Blue Bell Creamery

Friday
Today we all took a trip out to Brenham, Texas, which is the home of Blue Bell Creamery, which had its origins back in 1907, when local farmers established the Brenham Creamery Company to make butter from excess cream brought in by area farmers. A few years later, the creamery began making ice cream and delivering it to neighbors by horse and wagon. In 1930 the company changed its name to Blue Bell Creameries after the native Texas bluebell wildflower. They offer tours of the creamery, which finish with a sample of their ice cream. Then we went for a late lunch at a diner in the town, followed by a walk around the town, which was founded in 1844 and settled by German immigrants over the next two decades. Finally, before returning home, we paid a visit to a small local winery. We weren't that impressed by the wine, but it was interesting talking to the owner and his wife - he had been in the finance business, and the winery is basically a retirement project - though he admits it turned out to be more work than he'd originally envisioned!