars Petite Sirah Block Series 2019 Texas High Plains AVA
This delicious, fuller-bodied red was sourced from Farmhouse Vineyards Crooke House East Block. The fruit was machine harvested; fermented in SS tank; aged 18 mo in a mix of French and American oak barrels; bottled @ 13.5% ABV, 0.2% RS (dry). Petite Sirah is an original French grape, often called Durif, that grows well in warm, arid climates – thus it has adapted well to the Lone Star State. Petite Sirah has small, very dark berries that typically produce rich purple-black wines that can often have significant tannins at the finish. When tamed such as this wine has been, there results a glass full of dark fruit aromas of blueberry cobbler and wild blackberries. There are more concentrated dark berry flavors on the palate with a whiff of woodsmoke and a kiss of cracked black pepper. The tannins are medium-to-full and the deeply flavored finish lingers. This is a great pairing for grilled or smoked meats, richly flavored casseroles, and burgers of any kind.
Today we immediately identify the hamburger as a specific type of sandwich consisting of a cooked ground beef meat patty, placed between halves of a sliced bun and served with various condiments, such as mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and cheese.
Cheese was at the forefront of the next major development in hamburgers. Several restaurants have claimed credit for inventing the cheeseburger, including the Rite Spot of Pasadena, CA, circa 1925, Kaelin's Restaurant of Louisville, KY, in 1934, and Humpty Dumpty Drive-In of Denver, CO, that in 1935 actually trademarked the name “cheeseburger.” At Bob’s Pantry in Glendale, CA, Bob Wian offered a double-deck cheeseburger in 1937 and renamed his chain Bob’s Big Boy after the sandwich.
Today there are many meat variations used in burger-type sandwiches. In addition to beef, there is ground pork, chicken, turkey, along with wild game, including bison, elk, venison, wild boar, ostrich, caribou, moose, etc., and now even meatless veggie burgers are available.
The slider is a small hamburger served on an equally small bun. Several stories suggest how these were named. Their small size allows them to "slide" down the throat in one or two bites. Another version relates to small burgers served by flight-line galleys at military airfields which were so greasy they slid right through you. Perhaps my favorite of these stories comes from U.S. Navy ships where greasy burgers slid across the galley flat-top grill while the ship pitched and rolled in heavy seas. Slider burgers, also referred to as Burger Buddies or Burger Shots, are common at many fast-food restaurants, such as Krystal, Jack-in-the-Box, T.G.I. Fridays, and Burger King.
One can hardly keep count of the hamburger restaurants in the U.S. today. Among them are White Castle (founded in 1921), Dairy Queen (1940), In-N-Out Burger (1948), Whataburger (Corpus Christi, 1950), Sonic (1953), Burger King (1954), Wendy’s (1969), Five Guys (1986), and, of course, one can only marvel at the influence of McDonald’s, also founded in 1948 - but more on that story below.
Perhaps my favorite story about hamburgers derives from childhood memories of the comic strip Popye The Sailor Man created by American cartoonist Elzie Crisler Segar (1894-1938) in 1929. In 1931, the character Wimpy joined the comic strip and played a significant role in popularizing the hamburger. He was almost always seen consuming a hamburger in the comic strip and later televised cartoons. The recurring joke was that Wimpy was too cheap to pay for his burgers and always attempted to con others with this famous line, “I’d gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.”
Well, you’ve already paid for your own hamburger today so enjoy Chef Marshall’s creation of a Luther burger with cheddar cheese and bacon.
Brennan Vineyards Protectors Red Blend N.V. Texas
This rich, deeply colored red is a multi-grape, multi-vintage blend of primarily Tempranillo, Ruby Cabernet, and Tannat with minor portions of Graciano and Syrah. The fruit was sourced from both Comanche County and Lahey Vineyards in the Texas High Plains. The fruit was mechanically harvested, crushed, fermented separately in SS tank or totes at a temperature range of about 60-85oF. The cuvées underwent malolactic transformation and were aged between 10-34 months in used American and French oak barrels. Various cuvées were evaluated, a final blend was made in spring 2023, and bottled @ 13.5% ABV, 0% RS (dry). Tempranillo brought deep cherry and blackberry fruit while Ruby Cab contributed red plum and boysenberry jam flavors. Tannat added darker color and more substantial tannins to balance the finish. There are hints of cedar cigar box, cinnamon and vanilla spice, and black tea leaves. This pairs well with roasted pork and rosemary potatoes, beef stir fry, bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers, Texas BBQ, and, of course, a Luther Burger with Cheddar and Bacon.
