Quivira Vineyards and Winery is located in Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley.  Founded in 1981, it was purchased by the Kight family, which is now also part owner of Torbreck in Australia. With new ownership came a new winemaker, Steven Canter, adjustments to their wines and an even more intense focus on sustainable agriculture. That includes a big push toward biodynamic farming. All of their wines, except the Dry Creek Zinfandel, come from estate vineyards. The 2007 Quivira Petite Sirah comes from the Wine Creek Vineyard which is Demeter-certified biodynamic. This is their largest vineyard and it’s planted to eleven different varieties and divided into 22 blocks.

The wine is a dark, though not quite opaque, purplish ruby. Blackberry and blueberry are the primary aromas, complemented by vanilla, dark spice and cherry. On the palate, there are brambly blackberry and the vanilla, but also oak and some dark chocolate.

As with most Petite Sirah, the 2007 Quivira Petite Sirah Wine Creek Ranch Dry Creek Valley is very nearly full-bodied and has generous tannins. Some juicy acidity keeps the wine from being dark and brooding however. Even more acidity would have been welcome. The finish is of moderate length and dominated by the prominent front-of-mouth tannins plus black berry and chocolate. After my initial tasting, I allowed the wine to rest in bottle over night. The tannins relaxed quite a bit and coconut emerged on the nose.

The2007 Quivira Petite Sirais very drinkable now, but it might be more interesting in a year or two. The Quivira website lists several recipes to accompany this wine. Of them, I think that the grilled New York steak with Gorgonzola butter is the way to go. My official tasting complete, I finished the bottle with seared venison tenderloin. That worked nicely too. Drink now through 2014. Recommended.

Rating: Recommended
Retail Price: $26.00
Closure: Cork
Alcohol: 14.8%
Blend: 100% Petite Sirah
Origin: Wine Creek Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley

This wine was received as a review sample from the winery.

This article is original to NorCalWine.com. Copyright 2010 NorCal Wine. All rights reserved.

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