Why Make Sparkling Syrah?

Our Sparkling Syrah started as a class project

...and turned out to be a joyous unplanned surprise!

 

 

We’d been making Chardonnay and Syrah from our estate vineyards and Zinfandel and Cabernet with fruit from our Dry Creek neighbors since we launched Amista in 2004. We made our first Rosé of Syrah in 2005. In 2007, our winemaker asked if he could have some of the rosé juice to make a sparkling wine in his winemaking class using the traditional Methode Champenoise. We said, “Sure, as long as we get to taste it!”

It was delicious, so in 2008 we decided to try making our own Sparkling Syrah. It was beautiful – a glittering raspberry color – and became an instant hit. I call it “joy in a bottle”.

It looks festive on a holiday table and pairs beautifully with a wide array of Thanksgiving dishes. Because it stays on the skins for several hours, it picks up some tannins making it a great match with everything from barbecue to spicy foods like Thai and Mexican. Like many of our unplanned discoveries, it launched a whole new adventure. I am delighted that we were the first to make sparkling wine in Dry Creek, especially since I love bubbles!

Best Sparkling Wineries in Sonoma and Napa

Amista Featured in a Dog Friendly Visit to Sonoma County

"If you like bubbles, this is your spot...and we can't think of a better way to start off the day", says Bay Area Buzz. 

Read A Dog Friendly Visit to Sonoma County with Wine Road in Bay Area Buzz 

How Did you Get Into the Wine Business?

Well, it wasn't exactly a plan!

...although  I  really think it was a dream we didn't know we had and didn't know we shared.

 

 

I can trace it back to a time when we were captivated by a series of Ernest and Julio Gallo TV ads with lovely music (Hymne by Vangelis) with beautiful images of wine country landscapes, harvesting grapes, making wine, and friends and families enjoying life.

Not long after Mike saw an ad in a local newspaper for "backyard vineyards". He planted 150 Cabernet Sauvignon vines on the hillside of our home in Silicon Valley. Six months later he decided he needed to learn how to make wine and crushed 1/2 ton of Cabernet in our garage. I made sure I was never there to do the hard work!

Six months later I was offered a job in New Jersey. Sadly, we moved before harvesting a single grape from our new vineyard, but we took the barrel of wine with us. After a couple of years of aging, we tasted the wine with friends and it was great! Mike decided, "I'm a winemaker!" Who knew it would eventually draw us into the wine business where we would be making delicious Rhone reds and sparkling wines?

 

 

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Why A Blog?

As a woman winery owner, I have been asked lots of questions about what it’s like to be in the wine business and live the wine country life after spending decades in the corporate world. Here are my stories about the wonderful world of sparkling wines – which I love – and owning a vineyard in Dry Creek Valley. I am grateful I get to live near the charming town of Healdsburg, California, in the heart of Sonoma Wine Country. As with any endeavor, there are glorious moments and difficult moments. For me, each of them brings new discoveries and learning, which is why I call them “sparkling moments”.

About Me

I started with an education in psychology - pretty much useless for getting a job - which led me to explore breakthrough leadership and a career as an executive in several global corporations. Following my corporate career, I became an executive coach helping CEOs and their teams build the leadership skills they need to achieve top performance.

Getting into the wine business wasn’t exactly a plan. As I look back, I believe it was a dream that my husband Mike and I didn’t know we had and didn’t know we shared. When we started out together, we never knew we'd end up living in Sonoma's beautiful Dry Creek Valley surrounded by our own vineyards. From planting our first vineyard in Silicon Valley, to tasting our first “garage-made” wine out of the barrel with friends in our basement in New Jersey, to eventually moving to this beautiful property in the Dry Creek Valley, the creation of our winery, Amista Vineyards, unfolded over many years and in several locations.

Owning a winery has catapulted me into a leadership role that is both challenging and exhilarating. I love crafting our business strategy, meeting our guests, and nurturing the growth and development of our team. I also love living the wine country life – farm fresh foods, beautiful wines, good friends – all in a stunning setting surrounded by vineyards and rolling hills.

About Amista Vineyards

We are dedicated to crafting distinctive wines that inspire you to celebrate the special moments in life and experience the friendly spirit of wine country living. We are proud to produce the best sparkling wine and Rhône varietals in Sonoma wine country, the perfect collection of wines for making everyday moments special and special moments extraordinary.

We are Michael and Vicky Farrow, co-founders of Amista Vineyards. Since we released our first wine in 2005, our goal has been to provide an exceptional wine country experience of Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley.  It is a dream come true to live in this special place and we’re excited to share it with you. We will remain small, and family operated, offering our wines through a personal connection with each guest, whether in person or on-line.

