Some of you know that we are big Rhone wine enthusiasts. In California, we follow a handful of producers and now have a new one to the list and this may just be the best one...
Pasterick is a small husband and wife production with less than 600 cases annually of Northern Rhone inspired Syrah (a.k.a. Cote Rotie). They purchased the property which housed the Red Barn Winery (circa 1913). Less than 10 acres are planted and the current vintage is the 2005 Syrah. The Syrah is co-fermented with 3% Viognier, spends 3 years in barrels, and 1 year in a bottle before it is released. The 2006 is due out in November.
What makes this wine unique to us is the noticeable difference from the 'terroir'. That's right! The land. Dry Creek is better known for Zinfandel. Not to say you can't find other varietals. In fact, a lot of Pinot Noir is produced in the Russian River area. Most notable are the wineries/vineyards found on Westside and Eastside Roads which produce excellent Pinot Noirs. That aside our excitement was really about the land on the property. They have three primary blocks of Syrah on the land. Frankly, I don't remember the names (let's call them A, J, and S blocks). The property resides on the western side of West Dry Creek Road with the vines facing southeast. Two blocks (J and S) are to the north and one block (A) to the south and literally on top of the wine cave.
The Syrah is a cuvee (blend of the grapes from the north blocks). This wine is young and probably needs a year or two to round out a bit. However, it is very well structured wine, has plenty of legs, and good color. We were really impressed by this wine and the similarity to a Cote Rotie. The Viognier was noticeable as it provided some balance and freshness. And what we didn't get was a lot of alcohol or better yet a 'big' wine that you would expect from this type of climate (typically very hot and friendly to... Zinfandel). 
This is a shot of the S block (lower of the two blocks on the north side).
Next up was the 2006 'Angle of Repose' Syrah. The Angle is exclusively from the A block which sits on top of the wine cave. The cave was built into the 120 million year old bedrock which provides a natural climate for cellaring and a great setup for hosting.
The A block has approximately 900 plants but yields are extremely low. For the 2006 Angle, only 44 cases were produced.
Now don't dismiss my 2005 Syrah review because it is a great wine. So good we bought it for our cellar. But the 2006 Angle Syrah... WOW! Yes. WOW! Gerry and Diane were celebrating their 34th wedding anniversary and we were lucky enough to catch them at the end of the day and in a celebratory mood. This wine was something else. It was vibrant, full bodied, well structured, contained and yet explosive. My jaw dropped! All I could think about was whether I willing to pay USD100 for this exceptional wine? The short answer was yes. Fortunately for us, it is priced at USD60. This is a huge steal. HUGE!!! Unfortunately, they don't sell it. In fact, it will only be available to wine club members and on a very limited allocation basis. So yes, I will get some but not enough to share. Sorry!
Pasterick also had a handful of library wines available so we picked up a bottle of the 2002 Syrah to have with dinner that night. In brief, this validated my thoughts about the 2005 Syrah (cellar for a couple of years and then enjoy over the next 7-10 years). A really nice wine.
Recap
Winery
Wines
2005 Syrah - QPR High, USD38, Cellar Worthy
2006 Syrah 'Angle of Repose' - QPR Very High, USD60, Cellar Worthy (not available for sale... bummer)
2002 Syrah - QPR High, USD44, Drinking well now, Cellar Worthy until 2015 or so
What we bought to drink
2002 Syrah - Yummy now and about 5 years (or so) left
2005 Syrah - Hold until 2012 and then start drinking over the next 10 years
Joined the wine club (a case a year)
Where to find it
At the winery and a few restaurants
Contacts
www.pasterickwine.com
gerry@pasterickwine.com
+1 707 433 4655
