Vineyard 36

Vineyard 36 is a partnership between two former NHL players and teammates on the Carolina Hurricanes, Cam Ward and Tim Gleason and founder of Napa based Tobacco Road Cellars, Jason Earnest. Cam enjoyed a long career with the Carolina Hurricanes as goalie before being traded to the Chicago Blackhawks and then the Charlotte Checkers before joining the Carolina Hurricanes for one day so he could retire as a member of that team (2019). He was part of the 2006 Hurricanes team who won the Stanley Cup by beating the Edmonton Oilers that season in the finals. And that same year he won the Conn Smythe Trophy in recognition of being the most valuable player in the playoffs. Tim also played for many years as a defenseman for the Carolina Hurricanes as well as several other teams before retiring from the NHL in 2015. Currently he is an assistant coach for the Hurricanes. For reference, a ‘caniac’ is a hard-core Carolina Hurricanes fan. Cam and Tim were introduced to Jason through their mutual interest in the wines of Tobacco Road Cellars. Jason has since sold this brand.

Cam’s introduction to the world of wine was through an older teammate Ray Whitney who played with Cam on the Hurricanes for several years. Since initially learning about wine from Ray, Cam has become a significant collector of wines, primarily from Napa Valley.

The name Vineyard 36 was created by combining the two men’s jersey numbers that they wore while playing together for the Carolina Hurricanes: Ward #30 and Gleason #6. Vineyard 36 does not own vineyards, rather they source grapes from exceptional sites. Instead of creating vineyard designate wines, they focus on crafting the best possible wines from multiple vineyards each year. Through Jason, they established close relations with Andy Beckstoffer and source from several of his vineyards including Georges III in Rutherford and Orchard Avenue Vineyard, located just north of the city of Napa which is known for its premium Merlot.

The inaugural vintage from 2012 was made by winemaker David Tate (Barnett Vineyards, Tate Vineyards); he produced these wines through the 2015 vintage. With David needing to focus on Barnett Vineyards and his own wines, he was no longer able to make the Vineyard 36 wines. Master Sommelier and the Vineyard 36 Directory of Hospitality at that time Scott Barber was already familiar with Emerson Brown, the personal label co-owned by talented winemaker Keith Emerson. Scott (who we originally met with) introduced Keith to the partners; Keith was soon hired and took over during the 2016 harvest. His first complete vintage of Vineyard 36 was in 2017.

Keith is from Boston and was planning to attend culinary school to become a chef when he came across an article mentioning the possibility of going to school to learn wine making. This sparked his interest, so he moved to California, attended UC Davis and ultimately graduated with a degree in Fermentation Science with an emphasis on Enology and Viticulture.

After graduating, Keith came to Napa and worked his first harvest at Cakebread. From there he worked at Gundlach Bundschu winery (the oldest continuously operating family-owned winery in the state of California) in neighboring Sonoma County; he is currently their Executive winemaker. And later a wine maker friend referred him to a position at Vineyard 29 in St. Helena. Today Keith is the Director of Winemaking at Vineyard 29.

Vineyard 36 was originally made at Judd’s Hill Winery but since Keith took over, winemaking has been moved to the world class and state of the art production facility at Vineyard 29.

Select Wines
Black Aces and The Foundation are the two wines they produce the most of each year and both are selectively distributed; their other bottlings are generally around 100 case productions. The Vineyard 36 wines are always balanced and present a comfortable but noticeable tannin profile upon their release. With that said, these wines are also built to age.

Black Aces
Black Aces is a barrel selection from that year’s vintage. 2016 was the first vintage of this wine. One might be tempted when seeing the label to associate this wine with gambling. But that is not the case. In fact, the name originates from legendary hockey player Eddie Shore who owned a minor league team in the 1940s. He used to refer to players as Black Aces identifying those who weren’t actually on the team but might need to be called up to play for whatever reason (usually an injury to one of the primary players); the name references the ace of spades which when dealt in card games is thought of as bad luck. Today Black Aces is a more positive term as it relates to hockey; players (typically from the American Hockey League A.H.L.), are selectively brought up to help win games.

The 2022 Vineyard 36 The Black Aces is deep ruby in color; the beautiful aromatics are strongly focused on its fruit characteristics while the oak remains a ‘picture frame’, a complementary character to the star of the show. On the bouquet there are aromatics of blackberry, plum, dark raspberry and dark cherry with a layer of dried rose petals and dark cocoa powder. A little brambly. The palate reveals flavors of blackberry, dark plum, boysenberry, blackberry and mulberry. Remarkably smooth straight out of the gate this wine will immediately appeal to those who favor a lighter textural profile. The tannins sport an almost creamy character. The finish is highly polished with texture, flavor and acidity all seamlessly integrated. Finishes with a gentle note of toasted oak, but is in no way woodsy. This wine is a blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon from Beckstoffer owned Georges III and Renteria 360 vineyards and 2% Merlot from Beckstoffer’s Orchard Avenue in the Oak Knoll District. Despite its diminutive percentage, this valley floor grown Merlot certainly contributes a softness to the overall texture in this wine.