We are local. Our grapes come from our estate vineyards just outside the charming town of Healdsburg, California, and from our neighbors in Dry Creek Valley and Rockpile. We want to be able to walk the vineyards, taste the fruit and have a personal relationship with the people who grow our grapes.

We are sustainable. In August of 2018, our estate Morningsong Vineyards became Certified Sustainable by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance.  This certification is only one part of our commitment to our land and people. We were part of project to restore the incredible beauty of Dry Creek and at the same time recreate a vibrant habitat for endangered Steelhead trout and Coho salmon. We built our tasting room with energy efficient insulated concrete forms (ICF's) and constructed a solar structure that powers the tasting room and vineyard irrigation. We believe a vital part of our business is to provide extraordinary learning experiences to people on our team who aspire to be leaders and innovators in the wine business and to impact others in lasting and significant ways.

We are friendly. Amista, loosely translated, means making friends in Spanish and we want your experience to be welcoming, engaging and fun. If you visit us in person, you can look forward to a friendly welcome in a beautiful setting surrounded by vineyards. We are also known as the best dog friendly winery in Healdsburg, California.

Amista Makes Rhones Sparkle!

Here at Amista, we love Rhone varietals. The first wine we made when we moved to Healdburg was Syrah – but that was just for fun, with friends in our garage - and we called it Garage Syrah. Syrah remains our flagship varietal plus we have added Grenache and a GSM blend (Grenache, Syrah Mourvedre) to our collection of Rhone-style wines.

But we do something else with Rhone varietals. We make sparkling wines using the classic Methode Champenoise, the same process used to make fine French Champagne. We found a great article in the Wine Enthusiast about Rhone wines and want to share it with you.

Check out What Do We Mean When We Say Rhône-style Wine? By Anne Krebiehl MW

Amista - A Favorite Dog Friendly Winery in Sonoma County

"Stroll Amista’s beautiful estate vineyards at your leisure and explore the varieties they grow, learn about the wines made and discover their backwater pond that is part of the Habitat Enhancement Project designed to restore the natural fish habitat in Dry Creek. Perfect for walking your dog.
The complimentary walk is approximately one-half mile on flat terrain. Dogs on a leash and children are welcome. We suggest comfortable shoes and appropriate clothing for the weather.
Open daily from 11:00am – 4:30pm. No reservations required.Come to the tasting room to register, pick up a map and let the adventure begin!"

Read the Our Favorite Dog Friendly Wineries in Sonoma County by Adrian Tamblin / wineroutes.com

Amista is Dog Friendly!

"Amista Vineyards, our third vineyard of the day ended up being one of our favorites…in fact, it’s the only vineyard where we actually signed up for a wine club membership. That decision was inspired in part by the delicious wines we sampled (I went for the sparkling flight, mmm), as well as the incredible hospitality we experienced. David, who led our tasting, couldn’t have been any more knowledgeable, welcoming, or friendly."

"Cooper...had the absolute time of his life. I mean, that face says it all."

Read the Dog-Friendly Guide to Sonoma County, CA by Kelly Borglum

Amista - Top 10 Hot Brands!

"Sparkling wine isn't just for celebrations anymore.  That's not to say we shouldn't be drinking sparkling on momentous occasions or for holidays - if you asked Vicky Farrow and Ashley Herzberg, we should be drinking it every day of the year.  Maybe they're a little biased - they're in charge of the sparkling wine program at Amista Vineyards, tucked away along Sonoma County's famed Dry Creek Road - but it does sound like they're on to something big." says Wine Business  Monthly.   

Our Sparkling Grenache was selected as one of the Top Hot Brands for 2017.

Check out the Wine Business Monthly article and read why Amista Vineyards is one of their picks as a Hot Brand for 2017. 

Showcasing Amista Ilusión

"The styles of zin produced in Dry Creek Valley — from zippy to dark and decadent and even, as a dessert wine, an off-dry, port-style sipper — are perfect for winter meals," says The Times Union.  Our Ilusión - dessert wine was one of 3 Dry Creek wines featured.  

Check out California Zinfandels span flavors, pair with many meals from the Times Union.
 

Amista Among Best Sonoma and Napa Wineries for Sparkling!

Sonoma Magazine names Amista as one of the 11 best local wineries for sparkling and features our estate grown Sparkling Blanc de Blanc.

Read "11 Best Sonoma and Napa Wineries for Sparkling Wine" in Sonoma Magazine