Impromptu Adventures in Wine Country

A few months ago, a good friend moved into a studio apartment in the Dry Creek Valley just outside of Healdsburg.  The views were supposed to be spectacular since the apartment was above the office of Pasterick Winery and we were looking for an excuse to go check it out.

Last weekend, a group decided to have dinner at Catelli’s in Geyserville to celebrate Julie’s birthday.  This gave everyone the perfect opportunity to meet at Julie’s for pre-dinner drinks and check out her new place. 

The views did not disappoint.  This view is from her landing.  She also has a few of the hillside vineyards and the wine cave (an actual cave) where Pasterick Winery hold their tastings.  It is a stunning piece of property that is as tranquil as it is beautiful. 

It also happened to be Passport Weekend so the owners, Diane and Gerry Pasterick, were hosting a tasting in the cave.  As we were hanging out on the landing sipping champagne and enjoying the views, Diane shouted up a big happy birthday to Julie.  She then invited us to see the cave and tasting room.

We strolled over to the cave as Diane told us about the history of the property and creating the cave itself.  Once inside, she began to describe their wine making process.  They exclusively grow and bottle Syrah in the Rhone tradition of big taste and smooth finish.  As I listened, I began to realize this was turning into a tour, which was fine by me since I really like Syrah.

After Gerry joined us we eventually found our way into the tasting room.  Here, we were treated to tastes of their 2006 Syrah along with a brand new wine, the 2010 Rose (made from Syrah).  These wines were exquisite and I will definitely be buying some in the future.

During the tasting, Diane and Gerry began to tell the story of how they met.  It was part romantic, part humorous, and thoroughly fascinating.  We had just reached the point when Diane had accepted Gerry’s marriage proposal when we realized we were late for dinner. 

We casually left the cave while calling Catelli’s so they knew we were on the way.  Of course, all of us wanted to hear the rest of the story so we decided we would arrange a tasting very soon where we get to sample more vintages of their great Syrah and hear how the story unfolds.  Since Diane and Gerry are together and have created such fantastic winery, I think we already know how the story ends.

Au revoir!