Petite Syrah is my favorite grape. Its hard to find anymore...Lets see what this tastes like! So excited about it being delivered before Christmas!

Eh, I guess you have to like 'em young and fruity to get into the Nouveau. I prefer them a little bit older and more sophisticated. To each their own.

rugrats2001 wrote:We opened our last bottle of 2004 Handprint (signed by Kelly Meeker!) in August, and it was still showing well. If it was stored properly, it should still be enjoyable!

Thanks rugrats!

ElephantNest wrote:Thanks rugrats!

You are very welcome. Enjoy!

Jumping in on this because of the PS comments and participation by the the winery. Very informative and can't wait to try. remembering RPM's advice....pop a lot of corks to see what you like and dislike. I'm hoping to compare styles.

Lucas,

I am dying to try a Meeker wine but Tennessee is not on your shipping list. Will you be adding TN any time in the near future? On another note, my wife and I are planning a trip to San Francisco in May/June 2012 and the Meeker tasting room is on agenda.

Is this drinkable on receipt, or should I be cellaring it (or in my current living situation, closeting it) for a while.

(Translation: can I rip this out of the box, start guzzling and end up face down in the corner)

Pardon my wine ignorance, but I had the Meeker 2007 Forklift Grenache and LOVED IT. How would this compare to that?

Haven't met a Meeker I didn't like so far, also a fan of the Forklift Grenache from that offering. In for two.

*much excitement over petite sirah!*

*clicks "I want one!"*

*stares at "Memphis, Arizona" in address block*

*"fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.......!@#@%!"*

lucasmeeker wrote:Kachow! We can do this.

Petite Sirah is considered one of the two-four "core" Rhone grapes from a new world perspective, because it was originally discovered in the southern Rhone (a Syrah/Peloursin cross). That said, it's not really used in France anymore (according to the webernets, I was still under the impression that it was used in some CdP wines). Syrah, Grenache, Carignane, Mourvedre, Cinsault being the main AOC approved varietals for SOUTHERN Rhone regions (though there are a buttload more). Northern Rhone regions are all Syrah or Syrah plus Marsanne/Roussane/Viognier only.

Petite Sirah is probably kind of "second fiddle" only to Syrah of this cadre of grapes, and it's typically known for being the plummy, inky, peppery, hot climate structure-stud that it became famous for. It carries a lot of similar characteristics to CdP/southern Rhone wines, and I think to many it shows a very atypical new world character. It's tendency to exhibit non-red fruit character in tandem with a predominance of pepper/spice/earth/fennel type character that is really a nice change of pace if you drink a lot of California wine. But, just like every other varietal, it's become more stylistically varied with more people making it in the past 10 years.

Drinking window is now-5 years out. These wines will age very well, but my personal opinion is that our Petite Sirahs should be opened when they're still going to show some fruit but also mute the pepperiness that can be a touch too dominant for my taste when the wines are young.

Hope this helps!

I can't argue with any of that! Although opening a well-aged bottle of PS is also something Pretty Special.

Are you guys going to be at Dark & Delicious this year? If not, what will it take for me to get you to attend?

nathanbsmith wrote:Lucas,

I am dying to try a Meeker wine but Tennessee is not on your shipping list. Will you be adding TN any time in the near future? On another note, my wife and I are planning a trip to San Francisco in May/June 2012 and the Meeker tasting room is on agenda.

We've been working on TN for a while, I'm optimistic that we'll have it cleared up by early-mid 2012.

stwrigh2 wrote:Pardon my wine ignorance, but I had the Meeker 2007 Forklift Grenache and LOVED IT. How would this compare to that?

I love that wine too, and you'll like these as well, but there are some notable differences. The forklift is a substantially more flamboyant wine, higher alcohol and very fruit forward. These wines are stylistically consistent with the Forklift, but more less distinctly fruit forward and more black pepper/earth/spice, and the 07 is substantially lower alcohol while the 06 is moderately lower alc.

Overall, I still think you'd really enjoy these wines too.

WilfBrim wrote:Is this drinkable on receipt, or should I be cellaring it (or in my current living situation, closeting it) for a while.

(Translation: can I rip this out of the box, start guzzling and end up face down in the corner)

These are drinking very well, however you should always let wine sit after shipping for a while. But, that said, they should both taste just fine if you're planning on meeting the delivery man with a corkscrew in hand.

PetiteSirah wrote:I can't argue with any of that! Although opening a well-aged bottle of PS is also something Pretty Special.

Are you guys going to be at Dark & Delicious this year? If not, what will it take for me to get you to attend?

We've never done dark and delicious, and we're backing off a lot of those events in general (we're skipping ZAP this year, too). Don't really know much about the event, to be honest.

lucasmeeker wrote:We've never done dark and delicious, and we're backing off a lot of those events in general (we're skipping ZAP this year, too). Don't really know much about the event, to be honest.

