Shannon Ridge Petite Sirah 2008

Served With: Shish Kabobs

Five Things: inky, dusty, dark berries, spice, mossy evergreens and cedar

COO: North Coast, Lake County, California

Notes: A journey through a dark old temperate deciduous forest pays off with a juicy and spicy petite sirah that played off the smoked paprika on all of the kabobs elements quite nicely. This would be great for your next late night grilling session.

Website: Shannon Ridge

Rating: Very Good

Tags: Shannon Ridge, Petite Sirah, 2008, North Coast, Lake County, California

Vinum Cellars PETS Petite Sirah 2007

Served With: Stir-fry

Five Things: inky, earthy, juicy, berry, tannins on finish

COO: Clarksburg, California

Notes: This inky juicy wine picked up the Hoisin-based sauce in the stir-fry quite nicely and complimented the dish with a good texture and broad tannins on the finish.

Website: Vinum Cellars

Rating: Very Good

Tags: vinum cellars, petite sirah, california, 2007

Spellbound Petite Sirah 2007

Served With: Torta

Five Things: loamy soil, plum, inky, cocoa, thin

COO: California

Notes: A disappointing wine, with great promise on the nose, but a very thin finish, like it fell off a cliff. Better in the glass than out of it.

Website: Spellbound

Rating: meh.

Tags: petite sirah, california, 2007, spellbound

Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel 2003

Served With: Pasta with Broccoli Rabe & Sausage

Five Things: bramble, black fruit, pepper, medium tannins, long finish

COO: Sonoma County, California

Notes: Sometimes a wine makes you work a little bit for a payoff, and this one did just that. It had the faintest bit of must upon opening (which disappeared), and took a good half hour to open up, and but we were ultimately rewarded once it did. This blend of zinfandel, petite sirah, carignane had well structured tannins and a long finish with a good balance of fruit which played off the mild heat from the sausage and slight bitterness of the broccoli rabe quite well. The moral of the story? Good things come to those who wait ;)

Website: Ridge Vineyards

Rating: Very Good

Tags: sonoma, california, zinfandel, carignane, petite sirah, ridge, dry creek valley

Favorite Wines of 2009

To give you a better idea of what kind of wines I drink, here's a short list (in no particular order) of my favorite wines that were opened in 2009.

Reverie Estate Cabernet Franc 2001
(Napa Valley, Diamond Mountain district, California)

Fort Ross Pinot Noir 2004
(Sonoma, California)

Domaine Serene Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir 2004
(Willamette Valley, Oregon)

Montoya Petite Sirah 2006
(Paso Robles, California)

Peirano Estate Petite Sirah 2006
(Lodi, California)

Cave de Ribeauville Gewurztraminer 2007
(Alsace, France)

Hofer Gruner Veltliner 2007
(Austria)

Holy Cow Merlot 2006
(Columbia Valley, Washington)

Sergio Mottura Orvieto Tragugnano 2007
(Italy)

Owen Roe Sinister Hand 2007
(Columbia Valley, Washington)

Terrazas Malbec 2007
(Mendoza, Argentina)

Hitching Post Fiddlestix Pinot Noir 2003
(Santa Rita Hills, California)

Chateau Fortia Cuvee du Baron 2004
(Chateauneuf-du-Pape, France)

Miguel Torres Manso de Velasco 2004
(Valle de Curicó, Chile)

Primaterra Primitivo 2007
(Puglia, Italy)

Monterey Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir 2007
(Santa Lucia Highlands, California)

Max Ferd. Richter Riesling 2007
(Mosel, Germany)

Laurello Cabernet Franc 2007
(Grand River Valley, Ohio)

Familia Zuccardi Vida Organica Torrontes 2008
(Mendoza, Argentina)

Mas de Gourgonnier 2006
(les Baux de Provence, France)

Tiziano Gold Chianti Classico 2005
(Tuscany, Italy)

Cooper Mountain Cooper Hill Pinot Noir 2007
(Willamette Valley, Oregon)

Tablas Creek Vineyard Cotes de Tablas Blanc 2003
(Paso Robles, California)

20 Bees Ice Bees Cabernet Franc 2005
(Niagra Penisula, Canada)

Villa Teresa Prosecco Veneto
(Italy)

Coturri Chauvet East Block Zinfandel 2005
(Sonoma, California)

Alvear Solera 1927 Pedro Ximenez
(Spain)

Peltier Station USB Zinfandel
(Lodi, California)

Grahams Six Grapes Reserve Porto
(Portugal)

Tags: cabernet franc, pinot noir, petite sirah, gewurztraminer, gruner veltliner, merlot, malbec, chateauneuf-du-pape, primitivo, chianti, port, sherry, xeres, pedro jiminez, zinfandel, organic, biodynamic