2014 Amista Syrah Dry Creek Valley Sonoma

Unbeatable Value Single-Site Dry Creek Red

Close your eyes. Now think about how far $17 goes in the California red wine market. Does it get you a single-vineyard wine? One grown and bottled at a small family-run estate in the heart of one of the top AVAs on the North Coast? Today, the answer is yes. Wine Access clients can thank our deep Sonoma County connections for the 2014 Amista Syrah Dry Creek Valley. Harvested by hand from the Morningsong Vineyards in the heart of Dry Creek Valley, the 2014 Syrah delivers Hermitage-like richness, balanced by the acid-cut that has made Dry Creek Zinfandel world-famous. From a vintage that stands as one of the best this decade, this is worth every dime of the $40 it fetches at the winery — at our exclusive $17 price tag, it is simply an unbeatable value.

Every winemaker seems to claim a unique story about entering the wine business, but it’s safe to say that none have done it exactly like Mike Farrow. The chemist planted 150 Cabernet Sauvignon vines at his home in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains back in 1994, and vinified his first vintage in his garage. Not long after crush, Mike accepted a job offer in New Jersey. Never ones to get their priorities mixed up, he and his wife Vicky lugged their precious first vintage—just one barrel of Cabernet—across the country, to complete élevage in their basement in the Garden State.

Fortunately, Farrow hopped on a more traditional path in 1999 when they realized their two-decade dream of owning a winery in Sonoma County. After purchasing a 20-acre vineyard near Healdsburg, they promptly pulled up eight acres of Chardonnay vines—not for Zinfandel, as Dry Creek Valley conventional wisdom would dictate, but to make room for Syrah. The Farrows not only loved Rhône varieties, but also believed they could thrive in the hot days and fog-cooled nights of Dry Creek Valley.

In case you were wondering, the 2014 Syrah from their estate Morningsong Vineyards proves Mike and Vicky were right. It boasts the richness that is a hallmark of California Syrah, and the cooler-climate character—the dried herb and pepper notes—that distinguish Syrah from the northern Rhône. True to that style, winemaker Ashley Herzberg applies a light oak touch by aging the Syrah in mostly neutral French oak, which mellows the wine and imparts very gentle spice and vanilla notes. This is a true garagiste wine from an impeccable location.

– Wine Access Wine Team

• Fruit Intensity
• Oak Intensity
• Body
• Acidity
• Tannin

• ABV 14.30%
• Enjoy right away
• Drink Up
• % Syrah
• Serving temperature – 60°
• Cork