Lost Oak Winery Meritage 2020 Texas High Plains AVA
Meritage is a combination of “merit” and “heritage” that is a trademark of the Meritage Alliance. The term is used for red or white wine blends crafted from traditional noble Bordeaux varieties. This Meritage blend is comprised of Cabernet Sauvignon 33%, Triple Diamond Vyds (Diamante Doble Dos), Tokio; Merlot 33%, Diamante Doble Vyds, Tokio; Petit Verdot 17%, Sprayberry Vyds, Midland; and Caberent Franc 17%, Burning Daylight Vyds, Rendon, Tarrant Cty, TX. The fruit was machine harvested fruit; cuvées fermented separately an avg 10 days in SS tank at 60-85oF; wine pressed from the skins and cuvées aged an average 20 months in oak barrels (10% new French); blended and bottled @14.9% ABV, 0% RS (dry). Winemakers Jim Evans and Angela Chapman have produced several Meritage blends over the years and this one is decadent and bold with aromas of dark berries, dried cranberries and notes of leather and cedar chest. Flavors include Bing cherries and mulberries with soft baking spices and green peppercorns. The finish offers ripe and rounded tannins with notes of tea leaf and tobacco. This pairs well with French Comté cheese, mushroom and caramelized onion focaccia, red wine braised lamb shank, grilled steaks, dark chocolate with sea salt and this interesting Luther burger creation by Chef Marshall.
One cannot overstate the influence McDonald’s has had on the hamburger. The company was founded in 1940 by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald who opened a BBQ joint in San Bernardino, CA (it’s now a museum). Eight years later, they switched to hamburgers, shakes, potato chips, and pie. Ray Kroc visited McDonalds to sell his company’s Multi-mixers and was impressed by their success and efficiency. Kroc purchased franchise rights and opened his first McDonald’s in Des Plaines, IL, in 1955.
Today McDonald's has around 34,000 restaurants in 118 countries and territories (over 15,000 in the U.S.) serving more than 69 million people every day worldwide. By 2013, McDonald’s had sold its 300 billionth hamburger!. One can only imagine how many more since then. It is interesting that today in the U.S., the best-selling menu item is actually French fries that debuted in 1949. Of course, the Big Mac double beef burger with special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onion on a sesame seed bun is what McDonald’s is best known for today.
McDonald’s first drive-through opened in Sierra Vista, AZ, in 1975. The restaurant was near a military base and soldiers at that time were not allowed to leave their cars while wearing fatigues. The drive-thru solved that problem and prompted a huge change in the fast-food industry.
It is estimated that 1 in 8 U.S. workers has been employed by McDonald’s at some point in their careers. An Oxford English Dictionary entry, “McJob,” defined as an unstimulating, low-paid job with few prospects, greatly displeased McDonald’s executives. A law-suit was avoided when a clever U.K. ad campaign extolled the company’s employee benefits ending with the line, “Not bad for a McJob.”
While many international McDonald’s look the same or at least similar to their American counterparts, their menus often contain unique items that reflect local tastes, for example the nurnburger and bratwursts on a bun (Germany); creamy (fried cheese) stars in Italy, McFalafel and McKebab (Israel); McSpaghetti or pasta served with Chicken McNuggets on the side (Philippines); McRice burger served on rice patties instead of a bun (Singapore); quiche de queijo (kay-zhoo’ from Brazil); red bean pie (Hong Kong); McAloo Tikki, a spiced potato burger (India).
The hamburger has certainly become one of the world’s most popular foods, with nearly 50 billion served up annually in the United States alone. Although the humble beef-patty-on-a-bun is technically not much more than 150 years old, it's part of a far greater lineage, linking American consumers with businessmen, German political refugees, soldiers through the ages, medieval traders, and Neolithic farmers.
So, to close, let me encourage you to support Texas grape growers and winemakers by opening Texas wines when enjoying your favorite hamburger creations. And remember to suggest to your restaurant servers, hosts, and owners that many Texas wines pair wonderfully with burgers, hamburger steaks, BBQ on a bun, and chicken sandwiches. With that in mind, let us all continue to drink well, my friends.
Learn more from these references:
(1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_hamburger_in_the_United_States.
(2) https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2021/05/28/the-hamburgers-origin-story
(3) https://www.history.com/news/hamburger-helpers-the-history-of-Americas-favorite-sandwich, Where Hamburgers Began—and How They Became an Iconic American Food by Nate Barksdale
(4) The HISTORY TV channel offers a series called the “The Food That Built America” and the episode on hamburgers can be found online.
(5) https://whatscookingamerica.net/history-of-hamburgers
(6) https://www.rd.com/list/mcdonalds-facts-trivia, 75 Facts About McDonald's That Are Mind-Blowing - Reader's Digest by Daryl Chen, 5-Sep-2020
(7) https://www.fredericknewspost.com/news . . Who Invented the Hamburger? Biting into the messy history of America’s iconic sandwich, by Erik Ofgang, 28-May-2021
(8) https://www.mashed.com/975779/the-odd-history-of-the-so-called-luther-burger/