Nigel has a vineyard that Haley and Kris Allen will appear at on 10/20

[My Alter Ego]

A bit confused by Nigel's tweet since it opens Oct 12. You'd figure a party on the 12th or 13th.

https://www.facebook.com/VSJWines
Twitter was: VSJWinery, is now http://twitter.com/VSJWines

Wines get decent reviews at least. http://costcowineblog.com/2011/10/20/200...sirah.aspx

http://www.californiawineryadvisor.com/w...n-Juliette

The story begins with a little show called Corkscrewed..... The reality show “Corkscrewed: The Wrath of Grapes” starred the owners of the vineyard Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick. “Corkscrewed: The Wrath of Grapes” was a reality series following the trials and exploits of award-winning entertainment producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick as they make a major investment in a long held dream – owning their own vineyard.

Originally the purchase of the vineyard was planned as a consortium of buyers including Ryan Seacrest, Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell and Simon Fuller, one by one the investors pulled out leaving Nigel and Ken to purchase the beautiful 168 acre vineyard in Paso Robles, California alone.

Problems arose from the outset. Arriving at the vineyard dressed in designer clothing, Lythgoe and Warwick try to convince the jeans-clad owner of their interest in horticulture. From there the hilarities and struggles persist; business collaborations go south; wild boars cause chaos; potential profits dive; and vines become infested with rot. In 2007 the vineyard went into full transformation.

MF8 -- thanks for more of the backstory. As for your confusion, it seems to me that many times businesses open without fanfare, for what ever reason (letting new employees learn the ropes, getting a feel for clientele, timing, etc.), so that isn't necessarily unusual. The fact that Nigel's involved does make it seem weird, however, given his propensity to be splashy about such things.