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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.6 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 44 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Xfactor on 1/21/2024 & rated 92 points: A beauty at this age. Decanted. Lots of fruit and earth, then quieted down and composed at 2+ hours. (98 views) | | | Tasted by Mingestrom on 12/7/2020 & rated 93 points: Dark fruit and tobacco, drink now, tannins fully integrated, long finish. (886 views) | | | Tasted by Mingestrom on 1/26/2020 & rated 92 points: Lots of dark fruit with integrated tannins, well balanced and very long, not to sweet and jammy, excellent wine. (1014 views) | | | Tasted by guitarguy on 9/11/2018 & rated 88 points: Trademark Syrah barnyard plays over the palate that includes underbrush, pepper and slightly underripe blueberry. Not Brett barnyard, more like animal dung and sweat. The nose shows leather and light aromatic notes. Not outstanding, good, a bit pricey at $30 10 years ago on realease. (1259 views) | | | Tasted by Christoffer78 on 2/2/2018 & rated 95 points: A stunningly well-made Syrah with exactly the right balance, integration and proportions. This wine is drinking superbly right now and delivers pure joy. As I have written many times before , tre are few more underrated wines than the ones from Ojai. The 2006 White Hawk delivers the very typical refined and elegant combination of power, elegance and fruit. The fruit is totally on par with all the other components, yet it manages to elevate its voice a bit but certainly in a rather gentle and intriguing manner. Power is expressed by a marvelous 50+ second length on the finish! Despite more than ten years rest there is plenty of both texture and structure. This effort will continue to age well for another five to ten years. A totally brilliant wine! (1686 views) | | | Tasted by CWilliam on 11/4/2017: Can't find notes. Paired with grilled Halibut and actually went well.
This has aged well and was good on night 2 as well. Saline, tobacco, dark fruits on nose & palate. Very nice structure with medium+ acids, integrated tannins and long finish.
92-93 (Probably would put down 93 if I had saved my notes). Would buy again. (1468 views) | | | Tasted by jbaron on 12/7/2016 & rated 93 points: Opens kind of old tasting, but sheds that skin after about 20 minutes. Nice, slightly hot nose, great mouth, and a really great length. The heat detracts some, but the general picture is fantastic. Great red strawberry and cherry fruit with some peppery heat. Not so much earth tones, which robs the wine of a bit of complexity, but what's left is still a very good bottle. (1263 views) | | | Tasted by jbaron on 9/24/2016 & rated 93 points: Quite tasty... after the fact. Might could use another few years, but no harm in having now. (1243 views) | | | Tasted by Christoffer78 on 6/25/2016 & rated 94 points: A total stunner, which was certainly expected. There are few more underrated wines than the ones from Ojai. As usual the very refined and elegant combination of power, elegance and fruit permeate the first impression. The Syrah fruit is allowed to raise its voice in this wine but in a rather gentle and intriguing manner. Power is manifested by a joyful 50+ second length on the finish! Despite ten years in the cellar, texture and structure tell me this effort has several years to go. It will continue to develop and grow on its strengths for at least another five years or more. Again, a totally brilliant wine! (score is 94+) (1619 views) | | | Tasted by guitarguy on 2/15/2016 & rated 90 points: Surprisingly youthful and fresh with juicy blackberry, smoke. (1292 views) | | | Tasted by Dulcie and Aylwin on 10/19/2015: A Wine Access purchase of some four years or more ago - part of a syrah sampler package that proved to be a good buy. For those that like the dense, inky, velvet, ripe fruit characteristics of your syrah, then I think you would like this quite a bit. On the evidence it has plenty of life to go and I would be happy to have more in the cellar; alas there are none.
Kind of brooding aroma, faint sweet berry and floral notes, palate-coating plums and dark ripe fruit, velvet mouth feel, medium acidity, smooth lingering finish. (1524 views) | | | Tasted by Christoffer78 on 10/10/2015 & rated 94 points: Absolutely brilliant. The number one reason this wine is actually brilliant isbecause it combines three elements I love: power, elegance and fruit. Power and elegance are maybe considered as mutually exclusive by some wine aficionados, but I beg to differ. The Syrah fruit is certainly allowed to speak up in this wine but in a gentle and very inviting way. At the same time power is manifested by a 55 second length on the finish. Texture and structure tell me this effort has several years left in the cellar. It will continue to develop and grow on its strengths. Again, this is a brilliant wine! (1408 views) | | | Tasted by jbaron on 7/8/2015 & rated 90 points: I liked this wine a lot more when it was first opened than an hour later. At that point, I found that the tasty notes were a bit dominated by the structure notes, and the pleasure of the wine was diminished. (1309 views) | | | Tasted by Mingestrom on 2/15/2015 & rated 91 points: Lots of dark fruit, plums, black cherries etc. Decanted for two hours, still young but drinks very well now. Not too jammy with nicely integrated tannins and oak. (1337 views) | | | Tasted by stantheman on 12/15/2014 & rated 93 points: This syrah is drinking wonderfully right now. Popped and poured and it was fantastic. Rich, full-bodied, fruit forward, beautiful mid-palate and nice finish. Drink now! (1477 views) | | | Tasted by lolo66 on 8/12/2013 & rated 90 points: Intense dark wine with strong notes of cured olives and meats. This has balance, well made, but my palate has shifted away from a wine like this.
