Syrah

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After our phenomenal visit to Michel-Schlumberger, we did a little driving around Dry Creek Valley just taking in the beautiful rolling hills and vineyards. This creek was not-so-dry 😉

Dry Creek Valley

We loved our rental Prius. Isn’t it cute?

Our rental Prius

And on our way to check into Bella Villa Messina, we happened upon Amista Vineyards.

Many gorgeous wineries can be found in Northern California, and there are many outstanding wines to be tasted, so what often makes a winery visit stand out a little bit further are the people behind the tasting counter. That was the case at Amista.

Amista Vineyards

Down a long, rocky driveway flanked on both sides by vines, you will find Amista’s airy tasting room. High ceilings and tons of space give it a serene, uncluttered feel.

Amista Vineyards

To my astonishment and delight, after I had emailed them to mention we would be stopping by, Amista welcomed us with a sign on the tasting bar. Just looking at the below photo makes me smile and makes me a little emotional, to be honest. We weren’t just two people stopping in to taste wine. It was the best welcome we could have ever gotten.

Amista Tasting Room

We looked around the tasting room a bit, and we discovered these BRILLIANT little tasting packs. We ended up buying two, and thankfully we were able to bring them home. The security agents were not happy with us; apparently only 4 of these little bottles fit into one of those plastic bags, so that is the limit per person. The third box that we had received as a gift from DeLoach was probably pushing it, but we got through this time. I will be sure to ship them next time when we visit in cooler weather.

Amista wine tasting pack

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It wasn’t long before Kari and Clayton got us down to tasting some wine. The first was one that I had been looking forward to after reviewing Amista’s website, 2008 Rosé of Syrah. This is a lovely, dry Rosé with a nice level of acidity, perfect for those who do not like their wine too sweet. It would be a great addition to a summer barbeque.

We tasted through the regular tasting menu which offered several great wines including their juicy, round 2006 Saini Farms Zinfandel, one of the grapes that the Dry Creek Valley is known for. But as I mentioned in my Michel-Schlumberger post, it was Syrah that I really ended up finding here.

As part of our tasting, Clayton brought out Amista Morningstar Vineyards Syrah from 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 for a vertical tasting. The cork imprint of the 2003 shows just how purple in color the wine is.

Amista Vineyards Syrah

Amista Tasting Menu - Syrah Amista Syrah

It was fun to taste through the years to discover the differences in flavors from vintage to vintage. My favorite? Well, I loved them all, but I was absolutely crazy about the 2005.It had a nose of freshly brewed coffee.This wine had big flavors, to me a little bit of roasted hazelnut, a little bit earthy, and a little bit of dark fruit. Simply perfect.

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Amista’s wines are made with so much care; you can see that by looking around the tasting room and chatting with the staff, and you can learn more about the owners and their award winning wines on their website.

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We left Amista happy and as proud new wine club members. We were sad to go, but something tells me we will be driving down this road again soon.

Amista Vineyards

Dry Creek Valley grapes

wine grapes

Don’t forget to enter my two giveaways: Taza Chocolate which ends tonight and Harvard Sweet Boutique which ends tomorrow night. And if you missed it yesterday, check out my recipe on Travessia Urban Winery’s blog.

Tags: Amista Vineyards, California, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma, Syrah, Travel, vineyards, wine, winery

Pardon the dust. Many of these bottles have been in boxes in our downstairs storage space to keep them as cool as possible. Now that we finally have our new wine fridge (yay!) I decided to undertake the much needed task of seeing what wine we have actually bought/acquired over the years. The full list is below. I did my best to be as specific as possible as far as regions and grapes go for our own personal wine drinking and travel planning use 🙂 In case you are at all interested. . .

I’ll be back with a real post later including some fun farmer’s market finds, a get together with some ladies from Boston Sports Woman, and date night at Les Zygomates. I will also announce the winner of my blog birthday giveaway.  For now, have a good Saturday!

 

