This year's wine blogger's conference was awash with two different types of wine.
- Young pricey Cabernets that given a few years to age will probably be pretty good.
- Young pricey Pinot Noirs that even after a few years of aging will probably still be mediocre.
Against this background it was the more obscure varietals and styles that stood out.
It happens that two of the wines that grabbed my attention were from the same winery: Gustafson Family Vineyards.
The 2006 Rosé of Syrah was dry and perfect for summer. It was so good it's made me reexamine my long held belief that I don't even like Rosés. It was my fifth favorite wine of the Wine Blogger's Conference.
Deep, dark and sinisterly fruity, the 2007 Gustafson Petite Syrah was amazing. It was my fourth favorite of the conference.
There are only 370 cases of the Petite Sirah, and 75 cases of the Rosé of Syrah. And at least a case of each must have been drunk at lunch!
The vineyard was only started in 2002. I expect even greater things out of them in the future.
These two wines are available directly from Gustafson Family Vineyards.
In the picture Dan Gustafson is second to the left. On the right with the microphone is Kim of Wilma's Wine World and Dry Creek Vineyard.
