2003 David Fulton, Saint Helena, Napa Valley, Estate Bottled, Petite Sirah ($37 U.S.). Alcohol level: 14.5%. This wine was given to us a few years back. We normally like to drink our well made PS’s at the seven year point, but we didn’t get to this one last year.
The wine gave us prunes on the nose and upfront. It developed on the palate with dark fruit including cherries and prunes, some chocolate and spice, and chewy tannin. At the end it exploded with flavor in a lengthy finish. We were afraid of sediment and experienced none after running the wine through an unbleached filter, which collected quite a bit.
We matched it with rib eye steak, a half of a broule, and lemony salad with avocado. It can’t get much better on a Saturday night.