Atelier Winery

Atelier Winery blog is the blog of David Reed. David posts information about Atelier Winery, wines, and events. David encourages you to participate in Ateler's blog by posting your comments. Atelier Winery is a boutique family winery founded by lovers of the wine country lifestyle. Our passions for travel, art, literature, and tradition are harnessed in the making of our wines. We encourage you to share and enjoy our wines in good company.

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Location: Healdsburg, California, United States

Sunday, November 20, 2005

Wine & Spirits Review of Atelier 2003 Syrah

From the December 2005 issue of Wine & Spirit Magazine regarding Atelier's 2003 Alexander Valley Syrah:

"A gentle range of red fruit flavors fills the substantial extract and weight of this wine, the tannin so soft it adds bitter chocolate flavor rather than structure. Clean and spicy, for chopped sirloin off the grill."

Monday, November 07, 2005

A toast for the holidays

Now that harvest is over and the 2005 vintage is in barrel, it’s time to prepare for the holiday season. And this holiday season holds a lot of exciting news for Atelier Winery.

New Release!
Released on November 1st, is our 2004 Contra Costa County Zinfandel. We adore the distinctive character of Contra Costa County Zinfandel, in fact, our love affair with this out-of-the-way appellation dates back over 12 years to our early winemaking days. The bold flavors and inviting aromatics typical of Zinfandel from this sandy terroir dazzled our young palates and have continued to intrigue us with each successive vintage. Ripe raspberry and black cherry aromas mingle with notes of sweet maple and birch beer in the heady aroma of this bold Zinfandel. On the palate hints of white pepper and boysenberry are flanked by finely-structured tannin and supported by vanilla and caramel accents. As is typical in our wines a subtle suggestion of the earth on which the grapes were grown lingers in the wine and delivers a sense of place.

The 2004 vintage was both early and warm. Surprisingly, our Zinfandel grapes matured in the month of August and hit an ideal sugar/acid balance well before summer ended. The early harvest allowed us to ferment the wine, press off skins, and send it down to barrel for maturation all by mid-September. The lush, full-bodied structure of this wine makes it incredibly drinkable at a young age and we found that it needed only 12 months of barrel age to round out the tannins and build structure around the incredible berry richness of the fruit. The lively aromatics are reminiscent of mulling spices making this wine an excellent accompaniment to Fall/Winter and Holiday fare.

Purchase By November 13th and receive in time for Thanksgiving within California. www.atelierwinery.com/purchase.html

Reviews!
Last month we shared the news about the 2003 Alexander Valley Syrah’s Silver Medal at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. This month our Syrah has been recognized by two leading wine critics. Our 2003 Alexander Valley Syrah has just received:

93 Points from Wilfred Wong, Beverages & More, “Impressive all the way around, the full-flavored '03 Atelier Syrah derives its energy from Rhone-inspired flavors; rich boysenberry, white pepper notes abound; long and fine.”

90 Points and 1 Puff from the Connoisseur’s Guide in the November Issue Syrah review. “From its inky color to its ripe, fully extracted nose, this wine has boldness and concentration on its side.” www.cgcw.com


Something for the holidays!
Our 2004 Zinfandel and critically acclaimed 2003 Syrah go great with Holiday dinners. Stock some for yourself or send as a gift for friends or family. E-mail us a custom message and we’ll include a festive hand-written holiday card. Currently, our standard shipping is only available within the state of California. www.atelierwinery.com/purchase.html

Have a joyous holiday season and a happy New Year!

A more intimate look.

Here's our 2003 Alexander Valley Syrah in a more intimate setting.


Photo courtesy of Wilfred WongPosted by Picasa

Atelier's First Glam Shot

Here's our first glamour shot courtesy of Wilfred Wong.

Click here to see Wilfred's review of our 2003 Alexander Valley Syrah. Posted by Picasa