The key to success for regional wine is not so much about quality or even pricing. It’s about producing wine that reflects the place where it is made. Regional wine will never be successful if it’s nothing more than a knockoff of what’s being done elsewhere — and where it’s being done better, as well.

That’s why the best regional wine has a sense of terroir, whether it’s a New York riesling, a Missouri norton, or a Virginia viognier. The top producers in those states know they have to compete with California, but they have also realized they don’t have to do it on California’s terms. They can do it on their terms.

That’s what we’ve finally figured out in Texas. There has been a revolution in the past five years, with growers and winemakers embracing warm climate grapes in a way I never thought possible. Today, we have quality wines made with tempranillo, roussanne, syrah, sangiovese, blanc du bois, black Spanish, and viognier — grapes better suited for the Texas terroir than the traditional French varietals. Even the state’s biggest producers, who can sell (and need to sell) chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon because they’re in grocery stores, are using these new varietals to produce fascinating wines.

One of the best examples of the revolution is McPherson’s La Herencia ($14, sample, available at Central Market), a tempranillo blend that has the Spanish grape’s varietal characteristics yet retains a Texas quality. It’s richer and more full than a Rioja, the best-known tempranillo from Spain, with more red fruit. But it’s not too fruity or too tannic or too alcoholic, like so many California wines. Serve this with barbecue, almost any main course with rice (like jambalaya), and even some roast or grilled chicken dishes.

One of the other hats I wear is as co-founder of DrinkLocalWine, where we focus on wine made in the 47 states that aren’t California, Oregon, and Washington. We’re holding our fourth annual regional wine week this week, and there are articles and links to regional wine throughout the country, including Texas. Regional wine is part of significant changes going on in the wine business that much of the wine business is missing, and Texas wine has played a key role in those changes.

The first time time I tasted the Tormaresca chardonnay, I knew two things. First, that Italian chardonnay was not something most people wanted to write about. The Italians had plenty of other white wine grapes; what were they doing messing around with chardonnay? The other thing I knew was that Tormaresca made really good cheap wine.

So I really wasn’t surprised at the quality. Tormaresca, as a producer, is that good. Somehow, on their property in Puglia in the Italian boot heel, they do things that other wineries can only dream about.

The current vintage of the chardonnay ($12, sample) is better than ever — bright, clean and crisp (almost too much crisp, actually, though that should not be noticeable as the bottle ages). There is lots of green apple fruit, the wine has enough oak to complement the fruit but not to overwhelm it, and it’s only 12 1/2 percent alcohol. As always, I wonder why the Italians can make such a pleasant chardonnay while so many in California, where chardonnay is an important grape, stumble in the dark trying to do the same thing. Drink this chilled on its own, or pair it with a variety of white wine food — roast chicken, spaghetti carbonara or even Sunday brunch.

Set those digital recorders. I’ll be on Channel 11, sometime after 5:30 a.m. on Friday, to talk about the Texas wine garden and wine stage at the State Fair of Texas. I’m told I’ll even get a chance to display my corkscrew skills. And, no, that’s not too early to drink wine.

We’re doing a reduced a schedule of interviews at the Fair this year, thanks to our friends at the Texas Legislature. Though, to be fair, since they are likely funding the schools in an unconstitutional manner, I shouldn’t be too upset about the wine stage being cut. It’s all in the perspective.

Details for the stage are here. Stop by and say hello if you’re at the Fair.

Inexpensive cabernet sauvignon tends to be obviously flawed in one way or another — too much oak (or poorly done oak), too much fruit (or way too much fruit), uneven tannins, or green, unripe fruit. That’s because cabernet is not always easy to make and it’s almost always more expensive to make than other wines. So, when a winemaker is trying to hit a price below $15, something has to give.

Which was not the case with the Mandolin ($12, sample), which showed up quite unexpectedly and was almost overlooked when it did. Wines that I’ve had before or that I know don’t fit a review go into the giveaway box. For some reason that I don’t remember, this was going in the giveaway box but never got there.

That’s my good fortune. The Mandolin is well-made, quality $12 wine from California’s Central Coast. As such, it’s much better than so many others of its kind and on a par with solid sub-$15 cabernets like Avalon and 337. Look for some cherry fruit, but not too much, and appreciate the balance between the acid, tannins and oak in a wine at this price. Drink this with any red meat, including meat loaf and burgers.

Dallas’ average high temperature in October starts at 83 degrees — and, thankfully, drops to 72 by the end of the month. Which means it’s time to enjoy red wine again.

I needed a couple of bottles of wine for dinner, but didn’t want to make a special trip to a wine store. So I looked for wine when I was out running errands, using my advice about buying wine for dinner.

The result was the Dry Creek ($10, purchased, available at World Market), which comes from a standout California producer whose dry chenin blanc has long been one of my favorites. I wanted sauvignon blanc for dinner (oven fried chicken), saw this on the shelf, knew that I liked the chenin, and so bought it.

