FESTIVAL SEASON

Gruene spills juicy details on four-day music and wine festival

Guests can try dozens of Texas wines.

Photo courtesy of Gruene Music & Wine Festival

We’re sorry to break it to you, but you won’t have much downtime in October. The 39th annual Gruene Music & Wine Festival is kicking off the Hill Country event season October 9-12 with four days of tastings, live music, and artisan markets centered around the town’s charming historic district. Tickets go on sale August 1 online.

The Hill Country tradition began in 1987 as a one-day showcase of Texas country and Americana music before growing into a four-day affair. In the subsequent years, the organizers drafted breweries and wineries to join in on the fun, growing the festival into a fundraising powerhouse for the United Way of Comal County’s programs addressing food insecurity, mental health, housing support, and more.

As always, festival passes are à la carte. Those who want to discover a new favorite Pinot Noir or IPA need to purchase tasting tickets and stroll through dozens of booths. Individual shows are priced separately to let guests pick and choose their favorites. And if daytrippers simply want to soak up the quaint atmosphere, Gruene’s restaurants, bars, and boutiques will be open for business.

The 2025 lineup kicks off on October 9 with a free kick-off party at The Grapevine from 5-8 pm, before launching a packed schedule. Other events are scattered throughout the long weekend.

Live music is on the schedule every evening.Photo courtesy of Gruene Music & Wine Festival.

Thursday, October 9

Jamey Johnson at Gruene Hall
The outlaw country artist presents a blistering set from his 20-year career. Doors open at 8 pm.

Friday, October 10

Stars & Guitars
From 5-8 pm, music lovers will enjoy a catered dinner from the Gristmill Restaurant, followed by an intimate acoustic set from Josh Abbott Band. After dessert, bid on guitars signed by George Strait, Lyle Lovett, and Pat Green during the Great Guitar Auction.

Josh Abbott Band at Gruene Hall
Can’t get enough of Abbott's band? The Texas country favorites plug in for another round of hits starting at 9 pm.

Saturday, October 11

Tastings & Tunes at The Grapevine
Sip and stroll to a soundtrack of live Americana music. 12 Texas wineries and breweries will be offering samples from noon-6 pm. Admission is free, but tastings require drink tickets.

Chaparelle at Gruene Hall
The Texas trio of Zella Day, Jesse Woods, and Beau Bedford takes the stage of the legendary dance hall at 9 pm.

Sunday, October 12

Cody Canada’s Sunday All-Star Playlist
The Cross Canadian Ragweed frontman enlisted his all-star friends for an all-day concert, 2-7 pm. The guests include Justin Furstenfeld (of Blue October), William Clark Green, Jamie Lin Wilson, Mike McClure, Shelby Stone, Dalton Domino, Graycie York, Drew Cooper, Jordan Nix, and Mila Rae.

Event details and artist announcements can be found at www.gruenemusicandwinefest.org. Tickets launch on August 1 at 10 am.

gruene music wine beer hill country festivals

RADIO WAVES

Alt-rock radio returns to San Antonio airwaves after nearly a decade

Photo by Steve Keros

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It can’t bring back Kurt Cobain, but a revived radio station is reliving the alt-rock glory days on San Antonio’s airwaves. Connoisseur Media says 103.3 The App has returned after nearly a decade off the dial.

The station officially started broadcasting from the Tower of the Americas on December 1, calling itself San Antonio’s only alternative radio destination. A news release promises that listeners can expect to hear bands like Linkin Park, Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Imagine Dragons, The Lumineers, Sublime, and Nirvana, among more contemporary artists.

The App has been off the airwaves since April 2017, and the signal has since had a bit of a personality crisis, flipping between classic hip-hop, contemporary hip-hop, sports, Tejano, and back to sports again.

Along with the new-old format, the station will bring a familiar on-air personality back to her hometown. San Antonio native DJ Mighty Iris has joined the lineup as the afternoon drive-time host from 3–7 pm.

“I’m honestly still in shock and honored that I will soon be able to return to the S.A. airwaves and be part of someone’s drive home,” says Iris in the release. “We all love this station because it’s different. Alternative music has so many sounds and offshoots; it doesn’t fit into one box. You can hear anything from The Strokes to The Clash to R.E.M.”

Connecticut-based Connoisseur Media shares that it is going all in on the format nationwide— introducing it in markets like Dayton, Ohio, and Saginaw, Michigan. Part of that is renewed interest in current left-of-the-dial rock bands like Tame Impala, Sombr, Turnstile, and Royal Otis.

In addition to tuning in on their car stereos, alt fans can now listen to The App on an app. The download is available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. Might we suggest Hole’s ”Violet” for a particularly vigorous house-cleaning session? You can use rags made from your old flannels.

“San Antonio has always been a rock town, but there has been a void in this city for this body of music, concludes operations manager Greg Martin. “103.3 The App was received with great praise when it debuted nearly a decade ago, and the excitement is absolutely here again for this second run.”

music entertainment alt-rock alternative radio

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RADIO WAVES

Alt-rock radio returns to San Antonio airwaves after nearly a decade