Order in for 1 3 pack. I did have the option to WL another, but sticking with 1. Love the vineyard and character of the ‘18 vintage so it’s not painful to take a flier. Bruce mentioned it when I visited recently but didn’t have any to taste. If he’s happy with it and feels like it does the vineyard proud, then that’s good enough for me!
In my correspondence with Bruce he said I would receive an email tomorrow so maybe he is doing it in tiers?
Order in with Bruce. 3-pack with a WL option for 1 more. No mags or large format options on my allocation.
In for a two pack (ouch). This has become one of my top wines so all in.
Sold out! Congrats to Bruce & Co.
Wow, sold out in roughly 8 hours. Congrats to Bruce and Heather! Can’t wait for this one.
Woohoo got one!
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Just got my shipping confirmation, however, low temps in Wisconsin are negative this week. A little disappointed these weren’t held, as the email said ‘weather permitting’.
I emailed Bruce, but something tells me if nothing is done, there will be grape popsicles on my doorstep come Friday.
Edit: FedEx tracking says my order is being delivered to VHR, not my address. WI is not on the list of permitted states for VHR and I’ve always had to use a 3rd party shipper that Bruce arranges. I wonder what is going on with this one…
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i look forward to hearing what people think about it
Also got shipping confirmation, but my wine is heading to Atlanta. It seems like FedEx usually takes a Southerly route to GA/FL (through NM/TX) which is good because most of the country looks positively frigid this week. But even looking toward the end of the week, if it passes through Little Rock, AR, for example, they’re looking at PM temps in the low 20s this week. Not sure what the alc% is on the wine, but that’s in the ballpark of freeze-able weather.
FWIW, my Caterwaul shipment survived being stuck for 3 days in temps between 10-20 degrees last month. The wine arrived without issues (i.e. no popped corks, etc.) so hopefully low 20s won’t be an issue. With the packaging Bruce uses, I think it gives these bottles a little extra insulation versus other shipments, but still doesn’t make you feel good.
It’s definitely a head scratcher why these weren’t held for better temps.
IIRC VHR ships with bottles actually in the OWC with the OWC sort of “shock mounted” inside a cardboard box (like apple ships computers and tablets). But there’s no insulation at all, is there?
Mine have previously shipped with a form-fitting, dense styro/foam surrounding the OWC. It has not been cardboard. Not sure if it’s different packing for different regions, or why there’d be a difference, but just my experience
This list tough to get on?
Hard to tell. I’ve been on the list and buying since the 2010 or 2011 vintage. Also visited Bruce at the cottage a few times for tastings. Maybe someone else will chime in who only signed up in the last year or two.
AFAIK there is no wait for the regular VHR (which is fantastic)… though there may be now with all the score hoopla the past few years. I love the site and style wise I think Francoise is the perfect winemaker for it.
The extended age is a new bottling and I would guess that some combination of length of past support + enthusiasm to visit the site - which Bruce is super passionate about - determines who got offered extended age. I don’t know that the wine itself is objectively better than the “regular” VHR, but it will be a different expression, and if you appreciate the site then that makes it interesting and worthwhile.
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I signed up for the 2016 vintage and was able to immediately purchase, but I wasn’t offered the EBA mentioned in this thread.
Just to follow-up on the edit above, Bruce made an error in the shipment details and send the package to VHR and not my WI address. He told me hold the shipment until end of Feb and use new wine once it goes out. As usual, Bruce goes above and beyond to try to rectify any issue. Great wines and an even better person behind them.
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Curious, been buying since the 2010 vintage, but never received an email about this release. Hmmm.
For reference, I bought 15/16/18, visited the property, and introduced another couple that have been enthusiastic buyers for the last few years and did not receive mention of the EBA (other than here).