Featured Winery, spring 2007
RELIC PINOT NOIR "Alder Springs Vineyard"
Mendocino County 2005
(SOLD OUT)
RELIC SYRAH Sonoma Valley 2005 ($37)
RELIC SYRAH "Alder Springs Vineyard"
Mendocino County 2004
($57)
The Relic Winery Mixed Case
six bottles of each of the syrahs (sorry, no more pinot noir)
$508
Includes 10% discount.
The Relic Winery Mixed Half-Case
three bottles of each of the syrahs (sorry, no more pinot noir)
$268
Includes 5% discount.
Order Today!
Consider Back Room Wines as a Vista Point for the evolving California fine wine industry.
New wineries, with free thinking owners/winemakers, are popping up every year. Alternatively, “established” wineries are hiring inspired winemakers to shake things up, and mostly for the best. The result has been ever more rich, seductive, luscious wines that quickly garner customer demand. Before I write about BRW’s Featured Winery for Spring 2007, here’s a list of just some of these wineries. (Just off the top of my head.)
Ampelos
Freeman
Buoncristiani
Orin Swift
Favia-Erickson
Failla
Pax
Larkin
Whetstone
Brewer-Clifton
Sojourn
Scholium Project
Kobalt
Buccella
And, our new Featured Winery: Relic.
Relic Winery came to being in 2002. It is owned by Mike Hirby and Schatzi Throckmorton, thirty-somethings who are partners in life as well as wine. Their winery connection of note is Behrens & Hitchcock, where Schatzi is G.M. and Relic makes their wine. Mike was Assistant Winemaker at B&H from 2000 to 2002. Total production for Relic (multiple wines) is under five hundred cases.
The Relic style is always powerful and intense. Grapes are picked perfectly ripe, so alcohol levels in the 15.0% range are normal. Oak is their friend. Every Relic wine I’ve tasted has had a KER POW quality to it. Count on a Relic wine to be on the bigger side yet nicely proportioned and very well made.
We have three Relic wines to offer you. Of course you may pick your pleasures among the three. If you’re jazzed by the whole Relic “thing,” do try them all. Our mixed half case and full case proposals come offer you discounts. Now for the wines:
RELIC PINOT NOIR “Alder Springs Vineyard”
Mendocino County 2005 (sold out. very sorry.) 
"Alder Springs Vineyard" is quite a haul up from Napa Valley. It’s in Northern Mendocino. If you’ve driven Highway 101 up to Oregon, this vineyard is near the town of Laytonville, about 3 ½ hours north of San Francisco. If you’re not familiar with “Alder Springs” wines, you’ll be surprised the first time how the wines from here are so rich and full of varietal character. After your first “Alder Springs” experience, you’ll come to expect it. The vineyard rarely disappoints, which is testimony to the vineyard, it’s owner and the quality of the wineries who source its fruit.
Relic Pinot Noir showcases the red fruits and wildflower qualities of Pinot Noir. Wild red cherry, red roses, orange pekoe tea, cardamom, dried raspberries and five-spice come to mind as you savor. Note the alcohol is 14.2%, not so strong. Strong, sexy oak note (all French, 60% new) adds a mocha note. 115 cases made. This is the most endangered species of the line up, so I do hope you can live with a three bottle limit.
RELIC SYRAH Sonoma Valley 2005 ($37)
It was fun to taste this wine with Mike. For shear, carnal enjoyment, this was our favorite.
For Mike, it could deliver even more, and explains the relative “value” of this Syrah. The fruit comes from hillside vineyards just east of the town of Sonoma. We’ve enjoyed, and sold, wines from this neighborhood in the past (J.C. Zin “Iron Hill” and Copain Zin “Arrowhead Mountain”) and just like the bigness that comes from the vines here. Yes, this Syrah is big and luscious and speaks to our base instincts. Deep, dark, fruit, mineral, olive, game, great mouth feel, really yummy. Could be more complex I guess. What more could it have? See the next wine.
RELIC SYRAH “Alder Springs Vineyard” Mendocino 2004 ($57)
Back we go to “Alder Springs,” California’s equivalent to Côte Rôtie. (You are most welcome to disagree, but please let us know what you’re equivalent is.) As big as this wine is, it’s equally about intensity. Red and black fruits soar with wings made of black peppercorns, cinnamon sticks, menthol, savory tobacco, lavender and black currant. (Like that?) One must like spice here. Where the Sonoma Valley Syrah is for cocktail parties, the “Alder Springs” is for the dinner table. Let your imagination fly with food pairings. Grilled salmon to Cassoulet to big red meats pair equally well in their unique ways.