Heresy! (Especially as you've previously consorted with those heathen Zinfidels.) Dark & Delicious is the premiere Petite Sirah event every year, and it's pretty much the greatest day of the year (it might be second place this year, but only because I'm getting married in July). There are usually a large number of wooters in attendance, as well as a lot of wineries that come onto woot (including, but not limited to Larry Schaffer of Tercero/Epiphany, Jeff Stai of Twisted Oak, the folks at Vina Robles, the infamous Clark Smith, Michael-David, Rusty Eddy of Clayhouse, and I'm sure there are scads of others I'm forgetting), as well as a few attendees from wine.woot headquarters to do a little market research and hang with us.

It's a fun, relaxed, casual atmosphere that allows ProducerS to showcase their PS to the consumers most likely to make PurchaSes.

Jo Diaz, the head of PS I Love You, puts it together, and she is a saint.

If you guys aren't members of PSILY, you really should join up... the PSymPoSium every year is incredibly informative, and a great networking resource just for advances in PS marketing and market share, viticulture, and winemaking techniques.

lucasmeeker wrote:I love that wine too, and you'll like these as well, but there are some notable differences. The forklift is a substantially more flamboyant wine, higher alcohol and very fruit forward. These wines are stylistically consistent with the Forklift, but more less distinctly fruit forward and more black pepper/earth/spice, and the 07 is substantially lower alcohol while the 06 is moderately lower alc.

Overall, I still think you'd really enjoy these wines too.

Thank you so much, from what you've said I think my husband and I would definitely love these too, just as much as the Forklift. The first Forklift we tried was delicious, but a few months later when we had the second one we could definitely taste the higher alcohol content and the more fruity flavor. Interesting what a few months can do. We will probably approach this batch the same way to try out the difference in taste, find out what kind of time frame we prefer. Really looking forward to getting this!!!

Curse you Woot for offering my favorite varietal at a time when I absolutely, positively have niether space nor extra money for any more wine ! (Im in for 1).

For those afraid that this is a fruit bomb, it isn't. It's not a thin wine by any means, but certainly not a fruit bomb. Honestly, this wine and the 2007 Malbec I received from Meeker a while back are two of the best Meekers I've had in recent memory. I don't mean this as a slam to the wines of the past, but instead a compliment to what they are doing now... it seems to me that each year the wines coming from Meeker are getting better and better!

Absolutely loved the Kiss Ridge I got a while back. Im a fan of PS's too. So this is a no-brainer! In for one.

Meeker Sonoma County Petite Sirah - 3 Pack
$54.99 + $5 shipping
CONDITION: Red
PRODUCTS:
2 2006 Meeker Petite Sirah, Sonoma County
1 2007 Meeker Petite Sirah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
CT links above

Lucas: Since neither of these wines is currently on your website (for some unknown reason) could you give us an idea of production numbers. Why are the wines not available on your website....Special juice....just for us wooters???

dontwanna wrote:Absolutely loved the Kiss Ridge I got a while back.

I haven't tried any yet. I got 3 bottles here and another bottle in the club (Tribe) shipment, but they are all sitting in the wine fridge waiting for me.

lucasmeeker wrote:Ya sure about that last part?

*grin*

I bought nine bottles of the cab back in July, and then an order of the Pink Elephant. And now an order of this PS!

I don't think my loyalties are really in question, but SO is big fruit, and the kiss ridge diamond mtn was all earth and minerals...

And I like fruit. But the other stuff is interesting too.

Huh, there was no point to any of that. Oh well.

tornadotj wrote:For those afraid that this is a fruit bomb, it isn't. It's not a thin wine by any means, but certainly not a fruit bomb. Honestly, this wine and the 2007 Malbec I received from Meeker a while back are two of the best Meekers I've had in recent memory. I don't mean this as a slam to the wines of the past, but instead a compliment to what they are doing now... it seems to me that each year the wines coming from Meeker are getting better and better!

Nice! I frickin LOVE the 07 Malbec. Probably my favorite of what we've released in the past 2 years, too.

Wait till you get your hands on the 09 Zin going with 07 Handprint in the January Tribe shipment. Just tasted through the barrels two days ago, it's the Zin version of that Malbec. I'm excited about it.

Y'know, our goal has always been to get better and better, and as our experience grows (and I disagree with my dad more), we tend to want to experiment more and more. Though 11 was a really tough harvest, a lot of the wines from this vintage taste fantastic (along with the 10s), and I think that they're two of our best harvests in a while. I'm VERY optimistic with the wines from these vintages, and I'm glad to see some big results with some new practices we've been working with and slowly applying.

