Yorkville Highlands

This winery is no longer in business and the vineyard has been sold (Pax Wines).  Purple in color with ruby swirls, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black olives, char and spice.  Full bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this is a big wine.  It is cooler climate Syrah in style.  Flavors of black raspberries, black pepper and char.  Long finish.  This is still on the younger side but drinking well.  It should go another ten to fifteen years. Great on its own, this would be nice with roasted root veggies.  

What a great wine.  Now that this winery is no longer in business, I wonder who gets these grapes?  This was Halcon's last year I believe.  Inky purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright.  The nose has boysenberries, gravel, and spice.

This is 100% Syrah grown in a cooler climate.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black raspberries, black olives, and slight bacon fat.  With air, some herbal/woodiness comes out.  Full bodied.  Sinewy texture.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Light tannins but drinking tight and young.  It took about four hours to really open up.  Then black raspberries with underlying gravel and minerality.  Long finish.  This is drinking well now, but cellaring for five or so years will be rewarded.  Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.  Nice on its own, better with food.

Another tremendous wine from Halcon, which, sadly for us, has just been sold.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with boysenberries, plums, black pepper and char.  Full bodied but with vibrancy and energy.  On the palate, black raspberries, plums and char underneath.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  This wine won't hit its peak for another ten years or so and should drink well for another twenty after that.  Given its price though, its worth drinking a few on the young side.  Delicious.  At the moment, it will require big food flavors to go with it; roasted meats or

Great wine and an even better value.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black raspberries, black olives, black pepper and slight bacon fat.  Full bodied. On the palate, this is complex and deep.  Layers of black raspberry fruit, minerality, smoke and earthiness.  Great balance.  Long finish.  This is delicious.  Drink over the next ten to twelve years.  It will work great on its own and works well with roasted meats or veggies.

This is a happy accident.  This white Rhone Blend (65% Roussanne 35% Marsanne) and was bottled and it turned out to have a bit of trapped CO2 giving it a light fizz (frizzante).  The winery enjoyed it and it sold out quickly.  Light golden in color.  The nose has some minerality and pears.  Clean.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, there is indeed a bit of a fizz.  The wine is refreshing and goes down easily.  Some pears and plenty of minerals.  Shorter finish.  It drinks well on its own and will work with lighter foods.  Drink over the next five to seven years.  

This is one of my favorite Petite Sirahs out there.  At age 7, this is still a youngster, but it is delicious.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has boysenberries, char and spice.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is intense.  Lots of precision.  Very deep.  Boysenberries over a char base.  Great balance.  Delicious.  Long finish.  Great value, too!  This should drink well for another ten to fifteen years, but it is so good now.  Works great on its own or with spicy foods or fatty foods.  

This is a blend of 65% Grenache, 30% Mourvedre and 5% Syrah.  Purple in color.  The nose has black cherries, black raspberries and plums along with some spice and earthy funk.  On the palate, this is complex.  Layers of black cherries and black raspberries with damp earthiness.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  This is drinking very well right now.  It should be at this level for another five to ten years.  It goes well with roasts and casseroles.  

This is a GSM blend of 70/10/20.  Still young, it needs some time, especially for the Syrah and Mourvedre to come out.  Ruby in color, slightly cloudy.  The nose has black cherries and baking spices.  On the palate, this is more raspberries but the baking spice are present.  Smooth and easy drinking but also some depth.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  Needs a few years and should have a decade more.  Will work on its own and worked great with a stuffed eggplant dish but roasted foods in general.  

This was in magnum and opened to celebrate the engagement of our friends daughter.  The non-wine geek crowd seemed to really enjoy it (as did the wine geeks present).  Purple in color.  The nose has boysenberries, some black pepper and slight bacon fat.  On the palate, this has a wonderful texture.  Juicy, slick and medium to full bodied.  Plenty of boysenberry fruit over a bit of char and slight dry earthiness.  Good balance.  Nice finish.  This is coming around now and just about at peak.  Even in 750ml format there is no hurry though, this should have another decade.  It will go well wit