The next community wine tasting will be #SauvBlanc on March 4 at 5pm PST. Hope to see you tweeting there!

The first stop was at Bent Creek Winery, where they were not only offering samples, they were also doing a blending demonstration. You first tasted samples of Cab from barrels with two types of wood — French and Hungarian oak. There is a difference, one was rounder and softer (French oak) the other much bigger in tannins (Hungarian oak). Then you blended the two samples and the result — it tasted better than each wine on its own — is a good example of the art and importance of blending. Adding just a drop of Petit Sirah showed us how a small amount of another wine can make a huge difference in taste and texture.

On to Big White House and John Evan. I’d heard of BWH, but not John Evan. Turns out it’s a family operation — like most Livermore wineries — and Big White House Winery is the father’s label and John Evan Cellars is the son’s. Winemaker John (Evan) Marion was sampling the ’07 Les Amoureux that’s a 50-50% blend of Cab from a vineyard in Calistoga and their Livermore estate Cab. It’s smooth and powerful. They also offered a vertical tasting of Syrah, starting with the ’09 and ’08 in barrel. There’s a big difference between the two, with the ’09 having spent just about six months in barrel. It’s all fruit, not a lot of complexity yet. Then, you tasted the finished wine in bottle, the ’07 Syrah “Rapscallion,” which was fantastic. It’s a Rhone style Syrah, a little smokey, meaty, spicy and fruity.
All the label art is painted by John’s sister Laura Marion, who has a distinctive style. The photos show her artwork for “Les Amoureux” Cabernet and Roussanne bottlings; her paintings are on display in the tasting room.

Last stop was at Page Mill Winery. Here they were sampling the ’08 Walker vineyard Cab from Livermore Valley. It’s drinking really well right now.

The barrel tasting event happened to fall on the 3rd Sunday of the month, and that’s also when Page Mill holds its BYOB event. On the 3rd Sunday each month you bring empty, clean wine bottles and for $8.49 per bottle, the winery staff will fill, cork and label your bottle. Winemaker Dane Stark says the program is very popular. Well, for under 10 bucks you get a better wine than you’d find at the same price point in the grocery store. Dane calls this “Recovery Red.” If you don’t have your own bottles, no worries, you can buy them for a couple dollars from the winery.

PS I Love You is the name for an annual gathering of Petite Sirah winemakers, growers and groupies. Don’t know Petite Sirah? No, it’s not a smaller variety of the Syrah grape; it’s its own varietal. Often used in blended red wines. But, more and more wineries are making this single variety. In 1975 there were roughly 20 producers. By 2009 that number has grown to 700+.
A big question at the Petite Sirah symposium, how mainstream can Petite Sirah get?

The PS symposium was held at Concannon Vineyard in Livermore Valley. Concannon has a rich history in producing Petite Sirah, having grown and made the first Petite Sirah in America.  At the PS tasting, they presented four of their bottlings. My favorites were the 2007 Nina’s Cuvee which is elegant; the 2004 Heritage was one of the biggest PS wines at the tasting.

Here are some other producers to look for!

Aver Family Vineyards 2007 Blessings PS. Also worth checking out are Aver’s Rhone wines. The winery is in the Santa Clara Valley.

Bogle Vineyards makes a wonderful Rose´of Petite Sirah, from the Clarksburg appellation. It’s available only at their tasting room in Clarksburg, CA, but you can easily find Bogle’s Petite Sirah. Bogle’s prices are nice, all under $15.

Cinnabar Winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains sources their Petite Sirah grapes from Clarksburg to produce a wonderful 2007 PS. You can try it at the winery’s tasting room in downtown Saratoga.

Esoterica by Kent Rasmussen Winery - from St. Helena, the 2007 PS is a bold and smooth bottling.

Foppiano Vineyards in Sonoma Co. is well known for its powerful Petite Sirah, and the 2006 Estate doesn’t disappoint.

The 2006 Langtry Estate Petite Sirah, Serpentine Meadow Vineyard made me go wow! The appellation is Guenoc Valley, which is in California’s Lake County.

