9 off the vine: August 6, 2011

Our third and final stop for the day was to Slattery Vintage Estates in Nehawka. This was the place that Wendy had actually suggested to us since they were having a musician perform the night we were going to be there. We ventured straight to Slattery from Kimmel Orchards and Jessi and I were completely blown away from the sight before us. The main building was huge and absolutely beautiful, practically a castle in the middle of the Nebraskan countryside. We found a place to park near the rows of vines and walked to the main entrance to the courtyard, still in awe of our surroundings.

We paid our $5 entry to a very friendly lady (who later I found out was Barb Slattery, she and her husband, Mike own SVE) and gawked at the beautiful house and landscaping while we made our way to the tasting room, which was a beautiful set of rooms that was tucked under the Slattery’s home (the aforementioned castle). The tasting room was exactly what I would want if I had a wine cellar. There was a dark wood bar, overstuffed chairs, polished cobblestone floor, and a full on wine cellar alcove tucked into one wall complete with a barred entryway.

The room was full of people taking advantage of the air conditioning before the musician began so Jessi and I parked ourselves at the bar, trying to stay out of the way of the bustling servers. We nabbed a wine list (a four or five page menu, I kid you not) and started flipping through. When the bartender had a spare moment, we asked if we could do a tasting. She kindly explained to us that they stopped tastings at 5:30 on Saturday evenings when they had entertainment. We had missed it by a half an hour! We explained that we were doing the Nebraska wine tour and she said that if we bought some wine, she’d stamp our passports anyway.

Woohoo!

So I overruled Jessi and ordered a bottle of Glacial Till’s Frontenac Rose for us to share (she agreed if she could pick out the second bottle that we knew we would need). We got our passports stamped and purchased probably one of the most unique things that I’ve seen on the tour… sandwich bags full of wine corks. LOVE IT! Jessi and I both got one and it had a wide variety of corks from around the U.S… and they were only a buck!

Jessi and I took our wine and joined the rest of our group at a picnic table to melt in the heat that sometimes strikes Nebraska in the summer and wait for the music to start. We ended up ordering food (the shrimp pizza was awesome, baked in their outdoor stone oven) and more wine while listening to the music, but as we sat there, the wind picked up and blew in a storm. I felt safe, sitting at a table with three paramedics/EMS (I can’t remember what the difference is right now or where any of them were in their training) who were getting updates from people who were watching the storm approach.

Eventually Barb came up to us and told us that they were shutting down the music due to the approaching storm but we were more than welcome to move up to the tented area and enjoy the rest of our evening. We jumped at the suggestion and moved up the hill to the empty tables under the tent before anybody else could.

Jessi and I were finishing our second bottle, Moon Shine from Prairie Creek, when I heard the ladies at the table next to us discussing what wine they would try next. They mentioned Mac’s Creek in Lexington, a vineyard that I’m very familiar with. I couldn’t help myself, I jumped in and suggested they try Buzzard’s Roost, Mac’s Creek’s signature wine. That opened the door to bonding with a table full of older and slightly tipsier wineauxs.

Even with the storm, our visit to Slattery was very fun. Their grapes got hit with a hard frost a few years ago and they lost a lot of their vines. They have not been able to make any of their own wines since. I would love to go back when they get back into production and have their own vintages to sample. We will probably venture back so we can enjoy the entertainment and events they have during the summer and fall. (check out their calendar and other info at www.svevineyards.com)

Slattery Vintage Estates Specs:

5 tastings for $6

Wines and Beers from around Nebraska and the U.S.

Food and lodging available

Souvenir glass for $1 with tasting