Santa Barbara

• Santa Lucia Highlands
• Santa Rita Hills
• Santa Ynez Valley

I love the Andremily Syrah, but this was my first time trying the Mourvedre.  It was sensational.  It does contain 14% Syrah.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is great with grilled meats and slightly gamey meats (a good thing) along with black pepper, lavender and spice.  On the palate, this has a lush wonderful texture.  Plenty of acidity behind the fruit.  Very primary today.  Consumed over a few days, there really wasn't much difference.  Lots of black raspberry fruit with some black cherries and an underlying earthiness.  This will certainly take at least five and closer to ten years to

This is their basic bottling (not vineyard designated) and is a tremendous value.  It is a warmer climate styled Syrah but not over the top.  Sporting a newly revised label and under new ownership, this wine is every bit as good as those released by Craig Jaffurs.  Inky purple in color.  The nose has black raspberries, slight black pepper and roasted meats.  On the palate, this has a nice juicy acidity.  Delicious black raspberry fruit.  Nice depth although still young with medium tannins.  Nice finish.  This is a gulpable wine that goes down quite easily.  It will work with bigger and or s

This is our wine so this review is biased.  The wine was included in a blind tasting of Santa Barbara Syrahs with my tasting group.  I suspected this was it but wasn't sure (it was narrowed down to two wines).  It was quite a relief that this did not finish last and in fact, finished 4/10 with 1 first and 2 third place votes (I had it in 3rd).  Blind - my thoughts are:  Inky purple in color.  The nose has black raspberries, coffee, white pepper and slight earthiness.  On the palate, this has balanced but juicy acidity.  Layers of black raspberries and earth with some meat/pepper notes.  Thi

I really enjoyed this bottle as I have in many vintages.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has black raspberries, spice, black pepper and a meaty note.  On the palate, this is young and tannic.  Certainly seems like there is some upside to holding these for a while.  Chewy tannins.  Lots of black raspberry fruit and a slight char.  Long finish.  This will be great on its own or with meaty/fatty dishes.  

Sadly, this was corked (the cork was infected with 2,4,6-trichloroanisole or TCA).  Its too bad as the underlying wine seemed quite good.  Might have been a great value.  

This is very young and hopefully a few years in the cellar shows some improvement.  It is a good wine right now and presents itself in a more Northern Rhone style.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is spicy with slight green notes and some black raspberries.  That spicy quality carries thru to the palate along with some tart red cherry fruit.  Light tannins.  A tangy finish.  Strong acidity that really needs some fatty foods to work with it.  It was not helped by being in the same lineup as some more warmer climate, riper Syrahs.  

This was my first time trying wine.  It is a solid wine.  Whether it is worth the $40 price tag is up to you.  It did seem a bit advanced so perhaps look for younger vintages.  Purple in color with some browning.  The nose is dusty with black cherries.  On the palate, this is tart with black cherry fruit.  Also a black olive note.  This drinks like a cooler climate Syrah.  It will work with a wide variety of foods; stews will be great.  

This was my personal favorite (the group's 2nd) in a recent blind tasting of Santa Barbara Syrahs.  Just a sensational bottle of wine,  Inky purple in color.  The nose has black raspberries, black coffee, white pepper and roasted meats.  Deep.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Black raspberry fruit over a clay-ish base.  It unwinds in the glass with lighter tannins.  Long finish.  This is a big wine but with a lovely elegance to it as well.  I doubt it gets better from here but easily has another decade or more left at this level.  It will go with bigger meats and stews.  

Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is very nice with black raspberries, baking spice, black pepper and a bit of roasted meats.  On the palate, this is more black cherry than darker fruit.  Its ripe with firm tannins.  Drinking youthfully, this will benefit from air or further cellaring.  It has good acidity and a nice depth to it.  It will need bigger foods or drink it on its own.  In our group tasting the got four first place votes out of ten and was the groups WOTN.  

Tensley makes some of the best AND best value Syrahs anywhere.  This wine is outstanding.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is dusty with spice, black raspberries, slight black pepper and bit of coffee.  There is some volatile acidity on this wine.  Whether that is an issue depends on your tolerance.  On the palate, this is sweet and slightly cloying.  Ripe vs. Residual Sugar?  I think a bit of RS but not crazy.  Lots of black raspberry fruit.  Slightly cloying.  This is a tough fruit match but a tasty wine that drinks well on its own and will work with spicy foods.