2006 Meeker Petite Sirah, Sonoma County 2-Pack

If you're familiar with Petite Sirah, you know that it keeps its nose in the books of blackberry, and this one is no different. This Petite dusts hints of floral and earth tones like the class clown cleaning chalk erasers. On the palate, it’s an honor roll line up of blackberry cobbler, vanilla and some toasty French oak. And all good students have the endurance for a final exam, and this Petite has the tannin structure and balance that lets you know it’s here for the long haul.

2007 Meeker Petite Sirah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County

This Petite Sirah, Meeker's first EVER from Dry Creek Valley, displays big, bright blackberry fruit on the nose with rich and round notes of leather and pipe tobacco . . . classic Dry Creek Valley.  On the palate, the wine brings big acidity with ripe fruit on the nose, and instead of an over-extracted, sweet Petite Sirah, this wine shows Old World characters of clean fruit notes and a mid-palate with white pepper and vanilla.  In a lot of ways, this is the most “old school” of their Petite Sirahs.  The alcohol is 14.5%, and though it doesn’t have that high ethanol fruit-bomb jamminess on the nose, what we do get are very elegant, clean fruit flavors through the front and mid palate.  And the big acidity on the finish makes this an ideal candidate to pair with high-fat, slow-cooked dishes.  Bottom line, this Petite Sirah is a darn fine example of what yummy fruit can do when not overwhelmed by high alcohol.