The 2016 Vineyard 36 Black Aces is dark crimson in the glass; the wine offers dark and seductive aromas – powerful fruit with plenty of aromatic depth including plum, blackberry, black licorice, and a distinctive dessert spice nuance including mocha and chocolate brownies. Immediately noticeable on the palate is the density, yet also a suppleness; in addition to its overall character, this is a wine that is highly enjoyable simply for its seamless texture across the palate. And like with their other wines, if one looks closely, you can make out all the lines on the label representing skate marks on ice.

OVR
The 2022 Vineyard 36 OVR Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville is 100% varietal; this wine is deep ruby and opaque. The bouquet offers an initial note of dried herbs, but is not herbal; this includes a note of thyme and a garrigue like quality. These scents are quickly displaced by its ripe fruit. The fruit is dark with aromas of boysenberry, blackberry and plum with an accompanying note of dark cocoa powder and a subtle hint that reminded us of La Florentine Torrone, an Italian boxed candy. Generous to a fault, the palate offers plenty of fruit, sans huge mountain tannins. Its flavors are both red and dark fruited and include dark raspberry, cherry, blackberry and plum with a hint of cinnamon stick on the finish. The lightly grainy tannins linger beyond the fruit with a light drying and chalky character. Highly approachable in its youth. Only 4 barrels of this wine was produced. And the GPS coordinates of Oakville Ranch are listed on the label.

Five Bands
The 2022 Vineyard 36 Five Bands was a barrel selection from all lots from the following two vineyards: Georges III in Rutherford and Renteria 360 in Oakville. Perhaps in the future this wine will be made from five vineyards, as an homage to its name. It is deep ruby and nearly opaque; dark and lightly moody, its moodiness quickly transitions to playfulness as the wine evolves. Initially there are aromatics of leather and toasted oak (but not woodsy), espresso, coffee grinds, with blackberry, dark cherry and plum. The aromas are a union of both fruit and barrel influences. And as a flagship wine should be, this bottling delivers plenty of layers in terms of both aromatics and flavor. On the palate it offers notes of blackberry, dark cherry, boysenberry and plum with a lingering note of coffee grinds, Graham cracker and espresso. The tannins are dusty; their textural profile leans far towards a rounded character rather than an edgy one. This is their flagship wine and is highly allocated; the majority of its minuscule production goes to club members.

The attractive and shiny metallic label will stand out on any wine shelf or display case. The name Five Bands refers to the bottom of the Stanley Cup which contains five metallic bands; each band is engraved with the names of players of winning Stanley Cup teams from 13 years increments. The names from the most recent winners are added to the bottom band; after 13 years this band is filled with names and is then slip up one slot. When this happens, the top band is removed and displayed at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. Based on this tradition, a winning name will be displayed on the cup for 65 years. Cam was one of the names engraved on a band from the the 2006 Stanley Cup. And wine from this label has been poured into the Stanley Cup trophy several times by winning players the cup.

The only professional hockey game we have ever seen in person was at RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday October 4, 2011; both Cam and Tim were playing for the Hurricanes at that time. We identified their numbers in several of our photographs from that evening as well as cross referenced the box score on ESPN. For reference, the Hurricanes beat the Sabres that night 4-3, in the beginning of a season that would eventually see them place 5th in their division.

Foundation
The 2016 Vineyard 36 Foundation Red Blend is primarily Merlot (98% Merlot; 2% Cabernet Sauvignon). A captivating and layered bouquet draws one in immediately with its sweet aromatics (both fruit and dessert spices) including raspberry and brown sugar, cinnamon and hints of tobacco leaf. This bottling offer flavors of blackberry and boysenberry. But what really stands out with this wine is the texture, featuring a tannin profile that coats the palate from start to finish softly with a chalkiness if you will. The finish is lengthy and is not about the grip of structure but rather about the suppleness, a soft texture that persists for some time. It is very approachable young.

Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2016 Vineyard 36 Cabernet Sauvignon shows red and darker fruits on the bouquet including a hint of spicy plum and currant. As the wine breathes a sweetness of fruit is revealed along with a dark chocolate component. It is very balanced on the palate, offering red and dark fruits. The finish features a noticeable grip of tannins which are not muscular but certainly long lasting. It also features an excellent acidity with a mouthwatering and lively finish. This is a perfectly balanced wine, even in its youth.

—

As of our latest update to this review, Vineyard 36 produces six wines. They no longer produce Crosscheck a proprietary blend which changed each year and featured an image of Tim after a particular bad cross-checking during a game in which he received numerous facial stitches due to an injury. The label depicted a raised relief of the stitches. And Unmask is also no longer produced, but was a California red blend with Petite Sirah as the dominant variety featuring a profile of Cam and his hockey mask on the label.

Total production is currently around 1,000 cases per year with select retail distribution in New York, Chicago, Michigan, North Carolina and Texas. The wines have been highly rated by a variety of critics. Tastings are by appointment for serious wine enthusiasts looking for under-the-radar noteworthy hand-crafted wines with priority given to their mailing list members. All visits are hosted at Vineyard 29 in St. Helena where the Vineyard 36 wines are produced. An interest in hockey is a plus but not required. And in addition to wine, sometimes complementary Vineyard 36 products are available on their website.

We will leave you with their uplifting motto, “passion becomes contagious when shared”. For more information, to join their allocation list in order to purchase current release wines, visit: www.vineyard36.com

October 4, 2011 RBC Center, Carolina Hurricanes vs Buffalo Sabres