After six years in the making, this Fairhaven vineyard is ready to finally pour their wine

FAIRHAVEN — After six years, hidden on 52 acres off New Boston Road, the Nasketucket Bay Vineyard opened to the public on April 5.

This vineyard is a dream come true for owner Nicholas Christy, who has been making homemade wine for over 20 years with friends and family.

“My grandfather started making wine when he came over from Italy, and we drank his wine,” Christy said. “So as self-consumption hobbyists, I have a couple of good friends who we continue doing this with over the years and it became a big interest for me.”

In 2016, Christy bought the property for his construction business. “It was 52 acres and there was no reason we needed all of it,” he admitted. “But it was a two-family house and two incomes paid, so it was a no-brainer.”

As they began clearing the land, they came across a trailer truck and two boats. With the help of friends and family, they cleared the land, put in roads and created a construction yard. As they were clearing, Christy saw the potential for agriculture and decided to try his hand at grape-growing.

The wines are all named after Frank Sinatra songs

The first year, they planted a third of an acre and were amazed to see 85 pounds of grapes. “We made some wine and pressed it. ... We literally just threw all the varieties together," he said.

“We tried red grapes and two different lights and we mixed them all together because it was enough to fill one thing, but we pressed it down to like maybe five gallons of juice and blended all the reds and whites together."

From this first batch of wine came the inspiration for Nasketucket Bay Vineyard.

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While Christy will admit that he doesn’t have plans of producing award-winning wine, he is determined to produce enjoyable and drinkable wine for his customers.

The bottles are named after Frank Sinatra songs such as their "It Was A Very Good Year," a 2021 Marquette Rosie with flavors of pomegranate and red raspberry and "I've Got You Under My Skin," a 2022 light red field blend, with a dry and fruity taste.

The "Summer Wind" is a 2023 Cab Franc Pinot Noir blend with notes of cranberry, raspberry and chocolate.

The white wine collection includes "You Make Me Feel So Young," a 2023 pink Riesling with sweet honeysuckle and pear flavors, and "It Had to Be You," a 2023 Chardonnay with vanilla, pineapple, and sugar cane notes. The "One for My Baby" wine is a 2023 Pinot Grigio with dry, crisp, and bright honey, citrus, and green apple notes.

Nasketucket Bay Vineyard also has a limited edition sparkling pear Chardonnay called "Fly Me to the Moon" that will be available for tastings in the future.

What to expect when visiting Nasketucket Bay Vineyard

Thursday through Sunday, the vineyard offers a wine-tasting event where customers can sample five 1-ounce pours of wines they select using a provided card. They also have a wine flight option, with four 2-ounce pours of wines.

But the experience of the vineyard goes beyond just the wine, it's also about enjoying the property. “There’s something about this place that kind of gets me and I wanted to preserve what it is,” added Christy.

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With this in mind, Nasketucket Bay Vineyard also offers a variety of specialty foods to go with the tasting, including cheeses, crackers, salamis and more. “We’re both Italian, we’re foodies. Food is so important, and natural food and wine go hand in hand,” Christy said.

Visitors can create their own picnic baskets and enjoy their wine in the Adirondack chairs and around the fire pits and a 12-foot custom fireplace. On weekends, there will also be food trucks and live music, adding to the overall experience of the vineyard.

The vineyard is all about supporting the local community

According to Marketing and Events Director Angelique Castriano, the vineyard is a true labor of love, with a focus on supporting the local community.

"We have a lot of local artists doing stuff," said Castriano. "A lot of the stuff is locally sourced as much as we could. Same thing with the food too. If I could locally source, I did.

On Thursday nights, they will host a maker's sessions, featuring a different local artist every other Thursday starting in June. "They'll come in and teach a class after hours," said Castriano.

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Castriano said they have created enough wine for what they think will get them through the year, with plans to be open until hopefully the end of November or when they run out of wine.

Inviting everyone to see the magic of farming

"If we still have wine at the end of November, then we'll probably stay open until Christmas. So we'll try to take advantage of that because, I mean, this place just lends itself to Christmas all day long."

Castriano has been trying to figure out the exact history of the location. "The barn has been here probably for like 100 years or so," she said. "I'm still trying to hunt down the original owners or a descendant of the original owners to get more information on that because I want photographs. I want more information.. I know a dairy farm was first and then after that, it was the horse stable."

For Christy, he is committed to being a good steward of the land, using all-natural methods for farming, such as using fish emulsion and avoiding herbicides. “To me, it’s like magic growing stuff. When I grow a garden. I watched my grandfather tend his garden, everything that came out of it. It’s like magic,” he said, adding that he will also offer tours to the guests.

"There’s something about this place and I want to share that."

Standard-Times staff writer Seth Chitwood can be reached at schitwood@s-t.com. Follow him on twitter:@ChitwoodReports. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Nasketucket Bay Vineyard, Fairhaven wine tasting room opens