Welcome to the Bridge - Monthly Newsletter of Grand Island Vineyards

Welcome to the Bridge - The Official GIV Newsletter

Tirage and riddling, with a frozen plug of lees? Yes. ------- Written by GIV Winemaker, Ed Seikel

(Part two of a two part series, see last month's part one here.)

Our look into production of sparkling wine continues! Last month we learned what to look for in the vineyard and how to ferment our base wine. In part two of this series, we move from tirage and riddling to disgorgement and dosage. This month we'll delve into the final stage of transforming our still wine into a bottle full of bubbles!

The next step after the wine finishes its primary fermentation is called tirage. A small amount of yeast and sugar are added to the wine, which is then bottled. Inside the bottle, a secondary fermentation takes place, creating the small CO2 bubbles that sparkling wine drinkers love.

The bottles are then aged anywhere from months to years, picking up additional mouthfeel and complexity while aging on the lees from the previous step. During this aging, the bottles are angled downward and slowly turned to help move the lees into the neck of the bottle. This is the process known as riddling.

Once the wine has been properly aged and the lees are at the end of the bottle neck, the bottles are ready for disgorgement. The necks are frozen, and the bottles are opened, allowing the frozen plug of lees to be removed, leaving behind the sparkling wine itself.

Lastly, there is the optional step of dosage, or adding back residual sugar to the wine before again being corked for the final time. At this point, the wine is now finished and ready to be enjoyed!

Petit Verdot: King of the Blends with great pairings!

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

We are very excited to be featuring a varietal that is mostly relegated to blending: the 2020 Grand Island Vineyards Petite Verdot. 

We love how well this varietal does in our estate vineyard. It produces a densely concentrated wine that manages to be elegant with soft tannins and beautiful floral components. 

I can easily recommend pairing this wine with a tasty Cuban sandwich, burgers, or even some pan roasted pork chops!

This wine pours a dark purple brick hue with an initial aroma that is full of dark brooding fruit notes including blueberry and pluot. 

As the wine opens, aromas of vanilla and violet intermingle with the fruit component. The mouth feel is soft with supple tannins and silky poise. The finish lingers with sweet oak and baking spice.



2024 is off to a great start with these events!

------- Written by Tasting Room Manager, Tess Jonson

It’s time for wine shipments, update your cc and change your wine before your cards get charged on February 3rd. And make those tasting reservations when you come to pick up your wines. We’ll see you soon!

Join us on February 17th, 1 - 4:00pm for some chocolate fondue and live music. It’s our first event of the year and tickets go pretty quickly so reserve yours now. 

It’s always a GOUDA time for cheese! GIV and Kim Mack of Scratch Made Life join forces again and will be offering a Gouda cheese making class, March 24th at 11am. Space is limited! 



Shhhh! The Vines are Sleeping!

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

This is the part of the vineyard year where the vines are in deep sleep. Just like us, that deep sleep (dormancy for the vines) is a really good thing and becomes very helpful when it is time for them to wake up.

Instead of directing their energy towards producing fruit or new leaf growth, these winter vines spend their energy into the root systems. Roots will then grow, soaking up soil nutrients to keep the vine strong during winter, and simultaneously prepare for spring and the emergence of new shoots. 

As vineyard managers we take this time to work on the balancing act of vine to fruit, most specifically, the ratio of the two. We do this through pruning, and it varies block by block, if not variety by variety and sometimes even, plant by plant. 

If we prune too little it's most likely we'll have too much fruit that will never ripen. Yet if we prune too much, we'll be left with vines growing shoots that never stop, with little to contain that growth in the form of a crop load. So, much like our own lives, balance is good.



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