Winemaker Notes
100% Petite Sirah
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A 30-year wine at minimum is the 2014 Petite Sirah Old Vines, which comes from the Frediani Vineyard in Calistoga that was planted in 1939. This wine spent 21 months in half new French oak barrel. Petite Sirah lovers will go crazy over this wine, which is inky purple in color and offers up notes of graphite, white flowers, black raspberry and blueberry fruit, a full-bodied mouthfeel, terrific extraction and richness, but also impressive purity and sweet tannin. Drink it over the next 25-30+ years
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.