2005 Porter Creek Syrah

This lovely syrah comes from the Russian River Valley, which is one of my favorite areas for earthy reds.

The Porter Creek syrah has a nice dark cherry color. Aromas hint of hay and grass. We didn't decant this 2005, and the result was a tad disappointing. High acidity and very little fruit on the palate. This is definitely one to let breathe.

The tannins were full, and it felt warm and velvety with a woodsy scent. We found this syrah really brought out the pepper in our Beecher's cheese and also brought out the creaminess in our herbal Boursin.

Next time, we're decanting this baby!

Ty's Red - in a word, Wow.

So the hubs and I were doing our annual Sonoma area trip a few weeks back, and we had a little time to kill before meeting friends. We pull the rental car into this nondescript strip mall because the hubs says he saw a sign for a tasting room. In an office-parky strip mall? Yep. If ever a place lived up to the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, this was it.

The tasting room was modest, but the host was friendly and knowledgeable. Two makers share the room – Muscardini and Ty Caton. Both had some phenomenal wines. Ty's are sustainable. What a score!

One of the less expensive options was this fabulous red, called simply, Ty’s Red. It doesn’t need a gimmicky name when it’s this good. It’s a red blend of syrah, merlot, cab and petite sirah.

The 2009 Ty’s Red has a beautiful deep plum color and red fruits on the nose. I picked up Bing cherry, grass, and minerals. It has a velvety texture with a rich mouth feel that slowly builds with tannins, dark fruits like blackberry and some spice. In a word, wow. Two words: buy some.  We also fell in love with the Tytanium that day, but you’ll have to wait for a special occasion for that review!