Harris Bridge Vineyard

At Harris Bridge Vineyard winemakers Nathan and Amanda make pinot gris and pinot noir vermouth, aperitifs, dessert wines, and brandy. We harvest our grapes around 23 Brix, earlier than traditional ice wines or other “late harvest” dessert wines, which gives the grapes ample acidity and the finished wine complexity and balance. After freezing the grapes and loading them, whole cluster, into the press only the first juices that melt are what are used to make the wine, with fermentations starting at close to 40 Brix. The first cut, a rich, flavorful concentrate is what is fermented for the dessert wines, the second cut, a lighter version of the first is used for distilling into brandy and blending into the vermouths and aperitifs. Making dessert wines from grapes with optimal pH levels, sugar content and skin maturity offer so much more than just a sweet wine. With strength, varietal character, and age-ability, Harris Bridge wines balance the purity and terroir of the grapes with the handcrafted elements of the winemaking process. The vermouth and aperitifs, blended with organic botanicals, and brandy, are interesting and complex, heralding traditional amaro and vermouth while maintaining a unique style all their own. Currently, the brandy is ageing in barrel and awaiting release.

An Aperitif {stemming from the Latin root “to open”} is a drink taken before a meal as an opening to the evening. Vermouth {a type of aperitif} is an aromatized wine that has been infused with any number of herbs, roots, seeds, and fruits. The earliest vermouths, dating back 2-3,000 years were concocted of plants found to aid digestion and treat ailments. In the late 1700s in Torino, Italy vermouth became popular among the café culture and was traditionally served up at the end of the workday as an aperitivo or prelude to dinner.

At Harris Bridge, we believe in an appreciation of food and friends and the concept of long meals and saving room for dessert and belly laughs and saving time for a nightcap because the conversation and the night air is too good. The concept of an after-dinner drink to end a meal or an aperitif to end the workday goes hand in hand with the idea of slowing down to appreciate the food that is nourishing us, the friends and family that surround us and the valley we call home.