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NewsletterSpring 2008

Spring Fest
Saturday, May 10
11 am to 5 pm

Celebrate spring at Christopher Creek and our neighbors Acorn Winery, Christie Vineyards, Foppiano Vineyards, Mietz Cellars and Rodney Strong Vineyards on Saturday, May 10 from 11 am to 5 pm. The wineries will be offering special wine tasting, food and a discount on selected wine. The charge for the event is $10, which includes a logo glass. No Reservations are required. Come to Christopher Creek to start your wine adventure.

At Christopher Creek we will be featuring a barrel tasting of the 2007 Dry Creek Zin, 2007 Russian River Estate Reserve Syrah and 2007 Russian River Estate Reserve Petite Sirah. Futures are still available of these wines at the event. The limited production 2005 Deux Barriques will be released. Cellar Club Members may purchase this wine only on this day at a special price. Spring Cellar Club shipments will available for pickup at the event.

2006 Estate Reserve Petite Sirah Released

In many years this wine was awarded multiple Gold Medals. Petite Sirah grapes have been grown in California since the late 1800s. There are approximately 4000 acres planted in California. Our Estate grown Petite Sirah grapes received, as always, very special care during the 2006 growing season. We are fortunate to have several blocks of Petite Sirah each with varying ages, elevation and sun exposure. We hand-thinned the crop and did extensive deleafing to expose the fruit, maximizing pigment in the berry’s skin. All this work paid off and allowed us to get concentrated and healthy fruit.

The favorable growing season coupled with the sun exposed fruit helped develop rich tannins and let the complex flavors of cassis, blueberry, blackberry, coffee and spice fully develop. As with past vintages, the wine should age well over the next 8-10 years. So that the tannins will soften and the fruit shine, we recommend holding this wine until mid-2009 before drinking. Should you want to drink the wine earlier, we suggest decanting 1/2 hour before serving.

Petite can be enjoyed with many foods and can make a meal more memorable. Our suggestions for pairing are Ahi Tuna, Game Birds (especially Duck, Goose, and Quail), Turkey, Venison, Lamb, Port and Beef. If you are preparing gravy, try adding a tablespoon of wine to each cup of gravy to integrate the food with the wine (be sure to heat the gravy to cook off the alcohol).

  • Harvested September 2006
  • 2.5 tons/acre
  • Aged in French and American oak barrels
  • 630 cases produced
  • pH 3.71 at bottling
  • Released Spring 2008
  • $32.00/bottle (effective July1, 2008)
    (Cellar Club Members $24.00)

Wine Style Profile:

  • No residual sugardry
  • Full bodied
  • Very fruity, favors low-acid foods
  • Heavier tannins
  • Age 8-to-10 years
  • Drink 2009 or later

Order now online or call 707-431-8243.

Past Newsletters

Winter 2008 New Releases: 2005 Dry Creek Cabernet, 2006 Sapphire Hill Chardonnay; 2007 winemaker notes.

Fall 2007 New Release: 2005 Russian River Zinfandel, Holiday Gifts.

Summer 2007 New Releases: 2005 Russian River Estate Bottled Reserve Syrah, 2006 "Catie's Corner" Viognier; Awards.

Spring 2007 New Releases: 2005 Estate Petite Sirah, 2005 Dry Creek Zinfandel, 2005 Russian River Estate Syrah; Wine Profile feature announced.

Winter 2007 2004 Dry Creek Cabernet, 2005 Dry Creek Zinfandel, 2006 Vintage Notes

Fall 2006 2004 Russian River Zinfandel, Deux Barriques, Christopher Creek Fan Mail

Summer 2006 2004 Estate Bottled Russian River Reserve Syrah, 2005 Catie's Corner Russian River Viognier, Christopher Creek in the News, Awards

Spring 2006 2004 Estate Reserve Petite Sirah, 2004 Russian River Estate Syrah, Awards, 2005 Futures

Winter 2006 2003 Dry Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, 2004 Russian River Chardonnay, 2005 Vintage Notes, Christopher Creek in The Wall Street Journal, Replanting