I really liked the 2008 Line Shack PS for it’s voluptuous mouth feel and nice finish, but I also love the story behind the label. Line Shack takes its name from the rundown “line shack” cabin on the property that was a gathering place for cowboys, but became Line Shack’s tasting room and barrel room.

Napa’s Quixote Winery makes a terrific PS and they were pouring the 2005 Petite Sirah, a rich and audacious wine.

The Crusher 2008, from Don Sebastiani & Sons is a full-bodied, fruit-forward PS and a great value — under $15.

1.  Why don’t you stop buying wine based on points.  Did you know some wineries (and very good ones at that)  just don’t submit their wines for reviews.  That doesn’t mean they’re not good.  You don’t need an almighty critic to tell you what to drink. Buying independent of scores can yield delicious and inexpensive surprises.

2,  Why don’t you order the least expensive bottle on the restaurant wine list.  They won’t put plonk on that list, and often the less expensive bottles are favorites of the wine director or sommelier.  No one at the table needs to know, but you can share the price once everyone has tried the wine and loves it.

3.  Why don’t you buy a wine just because you like the label.  I certainly do.  Wineries spend a lot of time and money coming up with clever names and images on the label.  For some time “critter” labels were all the rage.  Now it’s what I call “dessert” labels – wines like Layer Cake, Cupcake, Coffee Cake, etc. – all there to tempt you. Usually you discover the wine inside is pretty decent  too.

4.  Why don’t you drink local for at least a month.  Wine is made in all 50 states.  If you live in Missouri and haven’t tried the state’s wines, you are missing out.  Yes this is harder to do in Hawaii or Alaska.  If you live in a state where it is a challenge to find the local wines, or in a state with very few wineries, then check out wine from neighboring states.  If you travel internationally you’ll find that the restaurants, especially the mom and pop places only serve local wines.

5.  Why don’t you proudly buy boxed wine.  The quality of wine in a box is improving and you can now find very drinkable wines.  The bag-in-box technology keeps the wine fresh much longer after opening, up to a month (although I’ve never gotten past two weeks).  You get the equivalent of 4 bottles in one box for a lot less money.  Great for parties or your every day house wine.

6.  Why don’t you explore a new wine region.  Instead of Napa Valley, head to Livermore Valley or Lake County in northern California.  In New York visit the Finger Lakes region.  You’ll find less crowded tasting rooms (if there even is one) and most likely you’ll get to spend time with the winemaker.  If traveling there isn’t an option, you can still pick up bottles from these regions in your local wine shop.

7. Why don’t you pop the cork on sparkling wine more often.  Why reserve bubbles for special occasions?  While Champagne is pricey, the sparkling wines Cava and Prosecco are very affordable, as are American sparklers.  Cava (from Spain) and sparkling wines from the U.S.are made by the same traditional method that is behind the great Champagnes of the world.  Prosecco (from Italy) is made by another method called Charmat, where the second fermentation that produces the bubbles takes place in large tanks, versus in the bottle as in the case of Champagne, Cava and American sparkling wines.  Seek out these bubbles as every day wines, and not just for celebrations.

8. Why don’t you have a good laugh over a wine blog.  Even wine bloggers take themselves too seriously at times.  But not the Hosemaster of Wine .  You’ve got to read Parkenstein Parts 1 and 11.  This is definitely rated R but totally funny.

9.  Why don’t you stop saying you don’t know anything about wine (especially around me).  If you drink wine and like it that’s all you need to know to enjoy what’s in your glass.  I promise I won’t quiz you about it.

10.  And if you are a wine professional…why don’t you stop making people feel intimidated by wine.  Many people in the wine biz, from winemakers to retailers and restauranteurs are much more laid back in regards to wine.  Blue jeans have replaced the more formal suit and tie uniform.  But why are drinkers, from beginners to more experienced ones still intimidated by wine?  Why don’t you make it your mission to help at least one person feel great about buying and drinking wine this year.