Red - Syrah and Petite Sirah

25 years ago, when Andrew Murray began his wine journey, Viognier was his muse. It was a vineyard nursery’s mistake that sent him down the Syrah path. That original vineyard block that was established, simply known as block 17, was planted as Viognier and cared for as Viognier for the first 3 years of its life. It was not until its first fall with grapes hanging heavy on the vine did we notice a few clusters turning red. At first it was in denial, thinking that we had planted a few Syrah vines among the Viognier. I was soon to find out, that we actually had clearly planted mostly Syrah with just a few Viognier vines. Rather than pout about it, they decided to begin to co-ferment the two grapes together, just like they do in the famed Northern Rhône appellation of Côte Rôtie. They decided to name this new wine Roasted Slope (a direct and literal translation of Côte Rôtie). Fans and critics alike fell in love with this wine, and it was always the most sought after wine each vintage. They have not produced this wine since 2005, but now have released the new and improved Roasted Slope, a blend of co-fermented Syrah and Viognier, all from three vineyard blocks along Alisos Canyon Road. 600 Cases Produced

Passionate purple in color, lively black peppery spice on perfumey blue-blackberry fruit along with Cedary oak spice, dusty cocoa, warm vanilla creme at finish, structured tannins for aging.

Inky black-blue color precedes perfumed aromas of cassis, espresso, and dark chocolate. Intense dark currant, blackberry, and plush plum flavors initially fill the palate. This heady, explosive wine then finishes long with BBQ rub spices, sweet toasted oak, and round tannins. Pairs spectacularly with grilled meat, sausage, pizza (and anything with savory red sauce), and robust hard chesses like Parmesan, Pecorino, Romano, Sharp Cheddar, Emmental and Manchego.

If you're not familiar with Petite Sirah, there is nothing petite (small) about it. The grape produces rich, complex and age-worthy wines that are dense in character and color. The 2013 Reserve “mbf” Petite Sirah exhibits these qualities. Produced from the Perotti Vineyard in Dry Creek Valley, this wine exhibits flavors of dark plums, dried herbs, licorice and pepper spice. Delicious!