Nickel & Nickel Is Starting to Roll

The first vintage of Nickel & Nickel wines under Harden adhered to the winery’s existing house style, a more old-school approach that favored savory notes and sometimes rustic tannins. Before Harden, each wine was treated exactly the same through the vinification and aging, with the idea that by keeping the winemaking protocols the same, each vineyard would speak to its own terroir. In theory, that would work …

But Harden has slowly shifted away from that approach, feeling that different vineyards deserve different protocols, so each gets a chance to put its best foot forward. Gone is the one-size-fits-all approach during vinifications, with some lots seeing extended macerations, others less. After all, valley floor fruit offers a different fruit and tannin profile than mountain fruit—and Nickel & Nickel has the full range coming through its cellar. Native yeast ferments increase the variability as well.