1997 Amphora Petite Sirah Mounts Vineyard- USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley (7/28/2015)
Dark red in color with a little lightness on the rim. Palate of sweet red fruit with a balanced acid backbone. As it took on air it got fruitier, but then started to dry out after about 2 hours. Drinking very well now. Good at the price I paid (under $20 at auction). (89 pts.)
John thanks for posting. This remains one of my favorite wineries in the Sonoma area. Both the Petite Sirah and Zin they’ve bottled from Mounts Vineyard over the years have been great. How awesome that this '97 still has some life left in it!
John, 97 was the first vintage Rick made wine with the Amphora brand. You should contact him if you haven’t already and share your note. Did you ever visit him when he was still making wine at Mount’s? His early Syrahs were made from Unti fruit and at the time surpassed the wines the Unti’s were making. I recently had the last of my 98 Amphora Syrahs. I recall going to TipTop Liquors in Healdsburg to get the 97s.
I don’t know anything about the Amphora brand or the winemaker. I ended up with a couple of bottles of the '97 because I’ve been acquiring aged California Petite Sirah wines just to see what happens with P.S. when it ages. If you can shoot me contact info for the winemaker or let me know where he is these days, I would be happy to reach out to him about the note. I have one more bottle of the '97.
How timely is this? I have a '97 on tap for next Saturday at a party I’m hosting. One of my guests is a big fan of Amphora and Rick so I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to share this with them. Glad to hear it’s going strong.