Fall 2005 Christopher Creek in The Wall Street Journal, 2003 Russian River Zinfandel, 2001 Deux Barriques

Summer 2005 Estate Bottled Russian River 2003 Reserve Syrah, Catie's Corner Russian River 2004 Viognier, Awards

Spring 2005 2003 Petite Sirah, 2003 Russian River Estate Bottled Syrah, Awards

Winter 2005 2002 Dry Creek Cabernet, 2003 Russian River Chardonnay

Fall 2004 2002 Russian River Zinfandel

Summer 2004 Estate Bottled Russian River 2002 Reserve Syrah, Catie's Corner Russian River 2003 Viognier, Simple Steps to Decanting

Spring 2004 30th Anniversary of Christopher Creek Winery, 2002 Estate Bottled Syrah, 2002 Petite Sirah

Winter 2003 2001 Dry Creek Cabernet, 2002 Russian River Chardonnay

Upcoming Events

Summer Fest—
Saturday, August 2
11 am to 5 pm

Join the “Eastside Bunch” wineries and Christopher Creek for a special Spring event. At Christopher Creek we will feature a vertical of Petite Sirahs. The 2005 Deux Barriques will be released and available at a special price for Cellar Club Members. Food will be served. $10 charge per person (logo glass Included).

Fall Fest—
Saturday, October 25
11 am to 5 pm

Harvest is over, a chill in the air. The leaves have turned. It’s time to visit Christopher Creek to select
your holiday dinner wines and gifts. We will again have our dueling Zins (Russian River versus Dry Creek), as well as our hearty “Fall Fare”. There is no charge for this event and no reservations are needed. There might also be a trick or treat or a goblin or two seen at the winery. Fall is one of the nicest times in the wine country, so we hope you will join us for a fun event.
 

2006 Russian River Estate Syrah Released

Syrah grapes have been grown at our winery site for nearly 30 years. Christopher Creek is one of the first producers of Syrah wine in Sonoma County. We have several clones of Syrah on different aged vines that produce a consistent, complex wine from year to year. The grapes receive special care in the management of our vineyard, and as always are hand-picked, hand-sorted and hand-macerated to produce a distinct wine from “our” edge of the Russian River Valley.

Produced in the classical French style from multiple clone grapes, grown at the winery site, our 2006 Estate Bottled Syrah displays black plum and black cherry with tastes of cocoa, spice, minerals and subtle smoky notes. On the palate, the texture is smooth and ample with a very long complex finish created by the rich, yet soft tannins.

We would recommend bottle aging this wine for at least a year before drinking to let the tannins soften and the fruit fully develop. Properly cellared, we would expect the wine to age well for 6-to-10 years. Try our Syrah with Barbecued, marinated Tri-Tip roast, Game Birds, Lamb, Beef Stew or Spicy Foods (Mexican, spicy Asian). Syrah is also a great food companion to chocolate.

  • Harvested September 2006
  • 3.1 tons/acre
  • Aged 13 months in French oak barrels
  • 366 cases produced
  • pH 3.81 at bottling
  • Released Spring 2008
  • $27.00/bottle (effective July1, 2008)
    (Cellar Club Members $21.60)

Wine Style Profile:

  • No residual sugardry
  • Medium bodied
  • Fruity, favors higher-acid foods
  • Softer tannins
  • Age 6-to-10 years
  • Drink 2009 or later

Order now online or call 707-431-8243.

Futures Still Available For 2007 Wines


If you have never participated in our Futures program, now is the time. Guarantee the availability of your favorite Christopher Creek wine. Purchase Futures of the 2007 Vintage now and receive a 30% discount. Wines that are available in this futures program are Russian River Estate Bottled Reserve Syrah, Russian River Zinfandel, and Dry Creek Finlay’s Vineyard Cabernet. We feel that the 2007 is going to be a great year. An order form is enclosed for your convenience or just call us at 707 431- 8243 for assistance with your order.