Welcome to the Bridge - Monthly Newsletter of Grand Island Vineyards

For more than 50 years our family has tended our vineyards and grown our own grapes, for our wines, along the lush banks of the Sacramento River. We are striving to perfect the art and science of grape growing, and we’re proud to share the rewards of our labor by creating wines that showcase distinctive grapes perfectly. Bridging all aspects of our Winery from the Vineyard, to the Cellar, Winery Grounds,Tasting Room and beyond.

No Events for December, please check back soon for 2022 Events!

Upcoming Events and Holiday Wine Sales!

Written by Tasting Room Manager, Tess Jonson

Join us the first weekend of December for our choose your own tasting weekend. We are open Friday thru Monday, 10-5pm.

Come early, snag a warm spot by the fire pits and join us for some holiday cheer. We have a handful of delicious wines on sale and this would be the perfect time to try them before you buy them! 

SALE, SALE, SALE!!!

SFR 2017 Chenin Blanc, SFR 2018 Chenin Blanc, and SFR 2018 Chardonnay are all discounted to $23.80 per bottle and a case price of $187.00. The big bonus is you get your member discount on top of that sale price! What's your hesitation?! Is that not enough for you? OKAY, okay. Grand Island Vineyards 2018 Pinot Noir and 2019 After Dark are on sale too!

See you next weekend!

See all of our Upcoming Events or Tours and Tastings at GrandIslandVineyards.com!



2019 After Dark (ON SALE FOR THE HOLIDAYS!

Written by GIV Winemaker, David Shattuck

For the holidays, we are revisiting one of the most versatile wines that is produced at Grand Island Vineyards. The 2019 After Dark is made from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from the estate vineyard and fortified with neutral grape spirits during fermentation. The fermentation finished with a light residual sugar and sat on skins for the next 7 months in an open bin. This technique allowed this wine to gain an impressive complexity.

This wine pours a beautiful brick red with a hint of orange in the meniscus. The initial notes are dried cranberry, crushed lavender, and anise. The wine is mildly sweet with good acidity and abundant lush tannins. The finish is clean with no lingering sweetness and a delightful flavor of ripe plum, cedar, and chocolate. Because of these attributes this wine is very versatile as an aperitif, dinner wine, or post dinner digestif.

I use this wine as the base of a great pre-dinner cocktail. This cocktail provides a hint of herbal note with juicy fruit and a delightful bittersweet finish.

After Dark Cocktail

2 oz Afterdark

1 oz Cointreau

1 oz Lemon juice in glass with ice

top with Sparkling Water

Whoever will Taste all this Wine?!?

Written by GIV Winemaker, Ed Seikel

Now that the 2021 vintage white wines are all through fermentation and now aging, our next step in the cellar is to taste through them! 

These tastings help us to plan out when, what, and how much we will need to bottle this year. We tasted through three returning white wines for this vintage that everyone should be familiar with by now: our Chenin Blanc, Symphony, and Chardonnay, and I'm happy to report that the early returns are very positive! 

All three wines are bursting with varietal character and complexity and we're very excited to get them into bottle and out to you as soon as we can. 

Stay tuned here and on our socials for updates on when these wines will be available in the Tasting Room!

The Quiet and Mysterious Time of Year

Written by Operations Manager, Joe Salman

It is quiet in the vineyard. I might even say mysterious. Fog has rolled in pretty heavily at times since the October deluge. (Don't let it stop you from coming to the winery between 10am and 5pm, it's always sunny and nice out). 

Our work in the vineyard is minimal, but you might see a worker pop in and out here and there. Most work in the vineyard is limited to some trellis repair and new vineyard trellis development as we wait for full dormancy of these vines. 

Happening soon will be pruning and setting up the vines for another successful year. The rain was great, however the cold and darkness of winter is also an important step to many deciduous fruits. 

Much like us the vines need there rest, so I suggest you make David's AFTER DARK COCKTAIL, (I have, it's amazing) and rest and relax a few times during the crazy holiday season.  

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