The 2012 Petite Sirah The Writing on the Wall should be the greatest Petite Sirah to ever come out of California (or the world?). Made from 94% Petite Sirah and 6% Viognier and aged in 80% old hogsheads and 20% in new French oak, it’s bottled only in magnum and will be sold along with the new Sine Qua Non label art book. A massive, full-bodied effort that offers incredible depth and richness without ever seeming heavy or cumbersome, it offers up blockbuster-styled aromas and flavors of blackberry, cassis, crushed rocks, beef blood and licorice. It should age for decades. These latest releases from Sine Qua Non and Next of Kyn are at the pinnacle of wine, and it’s simply impossible to taste through these and not be blown away. While I think the star of the show at the moment is the 2010 vintage, the 2011s aren’t far behind, and the 2012s should rival them as well. In addition, to give you an idea how these wines age, don’t miss the recent 2004 retrospective on these wines that was published at eRobertParker.com. We finished the tasting with Manfred’s Next of Kyn releases, and these are the strongest set of wines yet to come out under this label. The focus here is exclusively on his estate Cumulus Vineyard planted around the estate in Oakview. Tel. (805) 649-8901; www.sinequanon.com