1997 Dry Creek Vineyard Petite Sirah

Dry Creek Vineyard was a pioneering project when it was started in 1972. David Stare was working for the railroad in the late 1960s when he realized his real passion was for wine, especially the wines he’d come to love during vacations to the Loire Valley. He enrolled in the viticulture program at the University of California at Davis and in 1972 found an old orchard to buy in Dry Creek Valley. He planted Sauvignon Blanc against the advice of nearby grape growers, who said the grape wouldn’t succeed in Dry Creek Valley. Within a few years the estate was producing Fume Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet, Chardonnay and Zinfandel. Dry Creek Vineyard was the first estate in Dry Creek Valley since Prohibition and the first to use the Dry Creek Valley appellation. Today the estate has 185 acres of vineyards and is still owned and operated by the Stare family, though the president is now daughter Kim Stare Wallace. Tim Bell is winemaker. The estate is known for Fume Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and especially its Zinfandel, which is consistently complimented by reviewers. Robert M. Parker Jr. has called the estate “one of the historic wineries...Dry Creek is among the pioneers in the movement for high-quality Zinfandels.”

Despite its popularity, this grape is quite rare. Less than 10,000 acres are planted worldwide, with the bulk in California. In France, the grape is referred to as Durif. Not to be confused with Syrah, Petite Sirah is a cross of Syrah and Peloursin. The result is darker and fuller.