There's a hint of more than history at Camp Hot Wells, the glamping-style outdoor spa and almost literal watering hole that sits aside the ruins of San Antonio's historic Hot Wells Resort.
The hot sulphur well that once supplied the "gents" and "ladies" swimming pools at the late 19th-century hostelry was capped during the stabilization of the ruins and the area's conversion to a to a county park. However, a new one now supplying the facility's naturally warm soaking tubs provides a reminder of a "taking-the-waters" past: a faint but persistent odor of hydrogen sulfide. Or rotten eggs.
That funk can be a little off-putting at first, depending on the sensitivity of one's sense of smell, but rest assured that after a glass of wine or a can of beer, any odors are out of mind. If there's room, you might even want to dip your feet in the free soaking pools outside the camp's order window. The soaking tubs themselves are members- and reservation-only, so plan accordingly.
Ostrich races are no longer around to divert you, but a refreshing soak makes history tangible and tactile.
There's a varied and sophisticated list of beverages to choose from at the order window, all put together by artist and resident muse Justin Parr. Who would expect, for example, a single "orange" wine, never mind three? No, they aren't shockingly orange. Their rusty color results from extended skin contact of white grapes during fermentation.
Even more surprising, one orange wine happens to be Texan. Soto Vino Wines is a project of San Antonio-born brothers Christian and Dominic Soto, and its focus is on "minimal intervention" wines — sometimes a buzzword for funky, "natural" winemaking that can be a little challenging translated to the bottle.
There's a whisper of almost cider-like funk — totally appropriate to the Hot Wells ambiance, of course — in the glass of Soto Vino's Wildflowers, actually a blend of a rosé of red grape Tempranillo and skin-contact Marsanne, a white grape. Put that faint funk together with fruity flavors of ripe melon, passion fruit and the dry cider component, and you have a wine that's stunning visually and intriguing on the palate. Makes a guy want to taste the brothers' Once Upon A Time in Texas 100% Counoise, for example.
Marginally more familiar offerings such as a lilting Cremant de Loire Brut — a French sparkler made outside of the delimited Champagne region and thus unable to call itself a Champagne — and the Los Conejos Malditos Tempranillo from Spain, which I'd order just for the name alone, typify the offbeat wine list.
The list also includes seltzers, sakes and actual ciders, including a by-the-bottle-only Basque label called Isastegi Sagardo Naturala, a little sour and funky as well. And, of course, beers.
Unless you're a card-carrying cicerone — a beer "sommelier," that is — you may want to throw seasonality to that same wind that disperses the hot springs aromas and just go for something unfamiliar.
For me that was the Oskar Blues Old Chub Scottish Strong Ale, perhaps thought of by some as a hefty winter brew, but just lively enough to work fine in the setting. And besides, I was admittedly seduced by the ale's descriptor, "brobdingnagian," on the menu. Friends of farmhouse sour-style beers might want to go with Untitled Art's Candied Cantaloupe Sour. Fans of fun could consider Virginia craft brewery The Veil Brewing Co.'s Broz Night Out Hazy DIPA. Closer to most Texans' experience will be San Antonio's own Freetail Bat Outta Helles and the creamy Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout out of Colorado.
Camp Hot Wells offers a few snacks, including a charc board you can assemble from available sausages, prosciutto and cheeses. The noshables also include hummus paired with pita, pickled green beans and cookie — maybe pair that milk stout with the latter.
Together, it all adds up to a memorable experience, one that can only be enhanced by strolling around the spa's ruins and actually reading the explanatory materials on display. You'll come away with a new appreciation for a unique landmark.
Camp Hot Wells
5423 Hot Wells Way, (210) 922-1927, camphotwells.com.
4 p.m.-10 p.m. Monday and Wednesday, noon-10 p.m. Thursday, noon-11 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday-Sunday
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