Welcome to the Bridge - Monthly Newsletter of Grand Island Vineyards

Welcome to the Bridge - The Official GIV Newsletter

UPCOMING EVENTS

Two Wine Clubs to choose from!

GIV Wine Family

This pocket friendly and super fun club gets you all the perks below:

• Quarterly wines (3 bottles) shipped or for pick up (typically $55)
• Free Tastings 
• 15% off bottle purchases and 20% off case purchases
• Quarterly wine club parties
• Customizable wine club shipment from online account
• Access to Family only wine
• Taxes and Shipping apply

Family Reserve

Not only does our Reserve Wine Club consist the best of what our winery has to offer but our members will receive similar treatment. Taste Reserve wines from a special Reserve wine glass, enjoy a special area during events where we provide exclusive activities like express tastings on unreleased wine and one on ones with our talented winemakers, and more. Upon joining, we also include:

•  Reserve Wines to be picked up or shipped, biannually
• Two Reserve Wines with total price ranging from $60-$65 (plus tax) in each shipment
• 20% discount on Reserve Wine
• 20% discount on Merchandise and Apparel
• 20% discount on Events
• Online access to your account at grandislandvineyards.com

WINE SALE

The more you buy, the more you save sale.

All 2019 GIV Red Wines, All Bridgehead Wines & All Reserve Red Wines

Buy 1 - Save $1 Buy 2 - Save $3 Buy 3 - Save $6 Buy 4 - Save $10 Buy 5 - Save $15 Buy 6 - Save $21 Buy 12 - Save $78

Check out these New Releases!

------- Written by GIV Winemaker, David Shattuck

GIV Club

2023 Symphony (new release, coming soon)

One of our favorite spring varietal releases, the 2023 Grand Island Vineyards Symphony, is making its way to the tasting room and club members. We love this off-dry wine for its versatility with food. The floral portion of this wine works extremely well with exotic spiced cuisines like Indians, Sumatran, and Ethiopian. The slight residual sugar also helps tame dishes that rely on chili pepper to bring heat. I love to pair this wine with drunken noodles, Palak paneer, and Kali Mirch ka Gosht.

This wine pours a pleasing dried hay color. The initial notes are pineapple, jasmine, honeysuckle, and allspice. On the first sip, the wine reveals pleasing acidity and grip paired with a hint of sweet midpalate. The finish is persistent with tropical fruit and spice.

2022 Malbec (new release, coming soon)

We are very excited to be releasing our first vintage of malbec. This variety is the fifth addition to our portfolio of Bordeaux reds (the other four being Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot) and we couldn't be happier with this vintage. I love this heavy body and fruity red for pairing with lean meats like bison or wild duck. It also goes great with blue cheese or ripened cheeses.  The malbec pours a pleasing amethyst color with a hint of magenta in the meniscus. The aroma dazzles with bright plum, vanilla, spiced oak, and coffee. The wine has a luscious midpalate with soft tannins and great minerality. The finish lasts for several minutes with interesting notes of blackberry and sage interwoven with a pleasing brioche and chocolate character.

2023 Sauvignon Blanc (released last month)

We are very excited to have a customer favorite wine varietal returning to the tasting room after an absence of several years: the 2023 Grand Island Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc. This wine is the first of our newly bottled 2023 white wines and we are very excited for you to taste these excellent wines. The 2023 growing season was characterized by cool weather for much of the year and a late harvest. While the grapes reached ripe flavors and textures, they never achieved the high levels of sugar that are common in California. Because of the lower sugar levels, the 2023 vintage of white wines will have ripe fruit character but more restrained alcohol and midpalate. This sauvignon blanc will be great with oysters, citrus salad, lasagna with bechamel sauce, or fried chicken.

This wine pours a beautiful pale yellow hue. The first glass immediately captivates with bright citrus aroma and a hint of gooseberry. With a little air, the wine begins to exhibit a slight tropical note with bright passion fruit and pineapple character. After the first sip, the wine displays an austere mouthfeel with nervy acidity and a moderate midpalate. The finish is hauntingly long with a briny oyster shell and tangerine pith flavor.

RESERVE Club

2020 Salman Family Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (new release, coming soon)

This vintage of Salman Family Reserve Cabernet is outstanding. The tannin profile allowed for a very extended maceration which promotes intensely focused wine. I love this wine because it is drinkable now but will be really hitting its peak in the next 6-8 years. Try pairing this wine with a charcuterie board with different cheeses and meats to really unlock its varied flavors and aromas. It is also great with richer meat dishes like rib roast or porchetta.  

The wine pours a concentrated ruby red color. The first aroma that captures you is a mixture of ripe currant and dusty sage. With air, the wine releases a symphony of flavors and aromas including black cherry, frankincense, vanilla, coffee, cedar, and soft oak. The tannins are tightly concentrated while still being very approachable. With a remarkable balance, this wine flows into a persistent finish of ripe blackberry, custard, and loam. 

2020 Salman Family Reserve Petit Verdot (released Nov 2022)

As always with our reserve wines, they are very age-able.

Assuming you tried this wine in 2022, enjoy how this wine has developed in the bottle, Initial aromas are ripe blackberry and wild floral aromas.

Flavors of loam, vanilla bean and pluot with dense elegant tannin structure, with a long sweet oak finish.

April Flowers Bring New Shoots!

------- Written by Operations Manager, Joe Salman

Last month I talked about how the buds break and shoots grow with tremendous strength and vigor. 

That vigor is really good in many plants, but in grapes over vigor can cause shading, dense canopies, and over production. So the question is, what do we do? And the answer is shoot thinning. 

As shown below, the vine has had numerous shoots manually removed by hand to moderate the canopy and production. The result should be a well balanced vine with the proper amount of vine to fruit near harvest time. The closeup on the right shows a properly thinned vine.

Is this science, or is this art? Well, it seems that it's a little big of both! 

We hope you see the fruits of our labor. To taste results from this vine wait for a 2024 Petit Verdot. (my guess some time in 2027) 

See you there! Cheers!

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