There are things about the way we make wine that won't ever change (big acidity, long aging, focus on grape tannin over oak tannin), and that's a good thing, but learning to maximize and push the quality around those core principles will never stop.

Plus, when I get the itch to do something that my Dad hates, I just do it under my label!

PetiteSirah wrote:only a few producers are grandfathered in with the improper spelling, most notably turley. according to the feds, sirah is the only proper spelling for all others.

Since when do you listen to the feds?

stwrigh2 wrote:Thank you so much, from what you've said I think my husband and I would definitely love these too, just as much as the Forklift. The first Forklift we tried was delicious, but a few months later when we had the second one we could definitely taste the higher alcohol content and the more fruity flavor. Interesting what a few months can do. We will probably approach this batch the same way to try out the difference in taste, find out what kind of time frame we prefer. Really looking forward to getting this!!!

No sweat!

Keep in mind that our wines tend to evolve with the bottle open quite a bit, I recommend opening our wines 20-30 minutes before you'll pour them, if not longer. Decant if you want, but that's just another dish to do.

bobrush12866 wrote:
Lucas: Since neither of these wines is currently on your website (for some unknown reason) could you give us an idea of production numbers. Why are the wines not available on your website....Special juice....just for us wooters???

That's not intentional, it's just that the website isn't fully built out yet only has the tech sheets up for the wines that we're distributing or selling recently. Neither of these wines get distributed, so they don't have tech sheets. And we currently don't have a shopping cart on our site, so all the wines for purchase are not listed.

06 was 450 cases, 07 was 402 cases.

In for two. Got the last two Meeker offerings as well. Seems a no brainer for me.

PetiteSirah wrote:

Are you guys going to be at Dark & Delicious this year? If not, what will it take for me to get you to attend?

+1

Would love to see you guys there!

So, I got back into the harvest records for these wines, and here are some numbers:

2006:
Picked 11/1/06
25.3 Brix
pH 3.86 TA .46 g/100 ml (before acidulation)
Acid add: .46 g/100 ml Tartaric
Yeast: Syrah
Dry on 11/15/06

2007:
Picked 10/9/07
23.8 Brix
pH 3.65 TA .457 g/100 ml (before acidulation)
Acid add: .293 g/100 ml
Yeast: Syrah, VQ15, MT, Assmanhausen
Dry on 10/29/07

As much time as you are spending here today, I am guessing you have someone else getting everything ready for tomorrow's open house?

Sure wish I could be there!

tornadotj wrote:As much time as you are spending here today, I am guessing you have someone else getting everything ready for tomorrow's open house?

Sure wish I could be there!

Haha! I'll actually be at Disneyland. Seriously, I wasn't joking when I posted that. I had unfortunately scheduled that before we decided on the Open House date. My mom is baking cookies all day for the Open House, and I'm spending most of today getting the wine over to the Woot shipping headquarters, tasting barrels, posting here, and then driving south.

texacaliali wrote:am I detecting a roller-coaster fascination? I recall that Meeker has a wine named roller-coaster.

Shhhh. That's not *technically* a Meeker wine...

Last wooter to woot: jplamb

Meeker and PS? No way to pass on this, even though the 1,100 bottle cellar is completely full.

jplamb wrote:Last wooter to woot: jplamb

Meeker and PS? No way to pass on this, even though the 1,100 bottle cellar is completely full.

But is your stomach?

the last time i went in for meeker wine, i regretted only getting one...so in for two.

szecsei wrote:the last time i went in for meeker wine, i regretted only getting one...so in for two.

Niiiiiiiiiice. *high five*

I had my first PS back in 2000 at the House of Prime Rib in SF and fell in love! I was not much of a wino then but the stuff was smooth and inky. Anyway, my second PS expereince was a bottle of Foppiano. I understand Foppiano were the first winery in CA to produce PS. Is this true?

For the winery: how does this offer compare to Foppiano's style?

Finally, I LOVE the Pink Elephant.

***Oh, not feeling the Tuy Caton woot cellars offering. Just saying***

Peace

losthighwayz wrote:
For the winery: how does this offer compare to Foppiano's style?

Finally, I LOVE the Pink Elephant.

***Oh, not feeling the Tuy Caton woot cellars offering. Just saying***
Peace

I'm not the winery, but IMO this is better juice than Foppiano's, by a long shot. Last time I've had a Fappiano was at the tasting room in 2008 so it's been a while, but I was NOT impressed at all. In fact the reason we went was because someone in our group was a fan. After the other wines we had tasted that day, she wasn't anymore.

I have to say I don't recall what the 2006 Meeker PS tasted like, but again that 2007 is good stuff.

I haven't opened any Pink Elephant yet, saving it for the hot Texas summer, hoping it'll still be fine then.

What did you mean by the Ty Caton post?