Welcome to the Bridge - Monthly Newsletter of Grand Island Vineyards

Two Grand Island Vineyards Clubs to Choose From!

Consider joining our Salman Family Reserve and/or GIV Wine Family Wine Club(s) and get great discounts on wines and cases, events, merch and pretty much anything else that would make sense. Join us for pickup party celebrations or have it shipped directly to your front door. Get more info, see pricing or sign up!

Wine Spotlight - 2019 Cabernet Franc

Written by Winemaker, David Shattuck

We are excited to release one of our perennial favorites, the 2019 Grand Island Vineyards Cabernet Franc. If you haven't tried it, Cabernet Franc is a moderate bodied red wine with soft tannins, bright red fruit core, and interesting floral and herbal notes. 

This red wine has the versatility to be paired with a wide range of foods including duck carnitas, mushroom larb, and tri-tip.

The 2019 Cabernet Franc pours a rich ruby hue. The wine opens with a bright punch of bing cherry, burdock root, and green olive. 

After a few swirls, notes of fresh lavender, rosemary, plum, and charred oak fill your glass. This vintage sports a velvety texture with decent acid that propels the wine into a clean finish with hints of toast, raspberry, and custard.

Back on the Tasting Menu!

Written by Tasting Room Manager, Tess Jonson

On the tasting menu this month, after some time off, is our 2019 Old World Method Chardonnay.  This "orange wine" has been aging in the bottle for the last three years and is developing into a beautiful wine. 

The bottle aging has begun to help to enhance the dried fruit aromas and flavors while softening the tannins. The wine pours a soft amber color with enchanting aromas of candied apricot, lemon taffy, and vanilla. The mouthfeel is lush with a pleasing tannin structure and firm acid backbone. The finish is delicate with golden raisin, allspice, and crushed granite flavors.

Besides tasting this month, this wine will be featured at L'APÉRO AT GRAND ISLAND VINEYARDS, our next club event in November, where you can learn how to use this wine as an aperitif or the base of a cocktail.

We are having an exciting harvest!

Written by Winemaker, Ed Seikel

This harvest has been particularly exciting for us in the cellar because we brought in not just one new varietal, but two! Not only will Pinot Gris soon be in the tasting room, Malbec will be joining our growing lineup of Bordeaux varietals.  

It was recently planted at the Home Ranch near our Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot, and despite this only being the third year for these vines, the quality has been apparent from the start. Within the first few days of fermentation, you could already see this was going to be a very rich, dark wine, and throughout the remarkable 25 days on skins it continued to build even more depth and flavor. 

All of that concentrated flavor means it will need a higher number of new oak barrels to maintain a balanced flavor profile and perhaps a longer aging process as well. It will be a while before this wine will be ready for bottling and available in the tasting room, but we think it will be worth the wait! 

October and We're Still Harvesting!

Written by Operations Manager, Joe Salman

Well... It's October and no I'm not done harvesting. 

Many truckloads and acres have been harvested, but there are still many very important vineyard blocks to be harvested. 

To recap from past newsletters, we harvested the first grapes in early August, the peak was around labor day, a September heat spell caused some unneeded stress on some vines that still had grapes. (if you were in California, you can't forget those days). And then, as I thought I was on kind of a cruise control, a crazy rain came though. I know we need rain in California and I was sort of grateful (as we all should be), but history has told us a rain like that and Petite Sirah doesn't mix. 

After meeting with David and Ed in a muddy field, we decided to harvest Petite Sirah ASAP and other wineries that I grow for smartly followed. At this point, I would say I am on cruise control, night time machine picking is over. (I'm back with the living!) 

Picking normally in the morning and delivery to GIV and other smaller wineries that purchase the cherished old vine Petite Sirah, and Cabernet Franc. Just some Cabernet Sauvignon, Primitivo, and Petit Verdot after that to finish the season. Take a look at this Petite Sirah cluster that was water soaked just after the first rain in a series of storms.

Website -- Store -- Wine Clubs -- Vineyard -- Events -- Tastings -- Account Login