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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2013 and 2021 (based on 5 user opinions) |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.7 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 27 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Backdoctor on 7/26/2020 & rated 93 points: I forgot how good this wine is. Drinking great! (625 views) | | | Tasted by David_T on 7/5/2019: Drinking well now with the structural components completely integrated. Flavors unchanged from my last note. (767 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 10/9/2017: Wine with friends (at Lake Michigan) (Mike and Lori's (near Shelby MI)): Biased review. Just cause we could, I opened this late. Pop and pour, it is still tight and i would hold these or give them air. Mike finished it the next day and (politely?) said it showed well. Good black raspberry fruit with some depth. Just very tight. Still, fun to share with friends. (2586 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 4/16/2017: Wine for Passover 2017; 4/15/2017-4/16/2017 (Our Seder at Home): I know this is not Kosher for Passover, but we really enjoy being able to share our wines on holidays especially with non-geeks and people who have never tried it before. We are comfortable with that but understand some might not be. Our apologies. I hadn't had a 2010 in quite some time. They were shut down hard last time. I popped the corks at 8:00 am and we drank at about 9:00 pm. Deep purple in color. The nose is open showing black raspberries, white pepper, slight smoke and roasted meats. On the palate, this is drinking well with this much air. Still young and not at peak though. Maybe a late teenager? Lots of juicy black raspberry fruit. Slight blueberries. Some earthiness. Nice finish. Honestly, it my biased opinion it seemed great but that was also after some disappointing Kosher wines. :-) Anyway, I would still hold these, drink the 11's and the 9's or maybe the 12's. (2333 views) | | | Tasted by WinthropT96 on 8/15/2016 & rated 91 points: Drinking really well now but by no means done in the cellar. Opaque purple, rich and dark; black fruit and pepper on the nose and full spice box in the mouth following the initial fruit. Complex favors and long. Medium-full body with good structure and mouth feel. (1860 views) | | | Tasted by David_T on 5/12/2016 & rated 91 points: Aromas of red and black fruit, primarily currant but also cherry and blackberry along with floral notes and a bit of earth & herbs. The palate matches with the fruit up front (mostly red cherry/raspberry) then a flower/herbal/raspberry midpalate followed by an earthy/blackberry/black cherry finish. A nice progression of the fruit from red to dark and the medium acidity/tannins are integrating. These notes are from day two and I would say it's drinking well now with a little air to open up. (1619 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 6/26/2015: SonkinCellars Partners Meeting- A Vertical 2009 thru 2013 (The Barn at Walden): The tightest of all the Persona vintages. This closed up shortly after release and is still hanging tough. Give it plenty of air if you want to drink it, but patience will be rewarded. The nose has black raspberries, slight violets and white pepper. Great juicy texture which makes me feel confident about the future. Beautiful purity of fruit (as the saying goes) on the palate. This will need another 3 years IMO, but then should start to open. I am curious but confident about this. (2479 views) | | | Tasted by ksmith on 5/15/2015 & rated 91 points: Dark purple. Nose of black fruits and spice. BlackBerry and spicy black cherry on the palate. This is drinking well now. (1478 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 5/23/2014: SonkinCellars Partners Meeting (The Barn): In a great place right now. Pnp, it did close up a bit for a time, then reopened. I don't believe this is quite at peak yet, another year or two. I would recommend a few hours of slow ox. (2363 views) | | | Tasted by ChipGreen on 4/3/2014: Had the pleasure of meeting Loren and his lovely wife at a local tasting of his '10 and '11 Persona Syrahs.
The nose on the 2010 was slightly muted but I picked up some dark fruits and a little spice. Classic Cali Syrah palate with savory meat and bacon fat. Also black cherry, blueberry/blackberry fruit, plus notes of mocha, nutmeg and loamy topsoil.