house wine with a side of dust

1978 Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
1980 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena, Napa Valley, CA
2000 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Grenache/ Mourvedre/ Cincault, Counoise, Muscardin and Vaccarese Rhone, France
2000 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Grenache/ Mourvedre/ Cincault, Counoise, Muscardin and Vaccarese Rhone, France
2001 Castello delle Regine Cabernet Sauvignon/ Merlot/ Sangiovese Umbria, Italy
2003 LaJoya Syrah Colchagua Valley, Chile
2003 Northstar Merlot Walla Walla Valley, WA
2004 Parducci Zinfandel/ Syrah/ Petite Syrah Mendocino County
2004 Adaras Red Blend Almansa, Spain
2005 Cossentino Nero D’avola Sicily, Italy
2005 Santonegro Monastrell Jumilla Spain
2005 Hook & Ladder Zinfandel Russian River Valley
2005 Hook & Ladder Zinfandel Russian River Valley
2005 Clos du Val Merlot Napa Valley, CA
2005 Santonegro Monastrell Jumilla, Spain
2005 Gundlach Bundschu Syrah Sonoma Valley, CA
2005 Santonegro Monastrell Jumilla, Spain
2005 Santonegro Monastrell Jumilla, Spain
2005 Castello di Amorosa Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, CA
2005 Running Brook Vineyards Chardonnay Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2005 Casa Santos Lima Syrah/Castelao Alenquer, Portugal
2006 Domaine de Durban Muscat Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France
2006 Fitch Mountain Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley, CA
2006 Castello di Amorosa Merlot Napa Valley, CA
2006 Castello di Amorosa Merlot Napa Valley, CA
2006 Casa Zuliani Cabernet Franc Friuli, Italy
2006 Rodney Strong Port: mainly Zinfandel / Syrah blend Sonoma
2006 Tierra Divina Old Vine Malbec Valle de Uco &Mendoza, Argentina
2006 Mockingbird Hill Petite Syrah Napa Valley
2006 Casa Zuliani Cabernet Franc Friuli, Italy
2006 Rodney Strong Port: mainly Zinfandel / Syrah blend Sonoma
2006 Monte Volpe Zinfandel/ Sangiovese / Carignane / Negroamaro Mendocino County
2006 La Casilla Red Blend Castilla y Leon, Spain
2006 Gundlach Bundschu Merlot Alexander Valley, CA
2006 Bell Wine Cellars Claret: Cabernet Sauvignon/Syrah/Petite Verdot/ Merlot/ Cabernet Franc/ Malbec Rutherford, CA
2006 Portteus Merlot Rattlesnake Hills, WA
2006 Schiopetto Pinot Bianco Friuli, Italy
2007 Gundlach Bundschu Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Valley, CA
2007 Gundlach Bundschu Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Valley, CA
2007 Belle Vallee Pinot Gris Willamette Valley, OR
2007 Shannon Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon/ Syrah/Zinfandel High Valley, Mendocino County, CA
2007 Venge Vineyards Gladys’s Vineyard Syrah Dry Creek Valley
2007 Venge Vineyards Gladys’s Vineyard Syrah Dry Creek Valley
2007 Rodney Strong Zinfandel Alexander Valley
2007 Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon Apalta Valley, Chile
2007 Castello di Amorosa Barbera Napa Valley, CA
2007 Rodney Strong Zinfandel Alexander Valley, CA
2007 Rodney Strong Zinfandel Russian River Valley & Alexander Valley, CA
2007 Rodney Strong Chardonnay Chalk Hill, Sonoma Valley, CA
2007 Running Brook Vineyards Cabernet Franc Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2007 Running Brook Vineyards Auslesen White Wine Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2007 DeLoach Zinfandel Sonoma Valley, CA
2007 Gundlach Bundschu Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast, CA
2007 Travessia Vidal Blanc Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Gundlach Bundschu Chardonnay Sonoma Coast, CA
2008 Nicosia Nerello Mascalese Sicily, Italy
2008 Planeta Nero D’avola/ Frappato Sicily, Italy
2008 Banrock Station Shiraz Australia
2008 Travessia Rosé (Proprietary Blend) Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Zichichi Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley, CA
2008 Venge Vineyards Late Harvest Zinfandel Oakville, Napa Valley, CA
2008 Venge Vineyards Late Harvest Zinfandel Oakville, Napa Valley, CA
2008 Laurenz V Grüner Veltliner Austria
2008 Gouguenheim Cabernet Sauvignon Mendoza, Argentina
2008 Zichichi Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley
2008 Zichichi Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley
2008 Planeta Nero D’avola/ Frappato Sicily
2008 Nicosia Nerello Mascalese Sicily
2008 Rodney Strong Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
2008 Rodney Strong Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
2008 Enanzo Tempranillo Navarra Spain
2008 Travessia Rosé (Proprietary Blend) Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Travessia Rosé (Proprietary Blend) Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Travessia Rosé (Proprietary Blend) Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Travessia Rosé (Proprietary Blend) Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Travessia Chardonnay Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Travessia Pinot Grigio Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
2008 Malvasia Dell’Emilia Malvasia Emilia-Romagna, Italy
2008 Travessia Chardonnay Massachusetts / Southeastern New England
Ruinart Chardonnay Champagne (Reims), France

Tags: Cabernet, Cabernet Franc, chardonnay, Grenache, merlot, Monastrell, Nero D'avola, Petit Sirah, Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Syrah, wine, wine list, Zinfandel

Happy Monday! How was the weekend? Mine kicked off with a fabulous event at the beautiful Morton’s restaurant on Boylston St in Boston.

Morton’s subterranean downtown Boston location evokes a classic old Boston and is filled with lovely touches like flowers, bottles of wine, and even some Boston sports memorabilia.

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The wine tasting was held in a back room, and there were a variety of great choices from six vendors, Harborside Wine Company, Boston Wine, Ruby Wines, Horizon Beverage, Martignetti, and M.S. Walker.

tasting notes

There was also a delectable spread of food and passed appetizers from Morton’s famed kitchen. I wanted to eat those entire blocks of cheese!

cheese and fruit display

Super fresh veggies, including giant asparagus, were served with Morton’s legendary homemade blue cheese.

veggies and blue cheese

Morton’s has some of the best tuna tartare I have ever tasted. I had it just a few weeks ago at their Seaport location, and I literally crave its deliciousness.

tuna tartare cucumbers

In addition to these platters, they also served smoked salmon on toast triangles, mini burger sliders, crab cakes, and giant scallops marinated in a tasty sauce. The scallops were so sweet and meaty. It really was an impressive array of food and really highlighted the way that Morton’s uses only the best ingredients in their food.

There were many wines, and while I won’t write about all of them, I did have a few favorites, and most of them were actually at one table, Boston Wine.

2005 Bradford Mountain Syrah from the Dry Creek Valley

2006 ZD Napa Cabernet

2006 Regusci Cabernet 

2005 Marchesi di Barolo, Barolo

Morton’s holds a variety of events, and I am planning on attending their wine tasting series once the marathon is over. For a complete list, check out this post.

The marathon is a week away, and there is still time to sponsor me and to support The ALLY Foundation by visiting http://firstgiving.com/meghanmalloyteamally

I have not reached my fundraising goal yet, but I am not going to stop until I make it!

 

Tags: Barolo, Boston, Cabernet Sauvignon, events, Food, Morton's, Syrah, wine

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