New at Sierra Vista

Estate grown wild blackberry/Syrah Jam  Black berrys picked by winemaker John.  What should I do with the few bottles I have.  Let me know.

New Label:  go to http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/our_wines.php     to see some of them.

Let me know what you would like to know about Sierra Vista at

syrah@sierravistawinery.com

Two fortified wines/winter irrigation

This photo shows all three of our desert wines, Our Viognier Doux and two new fortified wines similar to the wines of Banyuls in South western France.

Fortified wine from Syrah and Grenache

In 2010 Sierra Vista made its first fortified wine from Grenache and Syrah. The process was patterned after the wines of Banyuls, a town in the south west of France. The wine made there is a Grenache-based fortified wine that has been made since the thirteenth century. Banyuls, what the wine is called, is allowed to ferment until it has about six percent alcohol, then spirit is added, raising the alcohol level to about fifteen percent.

Sierra Vista Tawnie Grenache was allowed to ferment down to about 7% alcohol and 190 % spirits made from wine was added which brought the alcohol up to about 16%. The Rubie Syrah was made in the same style but came to 15.8% alcohol.

What this yields is a sweet wine that is a classic companion to semi-sweet or dark chocolate as well as other full bodied deserts. While rich and full-bodied, it is less sweet and syrupy than a typical dessert wine. It possesses a lovely garnet color and a good balanced acidity that makes it come off as more delicate than vintage port.

The names Rubie and Tawnie came about because when tasting the two barrels it was felt that the Syrah was more like a ruby port while the Grenache was more like a tawny port. The two are distinctly different. Come see and taste them at their grand debut at the Valentines desert celebration.

New topic/ Winter irrigation

On the 14th, Jan, we started watering the vineyard. The attached photos show where the dripline leaks are. They are quite easy to spot when it is so cold.


This shows a vine cane with two drops of water under a bud. The water is not blue but is reflecting the blue of the sky.
















This one shows an emitter completely gone from the drip line. Don't know how that happens but it is cold to try to replace it withod turning of the water.