Whew – what a harvest! As we reported this past summer, the 2012 vintage was looking quite impressive. The fruit set in the vineyard was ideal and growing conditions all summer long were near perfection. Little did we know just how perfect this harvest was going to be. Initially, grapes arrived slowly. We received a small amount of Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc just before Labor Day weekend – it was nothing out of the ordinary – a nice looking crop with average yields. From there, things turned downright crazy. As more Sauvignon Blanc arrived, we began to realize just how much fruit there was in the vineyard. Our initial yield estimates proved to be way off – on average we received 20-25% more grapes than we had previously expected. This was not a bad thing – the quality was outstanding – but we certainly went into scramble mode looking for tank space and preparing for the unending stream of fruit coming in.

For 10 straight weeks, working 10-12 hour days, our winemaking team worked tirelessly sorting through the fruit to ensure a high quality. It was, by everyone's estimation, the longest and most intense harvest period in decades. The last of the grapes were harvested just before Halloween and at last we had a chance to catch our breath.

So how are the wines looking from the 2012 vintage? By all accounts, this is going to be one of the highest quality vintages in the past several decades. Across all varietals, the purity of fruit flavors and overall tannin development is superb. The 2012 Fumé Blanc has already been bottled and is simply outstanding! Overall, we are extremely excited by this vintage and look forward to sharing more of our delicious Blancs with you while the reds rest comfortably in barrels.

One of the fascinating things to learn about wine is the education around how wines age. Exploring the question of ageablity regarding Zinfandel certainly opens up Pandora’s Box with pundits from many circles weighing in. In general, the consensus has been that Zinfandel does not age the way great Cabernet or Pinot Noir does. This past fall, we aimed to debunk that way of thinking.

As part of our 40th anniversary celebrations, we took on the very taxing (read: fun!) task of tasting through four decades of Dry Creek Vineyard Zinfandel. In short, these tastings proved to be not only astounding but also extremely educational. What we found were wines that had aged gracefully showing supple tannins and wonderful development of Zinfandel fruit flavors. Sure, some of the snappy, brambly characters had left, but that had been replaced with more black pepper, orange peel and red raspberry fruit. Overall, the tastings left quite an impression on all of us.

Empowered with this information, we decided to put together some exclusive sample shipments featuring several of these older vintage Zinfandels. We saw this as an opportunity to change the attitudes and perceptions of some of those key constituents who had perhaps thought of Zin as not an age-worthy wine. One writer, Joe Roberts, who writes a very successful wine blog, was certainly blown away by the subtleties of these older wines. You can read his review here: http://www.1winedude.com/40-year-dry-creek-vineyard-zinfandel-retrospective/

In the end, we walked away with an even deeper appreciation of the Zinfandel varietal. A grape that is, at times, much maligned but for us is part of the very fabric of our winery

It’s hard to believe but the 2012 Fumé Blanc is now in bottle! This is perhaps the earliest we have ever bottled this wine and made it available for release. It is a true testament to the hard work of our entire winemaking staff and cellar crew. How were we able to make it happen so quickly? For one thing, the vintage had a lot to do with it. 2012 was a near perfect harvest and the Sauvignon Blanc arrived at the winery with excellent flavors. Secondly, our style of Fumé Blanc is very straightforward and true to the varietal. We ferment this wine cold and slow in stainless steel tanks for approximately 3 weeks and avoid any oak aging that would diminish the wine’s vibrant fruit flavors. Once fermentation is complete, the wine is filtered and bottled.

We invite you stop by our tasting room for a sip of this completely delicious new release!

Dry Creek Vineyard recently had the distinct honor of appearing on the Rachael Ray show featuring celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse. Chef Emeril was touting his newly released wine tasting kits, of which our Dry Creek Sauvignon Blanc is one of his featured wines. If you look closely, you can see the DCV mini bottle as the first label in the box.

For more information on tasting kits, please visit the Tasting Room.com website