It felt like the good old days at Reliant Center Saturday night as the bidding climbed higher and higher on the top wines at the Rodeo Uncorked! wine auction. When the final gavel fell on the Grand Champion vino from the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo's International Wine Competition, a record had been set at $210,000. It was the same for the Reserve Grand Champion wine which went for a record $130,000.

The crowd cheered, hooted and hollered in approval as a beaming John Eddie Williams, representing a compendium of buyers, upped the ante again and again. At $210,000 the other bidders dropped away. Joining Williams in the buy were his wife Sheridan Williams, Raye White, Michelle and Robert Marsh and the DeMontrond Automotive Group (represented by Marilyn and George DeMontrond and Melissa DeMontrond).

After losing out on the Grand Champ, Mimi and Tom Dompier, Paul Somerville, Pam and Jerrol Springer, Jennifer Currey and Joe Van Matre picked up the reserve champ.

Not since 2008 and then again in 2006 had the Grand Champion wine earned $200,000. That level in sharp contrast to the 2007 recession-impaired top bid of $100,000 and last year's $120,000. No wonder the room full of 750 western-attired Wine Committee members and friends were so enthusiastic. By night's end, all 52 lots of wine had been sold for a total of $782,000.

This year, 1,789 wines from 591 wineries competed for the prestigious awards. Grand Champion honors went to Alexander Valley Vineyards Cyrus, Alexander Valley 2006. Reserve Grand Champion was Stanton Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville 2007. When Tilman Fertitta was part of the top-buying team, the bottles ended up on display in his Vic & Anthony's steak restaurant. Who knows how this year's buyers are going to divide up the over-sized Methusaleh and Salmanazar bottles.

Among the bidding crowd were Linda Schmuck and Todd Zucker, Gay and Red Griffin, Kristi and John Schiller and Ellie and Michael Francisco.

Wine committee members making this evening sing (thanks in no small part to the remarkable dinner by Jackson & Co. and the fine wines served) were Rodeo Uncorked! chair Stephanie Earthman Baird, officer-in-charge Steve Roe, wine sales chairman Joe Van Matre, wine events chair Jeanne Shirey-Lord and wine committee ambassador Carol Sawyer. And never missing one of the requisite rodeo events were HLSR chairman Butch Robinson and wife Paula and president Skip Wagner and wife Cindy.