San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Try these iconic Dry Creek Valley wines at Passport
There are plenty of Dry Creek Valley wines to try during Passport weekend. Some, however, warrant more plentiful pours than others.
The two biggies: Zinfandel and Sauvignon Blanc.
Of the two, Zinfandel is the proverbial hall-of-famer, with some vines in the valley dating back more than 100 years. Bella Vineyards & Wine Caves, a winery that has become known for its subterranean winery and tasting room, works with fruit from a number of these ancient Zinfandel vines, and winemaker Joe Healy said that as vines age they produce less fruit but better berries.
Healy noted that a number of factors contribute to making the Dry Creek Valley perfect for Zinfandel: soil, weather, climate, the length of daytime during the height of the growing season and even the orientation of the valley.
“People consider this Ground Zero for Zinfandel,” he said. “That means people should sample as much of it as they can.”
Sauvignon Blanc is the valley’s rock-star rookie, relatively speaking. Dave Stare was the first to plant this varietal in the Dry Creek Valley in 1972. When neighbors saw how successful his plantings were (and the quality they yielded), they followed suit.
Another grape about which local winemakers are excited: Grenache.
While some area wineries grow Grenache to make red wine, a handful of them grow it for the express purpose of making rose. One of these wineries, Kokomo, grows 8 acres of Grenache for this wine, and they still sell out of it every year. Winemaker and owner of the winery Erik Miller said Kokomo has been bottling its rose since 2009 — well before pink wines became as popular as they are today.
“We pick it lean when the acid is high and it has these beautiful strawberry flavors and aromatics,” he said. “If we left Cabernet on the vine as long as we left our Grenache, we’d have a mess.”
In addition to these three varieties, Rhone varieties such as Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Viognier, Marsanne, Rousanne have become cult favorites in the Dry Creek Valley. Some of these grapes can be found in wines from Preston Farm & Winery, Mounts Family Winery and Trattore Farms, to name a few.
Toward the far west end of the valley, out toward the Rockpile appellation, the valley produces some of the biggest and boldest Syrahs in Sonoma County.
Finally, even though the Passport event celebrates the Dry Creek Valley, visitors who come for the weekend also can taste wines made from grapes grown in neighboring appellations — namely Pinot Noir from the foggy Russian River Valley to the south and Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay from the hot and sunny Alexander Valley to the north and east.
So many wines, so little time. Debra Mathy, proprietor at Dutcher Crossing Winery, said that in this part of Sonoma County, it’s hard to go wrong.
“Dry Creek Valley is a unique and special appellation that allows vineyard owners and wineries to grow a wide array of varietals, many of which are not historically grown together,” she said. “This is largely due to our soils, microclimates and the willingness of the grape growers to be adventurous and push boundary limits.”