2007 Cask 93

Welcome back to 2007; an outstanding year for us. When we bottled our memorable 2007 Syrah I reserved 150 gallons for further aging in anticipation of the new RARITIES program. The straight Syrah received 94 points at the Beverage Testing Institute's 2010 World Value Wine Challenge and was the top rated red wine of the competition which, as the name implies, is international in nature. That same year it also was awarded a Gold Medal at the Long Beach Grand Cru Wine Competition. The Rarities version has an extra year of aging under its belt and received an infusion of 5% 2010 Viognier in homage to the great Rhone red wines of the Cote Rotie ("Roasted Slope") appellation. The name was chosen in homage to a wine that I made for Zaca Mesa Winery back in '93 with the same blend which earned that number of points in the Wine Spectator and became the top ranked Central Coast wine of all time in Spectator's annual top 100, taking the number 6 slot in their 2005 annual ranking. It was also served at a White House State Dinner in early 2006 hosted by President Bill Clinton for France's Jacques Chirac. We heard that they were still talking about it the next day!

Over the past several years the King of the Reds has become our best known and most successful wine. It's hard to imagine now but I went through a long period of time, from 1984 until 1998, when I thought I had lost my taste for Cabernet and didn't make any at all! I switched my focus to Cabernet Franc and, to a lesser extent, Merlot. Well, times change and this obviously for the better. This wine, labelled with a Central Coast appellation is more specifically from Paso Robles and a beauty it is. Recently, it was awarded 94 Points at the Ultimate Wine Challenge held this spring in New York City and was a "Finalist", meaning it was among the top 1% of wines submitted internationally and was also "Highly Recommended" and judged a "Great Value" at $20, its national price. It has a bit of Merlot added and is a great drinking Cabernet for year-round enjoyment. 

It may surprise you to learn that Chenin Blanc is my favorite white wine, but it's true! My first vintage was in 1977 and, with few interruptions, I've been making it ever since. Robert Parker of The Wine Advocate once stated that Daniel Gehrs Chenin Blanc "is one of the world's great white wine values". This vintage marks a new chapter in our Chenin Blanc saga with the wine coming from a new vineyard source for us right here in Santa Barbara County; the White Hills Vineyard located near Vandenberg Air Force Base south of the city of Santa Maria. This cool and often windy maritime climate and sandy soils have yielded a wonderfully fruity and dry Chenin just the way I like it. Fresh, clean and vibrant it is delicious now with summer fare on these warm summer nights and will also age up to a decade in the bottle!