The 2004 vintage is Novy’s first release from this new, fashionable Russian River Valley Pinot Noir vineyard. The first commercial release from this vineyard (albeit from another winery) received a 92 rating from the Wine Spectator. Several other high profile wineries are also purchasing some of this fruit and the vineyard has already been mentioned in several publications including an article featuring it in Bloomberg. Not a bad start for a new vineyard!

The Amber Ridge Vineyard is located west of the Sonoma County airport in the “upper reach” of the Russian River Valley. It is primarily planted to Pinot Noir and, in fact, we produce an Amber Ridge Pinot Noir under the Siduri label. However, we are fortunate to get a bit of Syrah from this site as well and produced a tiny quantity of Amber Ridge Syrah.

The 2004 Novy Amber Ridge Syrah was picked on September 27, 2004 at 27.4 brix. We fermented the wine in 1-ton Marco Plastic bins punching down the skins by hand twice a day during the 25 days on the skins. The wine was then pressed at dryness directly to barrel where it underwent indigenous malolactic fermentation. Ultimately, we selected 3 barrels for the final wine – two of which were new French oak barrels.

This is a classic cool climate Syrah showing more elegance and complex flavors than pure weight. With a combination of red and black fruits and hints of white pepper it is a wine that should only grow more interesting with the passage of time. However, with such a small production there may not be much available to hold onto.

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