The fume, which is sauvignon blanc under another name, is made in the classic California sauvignon blanc style, with grassy aromas and front, and a tropical middle. Don’t expect any big, New Zealand-style grapefruit; the wine has some citrus, but is more restrained than its Kiwi cousins. The finish is a little disjointed, as if it doesn’t know how to end; all in all, though, it’s a heck of a bargain for $10.

Serve this with most white meat dishes, as well as salads. It would also, as befits any sauvignon blanc, pair with shrimp and other boiled seafood.

This wine has been taunting me for months, daring me to try it. And I would walk past it, ignoring it, refusing to be tempted by what I thought was a previous vintage from an ordinary part of France made by a run-of-the-mill producer with a label that seemed to be trying too hard.

So what happened when I finally succumbed, and bought the wine (mostly out of necessity, since finding red wine to review is so much more difficult than finding white wine)? It was a nifty little bottle, proving once again that one should taste the wine before one judges it.

The Caprice ($9, purchased, available at Whole Foods) is a previous vintage, and the current vintage costs more in France than I paid for this in Dallas. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a quality $10 wine, offering more value than expected. It’s a blend of grenache, syrah and merlot that is a little fruiter (red raspberry?) than many similar Rhone-style wines, but it’s not New World fruit by any stretch. The Caprice has easy tannins, and a dark, earthy middle. Even more impressive: It is a previous vintage that has held up so well. This is fall wine, as the weather gets cooler, to enjoy with soups and braised beef and chicken.

One of the perks of writing about wine are trade tastings, where producers and importers offer samples of their various wines. At a recent Dallas trade tasting, two of my favorite Gascon wines were in attendance — Domaine Duffour and Domaine du Tariquet.

Getting to taste them reminded me how much I appreciate Gascon wine, which is cheap, made with odd grapes, and just the thing to keep in the refrigerator for wine emergencies. So I did a quick round of the stores to find some more, and came up with the Artigaux ($10, purchased, available at Whole Foods).

It’s made with the Gascon grapes, ugni blanc and colombard, and it’s not quite the wine that the Duffour or the Tariquet are. The Artiguaux is more simple, with a touch too much white grapey-ness. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, since the wine is fresh with low alcohol (11 1/2 percent) and almost enough acid to balance the fruit.

This is 105-degree wine, and wouldn’t be bad at any other time in the summer — or as a refrigerator emergency wine for a glass after work or something to drink with Chinese takeout.

Where has this wine been all my life? It does everything a great cheap wine should — reflects its origins, pairs with food, and doesn’t cost a lot of money. Make room in the Hall of Fame, as well as the wine closet, since I’m buying a case.

The basics, quickly, about the La Fiera ($8, purchased, available at Jimmy’s) before I start waxing poetic: This is a red wine from the Abruzzo region east of Rome and is made with the montepulciano grape (and is not be confused with the pricer Montepulciano from Tuscany, which is made with sangiovese). Wine quality in Abruzzo has improved significantly over the past decade or so, but prices have remained more or less the same.

Which is one reason why this wine is so exciting. The La Fiera smells oh-so-Italian, and tastes of very sour cherries. Plus, it has that wonderful dark earth quality that isn’t so much a flavor or an aroma, but more of a presence — something that so many wines, of all prices, aspire to but can’t deliver. One sip of this and you’ll be thinking of your mom’s spaghetti and meatballs; or, failing that, drink the La Fiera with grilled sausages and peppers over the Labor Day weekend. Highly recommended.

The Dallas Morning News recently reported that Houston-based Spec’s, which sells beer, wine, liquor and specialty foods, will open stores in Dallas by the end of the year. The question is where.

Jay Alvis, who markets wine to local restaurants and fine wine shops, says Spec’s won’t consider any retail locations that are “damp,” meaning beer and wine sales are legal following last fall’s election, but liquor sales are not.

“A lot of of the areas that have gone so-called ‘wet’ have gone wet to beer and wine only. There are very few places that went ‘wet’ as opposed to ‘damp,’ and I’ve never heard of Spec’s going in with wine and beer only,” Alvis says.

So expect to see Spec’s moving into areas where liquor stores are already established. Spec’s will carry its own exclusive wine and spirits labels, and also is known for its own specialty food labels, Alvis says, “which is what Trader Joe’s does, but Spec’s also has a broad distribution base to carry the bigger-named brands at very low prices.” A store such as Central Market may carry 2,000-3,000 brands, Alvis says, and in comparison, Spec’s may carry 14,000-16,000.

Alvis believes Spec’s will be a fierce competitor because “they negotiate a bigger case volume and try to get a lower price, then pass that lower price on to the consumer. I wouldn’t be surprised if they match Sam’s and Costco prices.”

The Morning News story noted that Spec’s stores range in size from 8,000 to 80,000 square feet, the latter being its flagship store in Houston. If Spec’s tends toward the smaller size in Dallas, it may end up competing for spaces with Trader Joe’s, which typically seeks out real estate in the 8,000-12,000 square foot range.