(2286 views) | | | Tasted by Wamrod on 10/25/2012 & rated 92 points: Thick, dark purple. Very aromatic, black cherry, vanilla, licorice, anise, and a floral undertone that developed with air. Alcohol not entirely masked, but integrated. Creamy and rich on the palate with a good hit of acid to go along. Kept it lively. Very good finish, with grippy tannins and a little smoke. Finish went to nearly a minute. (2709 views) | | | Tasted by edarrincox on 9/23/2012 & rated 90 points: Must decant before drinking--if you do, you'll be rewarded by black cherry notes with just the right acidity. Hints of licorice and garden spice. (2418 views) | | | Tasted by Sundbyberg on 5/13/2012 & rated 90 points: Decent but in comparison to Denner, the dirt worshipper, which we had at the same time, this wine is just alright. (2525 views) | | | Tasted by CWilliam on 5/7/2012 & rated 92 points: Decanted for 1.5 hours before dinner - grilled ribs - needs more time. Floral / meat / blackberry on nose. Medium body, good acidic structure, blackberry, black cherry, cherry on palate with long finish. 91-92 range. [edit] Left overnight in cellar under vacu-vin. Gained weight overnight and more raspberry / bright fruit profile - if opening now decant for several hours. 92+ on night 2. (2292 views) | | | Tasted by St Paul on 4/19/2012 & rated 94 points: Wild red berries and sweet coco nut on the nose. Darker plummy fruit in the mouth. A bit jammy but very nice. I think it will be even better in a year or two. Good length. (2170 views) | | | Tasted by Christoffer78 on 4/18/2012 & rated 94 points: Simply adorable, this being the last vintage before Adam Tolmach begun changing his style into less alcohol, less mature fruit and more acidity, the 2006 Syrah from White Hawk vineyard is a very nice example of what the Ojai Winery is capable of producing in terms of expressiveness and elegance combined. The nose reveals dark sweet licorice, morellos, boysenberries and a slight whiff of smoked bacon. The palate is elegant, yet forward and expressive. The length on the finish is lovely and lasts for 40 seconds or more. Probably not necessary to say, but the overall impression is very positive. (1787 views) | | | Tasted by Christoffer78 on 2/6/2012 & rated 92 points: Ojai Syrahs are just lovely wines with a clear and pure fruit, balanced tannins and oak joined by an elegant acidity. The 2006 White Hawk is no exception, but shows a little more expressive tannins tonight, probably due to the youth of this effort. Overall impression is very positive. (score is 92-93) (1834 views) | | | Tasted by rbb100 on 6/4/2011 & rated 92 points: This 2006 drinks well now, possessing aromas of ripe blackberries and plums. There is an underlying spiciness that adds depth to the palate but does not overpower. Nice smooth, silky finish. (2130 views) | | | Tasted by JustDrinkIt on 5/23/2011 & rated 85 points: Popped the Cork and replaced after 5hrs of exposure to air, then refrigerated overnight for consumption the next day.
Color was dark red/purple with aromas of black fruits hints of spice, licorice and barnyard. The palate was smooth with initial attacks of black fruits and spice, however the astringency of this young wine took over at the back end and was the predominant character. This acidity was however muted with food. So for me this is an unbalanced wine and I would only consume with food. (3227 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Issue #10 (12/4/2011)
(Ojai Syrah White Hawk) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Josh Raynolds
Vinous, November/December 2010, IWC Issue #153
(The Ojai Vineyard Syrah White Hawk Vineyard Santa Barbara County) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JebDunnuck.com and Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Ojai Producer websiteSyrah Varietal article (Wikipedia) | (Wines Northwest)
Note that some producers in the Northern Rhone distinguish between simply Syrah and "Serine", the latter described as ‘an ancient clone of Syrah, the berries of which are more oval-shaped and less deeply pigmented than Syrah’ by producer Tardieu-Laurent. White Hawk VineyardThe White Hawk Vineyard is planted on ancient sand dunes on the south facing slope of Cat Canyon, a side of the Los Alamos Valley in Santa Barbara County. It's 21 miles east of the Pacific and 2 miles north of Los Alamos and planted at 900 feet elevation. This region is recognized as a top producing wine region. Fog often embraces the small vineyard in the morning before gentle afternoon breezes chase it away to allow the sun's rays to slowly ripen the fruit.
On weinlagen-infoUSAAmerican 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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