Smooth, medium bodied wine with juicy mouthfeel, lightly oaked, medium+ acidity, mild tannins and medium+ finish. Although the wine is already approachable and well integrated, it will probably continue to improve over the next 2-3 years. (1731 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 3/6/2014: A Whole Lotta Syrahs (and more) at the Girl and the Fig; 3/4/2014-3/6/2014 (The Girl and the Fig): My favorite of the three on this evening. It still needs some air or time I think, but it is an opulent warm climate Syrah that, for my biased tastes, manages to hold the line on alcohol or fruit bombedness (is that a word?). Still, satisfying to me with a nice streak of acidity that worked with my excellent grilled cheese sandwich. (2220 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 1/12/2014: Awesome Dinner with Friends (Erasmus, SQN, Saxum, Pride, Dehlinger++) (Out and about): I know this is my wine, but it was out muscled in this flight. (that's ok with me, it is not in the same price range either). Not by a lot and it held its own. This got some air but still needed more. A few years from peak. The nose is showing some complexity. It is a meaty Syrah but not monster wine that the Saxum, Denner and Torrin are (that is by design). (2011 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 1/1/2014: Some great wine for the end of 2013 (Our home): In a nice place. Took a couple of hours to open and continued to open all night. Starting to develop some tertiary complexity. Held it own in a nice line-up. (1804 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 11/23/2013: Decanted, this is drinking nicely now. I still think it is not quite at peak, but no reason not to try one if you like. It has a great nose, black raspberries, slight grilled bread note with some cracked black pepper. My favorite feature continues to be the mouth puckering acidity. Good fruit on the palate. Food friendly. (1203 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 11/8/2013: Colgin, SQN, SHS, Saxum, Bevan, DP ++++ (GHT): This is brighter than the 09. Not as seductive of a nose, but just as nice, with lots or black raspberries, some grilled meats and white pepper. On the palate, I really enjoy the acidity on this wine. It makes it very food friendly. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of fruit and this is not a shy wine, but there is a component that makes this mouth watering. Probably closer to peak than the 09, but both are a few years away right now IMO. (1825 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 9/15/2013: Lots of wines at Tommy's Clambake (Tommy's): Obviously I am biased. The wine is developing nicely. Needs some air and a year or two away from maturity. Plenty of fruit. My favorite thing about this wine is the acidity. It makes it food friendly IMO. Thanks to George for opening it, but even more thanks to him for BUYING it. ;-) (1773 views) | | | Tasted by Cow Town on 9/4/2013 & rated 91 points: Second of three bottles. Started out with a similar funky/bloody nose as the first, but quickly blew off (whew!). Good dark, syrah color, with a nice mix of red and black fruit to go with some earthiness on the nose. Mouthfeel was wonderful, a mix of silkiness and delicate. Rich, but nicely nuanced medium-length finish. Nice wine. (1105 views) | | | Tasted by GaryHOhio on 7/24/2013 & rated 92 points: My first bottle of this Syrah. I decanted it for 2 hours, nice nose of meat with cherries, nice mix of fruit and tannins in the mouth with a nice long finish. Continued to open up and change a bit over the next 3 hours with more fruit and less heat.
Very nice California Syrah.
Information from the label: This is 98% Syrah from the White Hawk Vineyard ( Santa Barbara County) and 2% Viognier from Catie's Corner Vineyard ( Sonoma County). 900 bottles produced. (1007 views) | | | Tasted by Wrmcbratney on 5/7/2013: Much better than my previous experience with this wine. Opened for about 7 hours before trying. Huge meaty nose with some pork, bacon and pepper along with black cherry, blackberry and plum. Mouth mirrors the nose with a little savory quality, nice big tannins, good acidity and a long finish. (979 views) | | | Tasted by Wrmcbratney on 5/1/2013: Hmm. On the first night, there was nothing on the nose except oak (which is slightly weird for a wine with 1/3 new oak). Even after a few hours, nothing. On day 2, it opened up slightly, but mostly muddled black fruit. Not very good right now (or slightly corked).
EDIT: Thanks for replacing this Loren, really appreciate it. Tried another bottle and much better. Lots of black fruit and meatiness. Very enjoyable. (1039 views) | | | Tasted by Cow Town on 3/22/2013: Hmmmmm. Meaty, funky, maybe off. Waited two hours, still the same. An hour more. Still the same. I like earthy, bloody, meaty Syrahs as much as anyone. But, I don't know about this. (1221 views) | | | Tasted by Backdoctor on 2/15/2013 & rated 92 points: had it open for 26 hrs before drinking. Was awesome. (1009 views) | | | Tasted by mmatt on 2/4/2013 & rated 93 points: 93 The Rhone Report, 91 points Wine Spectator. Needs year or two bottle age and will have 8-10 years or moreof prime drinking. (1334 views) | | | Tasted by David_T on 12/20/2012 & rated 92 points: Thanks to Loren for bringing this tonight, as I'm planning to let mine sit for a while longer. This was opened 48 hours before tasting. The nose is dead on roast beef / the juiciest steak ever. Very savory, though not much fruit on the nose. The palate is very meaty, but the fruit is also there along with a hint of balsamic vinegar. Acidic which contributes to a long finish, and also medium+ tannins. For my palate right now this is above & beyond the 09 and I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes with age, although Loren said in the long run he thinks the 09 may be better. (1169 views) | | | Tasted by Uglypinga on 11/27/2012: Baby killin'
Day one it was down right grapey.
Day two the wine starts to strut its stuff. Great nose of coffee, chocolate covered cherries, and a hint of citrus zest. The palate has lots of red berries and very nice, smooth acid. The fruit needs to loosen up and fill out but all the components are there. Grippy tannins as expected. Left some for day three. Very promising. Amazing nose. (1303 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| SonkinCellars Producer websiteSyrah BlendThe 2018 is 40% Merlot and 60% Syrah.USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Central Coasthttp://www.ccwinegrowers.org/links.html
http://www.discovercaliforniawines.com/regional-wine-organizations/
http://beveragetradenetwork.com/en/btn-academy/list-of-winegrowers-association-in-central-coast-california-274.htm
Central Coast AVA WikipediaSanta Barbara County Santa Barbara County |
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