The vineyards are green and burgeoning with new growth—well on their way to producing the 2013 vintage—but a lot of us here at the winery are still thinking about 2012. That’s right, we’re talking Nickel & Nickel Napa Cabernet Futures.
Wine Club Manager Julie Zanze shared a bit about Futures and the Thief Club earlier. What we love about the opportunity to acquire these wines right now is that fans are able to snap up their favorite wines among the vintage before they sell out. (If you’re a long-time friend of Nickel & Nickel, you know this happens all too often!)
True, a little patience is required as the wines mature in barrel, undergo bottling and then take on a little more age in bottle—but it’s well worth it. Wines are shipped in late winter of the year the wines release—so lucky 2010 Cabernet Futures buyers have already received their wines this year, while the rest of us are awaiting the August release party.
For more on our Futures program, including 2012 wine notes, our 2012 Futures Diary, information on our Thief Club, and how to acquire 2012 Nickel & Nickel Cabernet Futures, visit our Futures website.
We had a wonderful time at our barrel tasting event on Saturday! We hope you were able to join us. If not, call us at (707) 967-9600 to arrange for a tasting of select 2012 Nickel & Nickel Cabernets. To view our photo album from the event, click here.
Through Auction Napa Valley, the Napa Valley Vintners have contributed nearly $110 million to health, education and housing programs since the charitable auction began in 1981. Each year, the event combines the enjoyment of wine, food and camaraderie with the generosity of hundreds of wineries, guests and volunteers. With this year’s event just a few weeks away, excitement is at an all-time high.
This year, we and our sister wineries have the privilege of partnering with Lamborghini and FlexJet to present an experience that we hope will pique the interests of automobile, wine and travel enthusiasts—and raise important funds for community programs. A week spent with gracious host and winery proprietress Beth Nickel promises to be an experience the lucky winner and his or her three friends won’t forget.
To find out more about this auction lot, click here.
Follow the Auction Napa Valley fun on Twitter using #ANV13.
You can make out like a bandit in more than one way at our upcoming Futures event! On Saturday, May 18, we will introduce our 2012 single-vineyard Cabernets. At this lively barrel tasting celebration our guests have an opportunity to taste and pre-order any of our 14 single-vineyard Cabernets, including two new wines making their debut this year.
Our Cabernet Futures Program is your chance to reserve our Nickel & Nickel wines while they are still aging in the barrel. The French call this process en primeur (literally ‘in youth’). Futures purchasers benefit by reserving the wines they love at current release prices, with the added convenience of receiving them after bottling and without risking a sellout of these limited-production, sought-after wines upon release. Our Nickel & Nickel Futures are available for a limited time each year, from April 30 through July 31, and shipped in early spring 2015.
But the big reward goes to those that buy any 18-bottle Futures purchase with a membership in our Futures Thief Club! Members of this club receive their own etched Nickel & Nickel wine thief–a tool to sample or “steal” wine directly from the barrel. Members then have the opportunity to return to the winery on two occasions over the next several months to experience a private barrel tasting of the wines they purchased as they age and chart their progress.
Get a glimpse of the future and build your cellar collection now. Our 2012 Cabernets promise to steal your heart.
Click here to view the invitation to this event, or for more information call us at (707) 967-9600 or email information@nickelandnickel.com.
With spring in the air we thought we would put together a fun, seasonal recipe that goes great with the 2010 Nickel & Nickel Harris Merlot. This dish really highlights the bright fruits and luxurious structure of the wine. In the kitchen, we tested this dish several times. Not because we needed to work out any recipe flaws, but because we thought it was so delicious.
Herb Roasted Organic Chicken Breast
Caramelized Root Vegetables, Dried Cherry and Tarragon Pearl Couscous
Click here for a printable version of this recipe.
Ingredients
Brine:
2 quarts cold water
¼ cup salt
cup sugar
3 thyme sprigs
1 garlic clove, shelled
1 bay leaf
10 peppercorns
10 coriander seeds
2 organic chicken breasts, bone-in
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt, to taste
White pepper, to taste
Pearl Couscous Salad:
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, diced small
1 cup couscous
2 ½ cup chicken stock
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup dried tart cherries, cut in half
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, chopped
½ tablespoon Banyuls vinegar or sherry vinegar
Black Trumpet Mushrooms:
1 cup black trumpet mushrooms, washed and dried
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Caramelized Root Vegetables:
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 large turnip, diced into ½-inch cubes
1 large parsnip, diced into ½-inch cubes
1 large sweet potato, diced into ½-inch cubes
1 large carrot, diced into ½-inch cubes
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper, to taste
Method
To make the brine, add a quart of water to a medium-sized pot. Add ¼ cup salt, cup sugar, thyme, garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns and coriander seeds to the pot. Bring to a simmer, then shut off the heat and pour the brine into a container with a tight-fitting lid. Add the remaining quart of cold water to the brine and allow to cool to room temperature. Once cooled, add the raw chicken and place in the refrigerator overnight.
Remove the chicken from the brine and place on a paper towel-lined plate to dry. Discard the brine. Put a cast iron pan on medium heat and season chicken with salt and white pepper. Add olive oil to the pan, then add the chicken breasts skin side down. Sear for 3-5 minutes or until golden. Flip chicken over and place in a 350˚F oven for 15 minutes. Baste chicken, using a spoon to capture the juices and reapply to top of chicken. Repeat a couple of times. Bake for 5 more minutes, or until the juices run clear from the chicken. Let rest for 5 more minutes, then slice the meat off the bone and cut each breast into three equal slices from there.
While chicken is cooking, start making the couscous. In a medium sauce pot, add olive oil then shallots and sweat for 30 seconds. Add couscous and stir for another 30 seconds. Add 2 ½ cups chicken stock and ¼ teaspoon salt. Stir and simmer for 8-10 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the couscous is tender. Allow to cool.
Sauté mushrooms in a large pan with olive oil, salt and pepper for about 4-5 minutes. Set aside.
In a large sauté pan, add olive oil, and then add the diced root vegetables. Sauté on medium-high heat, stir and until caramelized, about 4 minutes. Then add 1 tablespoon of butter and set on low heat. Cook for another minute, or until tender.
To assemble, combine cooked couscous, chopped tarragon, halved dried cherries, Banyuls vinegar, black trumpet mushrooms and salt and pepper, to taste, in a medium bowl.
Place a heaping scoop of couscous salad in a strip on each warmed plate. Spoon roasted vegetables parallel to the couscous, then top with sliced chicken. Pop open a bottle of the Nickel & Nickel Harris Merlot and enjoy!
Serves 2
Click here for a printable version of this recipe.
