Syrah

California Syrah bottled in Oregon by Maggie Harrison.  Some of the best Syrah out there.  I last had this about ten years ago.  At age 16, this was at peak and gorgeous.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, slight roasted herbs, and a hint of gamey meat.  Full bodied.  Lots of vibrancy and energy.  Great lush texture.  On the palate, still plenty of fruit, light tannins with depth and complexity.  Black raspberries over pepper and gravel.  Long finish.  This drinks great on its own and is perfect with roasted meats, fowl or veggies.  This prob

I don't drink a lot of wines from South Africa, but that is not for any particular reason.  When I drink ones, such as this, it raises the issue as this is a delightful Syrah that is prices fairly.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with boysenberries, slight mint and roasted herbs.  Full bodied.  Nice depth.  Delicious.  On the palate, boysenberries over a char base.  Clean.  Nice finish.  This drinks well on its own and would be a nice match with Indian cuisine.  Drink over the next 15 years.  

This is apparently a new wine from No Girls that was sent free to those members on the Mailing List.  A Zoom tasting was held for people to try it although a friend brought this bottle to a separate event.  Pop and pour.  It is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Tempranillo.  Almost black in color, more ruby towards the rim.  The nose has that burnt rubber smell so prevalent in many Washington Syrahs.  Also, some slight barnyard, black raspberries and black cherries.  Medium bodied if not a bit thinner.  On the palate, this is a nice quaff.  Somewhat one dimensional with nice black cherry fruit

Inky purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black raspberries, spice and cedar.  On the palate, ripe black raspberry fruit with a slight sour cherry note.  Medium tannins.  Long finish.  This is a big wine but not over done.  It is just starting to calm down a bit as it enters middle age.  This is drinking well now and should continue to drink well for another seven to ten years.  This would work well with Indian food including yellow curries.

This is in a great spot right now.  At peak.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, roasted herbs and slight bacon fat.  Full bodied.  Ripe but not overt.  On the palate, nice black raspberry fruit with great acidity.  Deep and complex.  It opens beautifully in the glass.  Also, delicious.  Long finish.  This won't get better but should drink well for another five to seven years.  It works well on its own and would work with Thai or Indian food, or just a burger.  

A beautiful Syrah from this Oregon based producer (although the fruit is Californian).  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, char, roasted herbs, gamey meat and black pepper.  Full bodied but not over the top.  14.8% abv.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Black raspberry fruit, ripe, but not sweet with a touch of black pepper.  Lively.  Good energy.  Long finish.  Delicious.  Drinking really well right now, at or close to peak.  This should drink well for another ten to twelve years.  This drinks great on its own and went well with a roasted veggie sandwich

One of my favorite Syrahs in the world right now.  A blend of 90% Syrah, 6% Viognier, and 4% Mourvèdre.  These are big Syrahs that need a lot of time (depending how you like them) to hit peak.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black leather, roasted meats and herbs, and slight floral notes.  Full bodied.  Exuberant.  On the palate, black raspberries, blueberries, with underlying smoke and pepper.  Great texture.  Long finish.  This needs another five to seven years until peak and should be good for another ten to twelve after that.  It is delicious n

This is a blend of 40% Syrah, 22% Grenache, 21% Mourvedre, 3% Counoise, and 3% Terret Noir checking in at 13% abv.  Screw capped.  This is a nice value play in easy to drink, Cal Rhone styled wines.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black raspberries, black cherries, slight pepper and an herbal note (chervil?).  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this drinks easy.  Little tannins.  Nice black cherry fruit with a touch of black pepper.  Good acidity.  Moderate finish.  This will work well with most meats, fowl or veggies.  Drink over the next five to seven years.

This is a very nice Syrah from California's Central Coast.  It is a big, fruit forward Syrah.  Alc. 15%  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black raspberries, black pepper, roasted meats and herbs.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is is juicy with big black raspberry fruit.  Delicious.  Some depth and complexity.  Long finish.  It could use a few more years to sort itself out, but is very tasty right now.  This drinks great on its own and will work great with chili, stews or a burger.  Drink over the next seven to ten years.  

My first time trying this particular vineyard although Torrin is a favorite.  100% Syrah.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with boysenberries and some black pepper.  On the palate, medium tannins.  Nice black raspberry fruit.  Some depth.  Good finish.  An outstanding wine, but not up to the rarefied air of other vineyards in the Torrin lineup.  It should still improve a bit as it continues to mature over the next five years and drink well for ten more after that.  This probably would be helped by some fatty fried foods or meats.