Vineyard House Wine Tasting with Special Guest 2nd Generation Vintner Jeremy Nickel

Thoughts on the matter: “I would like a wine. The purpose of the wine is to get me drunk. A bad wine will get me as drunk as a good wine. I would like the good wine. And since the result is the same no matter which wine I drink, I’d like to pay the bad wine price.”

Steve Martin
Comedian, writer, actor, banjo player

This is the first event that we have scheduled when I return from Portugal so I’ll probably be home sick a bit and there is no better cure for that than a big Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon like the Vineyard House.

The Vineyard House was originally Hiram Crabbs place in the late 19th century, it was sold to the Stelling family and then to Gil Nickel.  Gil left this house to his son Jeremy to ensure that he would always have a place in Napa Valley.  On the Vineyard House property there is a 2 acre vineyard which some of the fruit from this site now goes into the this exciting new wine and he has also purchased 35 acres right there on the valley floor located just 50 feet before you get to Harlan estate and Bond Wineries.  In the very near future this wine will be 100% estate bottled.  Bill Ballentine is making the wine and the first vintage was 2005.

I have liked every vintage of this wine and we had all of them at the last tasting we had with Jeremy where we put his neighbor Harlan’s wine next to Vineyard House and our group of “Wine Drinking People” blind picked the Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 over Harlan Estate 2009- We will be drinking my last bottle of 2009 at this tasting.  These latest releases are a cut above the first wines, and we are just beginning to see the potential of this Vineyard House property.  Join us as we experience the newest releases of Cabernet Sauvignon as well as the Chardonnay which is finally available not at the Wine Watch!  Second generation vintner special guest Jeremy Nickel will be here to tell the story of each vintage and Chef Toni Lampasone will be making a few small courses to accompany the tasting wines.  The fee for this event which includes dinner is $175 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com

Vineyard House Wine Tasting
with Special Guest 2nd Generation Vintner Jeremy Nickel
Friday, June 7, 2019
7:30 PM

Vineyard House Chardonnay Napa 2016
Price: $75.00       Sale $66.00

Lively and nearly weightless on your palate, the stunning 2016 The Vineyard House Chardonnay seduces you with the perfect combination of bright, yet penetrating flavors. Exotic passionfruit combines with supple honeydew melon, tart Granny Smith Apple, Key lime, ripe Bosc Pear and liquid minerals. The bright freshness combined with the penetrating fruit and perfectly integrated oak keeps this shimmering chardonnay from being cloying or heavy, then finishes long and focused with a touch of minerally elegance. - Kevin M. Vogt, Master Sommelier

Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 2009
This is our last bottle and in the name of science we will open this up continuing our education of 10-year-old wines this year. 
Wine Watch Tasting Notes:  A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon 88%, Cabernet Franc 4%, Merlot 4%, Malbec 4%.  Dark cherry liqueur like fruit with cassis and dark currant berry fruit very rich and juicy with a host of dark spices, dark chocolate, concentrated and rich bouquet of aromas, very complex.  A very thick and juicy wine with smooth and round tannins with a long finish that echoes the nuance from the nose through the finish. Very silky and smooth round with a host of dark spices and a long finish.  Finish 50+         Most Excellent

Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 2012
Price: $300.00    Sale $264.00

“Velvety, lush and bright, this wine celebrates a warm, wonderful vintage in its exuberance of clove, currant and chocolate-covered cherry, yet the acidity is focused and tense. Lengthy and built to last, the rounded palate is seasoned in black pepper.” Wine Enthusiast

Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 2013
Price: $225.00    Sale $198.00

TVH has produced a huge Cab, and this one is jammed with deep ripe flavors of juicy blackcurrant, blackberries and black cherries oozing with dark chocolate and some gentle nuances of freshly ground espresso.  Randa Warren - Master Sommelier

Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 2014
Price: $225.00    Sale $198.00

“2014 marks the debut of 100% estate fruit from TVH’s surrounding vineyards . . . and what a debut it is!  Dark black cherry fruit tiptoes in blackberry with subtle hints of anise, black pepper, and perfumed violets.  Concentrated fruit envelops a moderate to firm tannin structure giving Cabernet lovers the balanced backbone they crave out of the chutes.  While throttled back power and elegance reign supreme now, I can’t wait to see the complexities that will continue to develop as this wine ages to perfection.” –  Dean Williams - Certified Sommelier

Menu

Selection of Cheese: Beemster, Parmesan Reggiano
Grilled Portobello and Vegetable short Stack with aged Balsamic and sundried tomato vinaigrette
Short Rib with Cabernet Sauvignon natural sauce and Fried Polenta Croutons

The fee for this event is $175 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com

A bit about The Vineyard House

The Vineyard House (TVH) is an exceptional and rare Cabernet Sauvignon created by proprietor Jeremy Nickel as a tribute to his late father Gil Nickel, founder of three of Napa’s most acclaimed wineries: Far Niente, Nickel & Nickel, and Dolce.  Like his father before him, Jeremy’s vision for TVH is to build a world-class estate winery around his one-of-a-kind property in Oakville, and to produce an extraordinary and inspirational Cabernet Sauvignon that is at once drinkable and collectible. To that end, TVH has received rave reviews and held its own twice in blind tastings against Napa’s most renowned cult wines.  TVH takes its name from a 19th century farmhouse surrounded by vineyards in a picturesque valley in Oakville, California.  Known  as The Vineyard House, the home was built in 1853 by William  Baldridge, one of Napa’s most prominent citizens. It was bestowed to  Jeremy by Gil when he passed away in 2003.

Jeremy is proud to continue the family tradition of great winemaking.  “Here’s to all we do that would make our fathers proud!

"My father taught me many life lessons, one of which was “never compromise on quality.” The Vineyard House Cabernet Sauvignon is a tribute to my father’s commitment to excellence, as well as his passion for fine Cabernet. An “Okie from Muskogee,” who established three of Napa Valley’s most iconic brands, Gil Nickel was not only my father, but my hero, whose lessons continue to inspire me every day. here’s to our fathers!"  Jeremy Nickel