Drank from cellar. Cost $39 and purchased October 2012. Hint of berry on nose. Dark purple. Full body chaulk tannins oak cherry. Could lay down for years. 8/10.
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My only criticism on this wine is that it has a high alcohol content and you can taste it a bit on your palate. Other than that, it is full of flavor and yummy.
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Friends opened this for a 6/29/18 card game. It had a deep, rich bouquet of smoked meat, blackberry, plum, licorice, pepper, anise, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, layered, dry and elegant with flavors that followed the nose.
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Decanted 2 hours. The bouquet was phenomenal, I could burry my nose in the glass all night. Deep spice flavors, a bold syrah. Some raspberry fruit but not a fruity wine. Long finish, wish I had more.
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Great spice in this, holds its own with a mild chili as well. A little boozy on the finish, but not distracting. Blackberry, and touch of sweet cream with a velvet mouthfeel.
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Good fruit and not too hot despite the 15% alcohol. Drank side by side with a Stolpman from Santa Ynez. Liked both but appreciated the richness and soft tannins vs the more austere Californian. Both very good
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Syrah throw down, with this and '07 Grand Reve, '09 Kerloo Les Collines and '09 Waters Forgotten Hills. All were fabulous, and the three of us all had different favorites. This was a solid second favorite. The nose is restrained, but all is forgiven with the first sip. Not scoring for this foursome, but would probably lower my previous 95 to about 93, due to the lack of an impressive nose.
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Hot with alcohol on opening but dark plummy fruit & hints of smoked meat, are present as well. This is a rich, deeply colored Syrah with an almost black core. Over time the boozy quality backs off. There is ripping acidity on the finish. Overall this is a voluptuous wine with enough tannic grip to make me think it has more years left than might be obvious on first glance. Washington State version of Cote Rotie.
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A very Northern Rhone Cote d Rote in its style and mouth feel. It really is a temperature driven wine. opening to its best about 68 - 70 degrees. Dark fruit, spicy with leather overtones. A nice kiss of sweetness on the finish. I liked this Syrah.
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Hard to imagine this being any better. Rich, balanced, great mouth-feel, long-lasting and absolutely yummy. Did not take notes, just reveled in the pleasure of it.
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This is a deeply dark red. Nose: pungent cherries and raspberries. Pretty strong herbs de Provence, as well, namely rosemary. Nice bit of spice and a touch of tar. Seems pretty classically Syrah. The alcoholic heat is a bit strong at first, but it smooths out over time allowing some dark cocoa to emerge. Palate: Nice heavy weight for a Syrah; not overbearing or distracting but a welcomed surprise. Smooth, dusty and fine tannins pair nicely with medium acidity. Early on it's the earthy bits that come through more than the fruit. We're talking menthol, tar, tobacco and some very nice gaminess and white pepper. Definitely salt of the Earth wine. No more than 20 minutes into this the fruit starts coming out, mostly cherries and blackberries, very sweet ones. After a good 1.5 hours of air, the weight reduces and the acidity rises as the wine gets lighter on its feet. It still maintains its richness, but it gets savvier and the cocoa gets rich. This isn't New World like Aussie Shiraz, but it isn't Old World Washington Syrah like Gramercy or Waters - it's a nice tweener'. Finish: pretty long with the earthy bits mentioned above, especially the tar, saline, and pepper. The fruit fades pretty quickly, but the acidity lasts, ensuring the darker and dirtier flavors don't overwhelm. The last flavor to fire is the cocoa - it's a big party of this wine. Overall great balance between weight, acidity, and sweetness. The tannins are in a great place right now - holding the wine up and everything in-line, but do not hide nuances. I wouldn't call this a steal at the price, but the quality certainly matches the price. Paired well with a steak with Marsala mushrooms and thyme Rapini. I see this going another 2-3 years easy without declining, but given how nice it is right now I'm not sure I'd like it any better if I waited.
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I had this with an after dinner cheese plate on 9/20/13. It had a fragrant, elegant and beautifully integrated bouquet of violet, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry, plum, anise, cinnamon, spice and cocoa aromas. The palate was complex, elegant and dry with flavors of blueberry, blackberry, burnt toast, licorice, pepper, spice and cocoa. 91+
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amazed at how integrated this wine tastes right now. Spicy, deep, dark, nose of dark cherries and deep dark fruit, currants, bite deep in the back of the tongue and mouth, years left, but impressed how good it is now
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I had this with an after dinner cheese plate on 4/24/13. It had a complex, seamless, and elegant bouquet of violet, blackberry, blueberry, plum, burnt toast, cocoa, licorice and spice aromas. The palate was smooth, round, and well integrated with flavors of blackberry, plum, blueberry, burnt toast, cocoa, licorice, spice. Terrific wine, but not nearly as nice as it was at DeLille’s fall release party. 91+
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Friends and I tasted this at DeLille’s 11/4/12 fall release. Our experience was quite contrary to that of the community. It had an elegant, harmonious and expressive bouquet of floral, raspberry, blackberry, plum, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was elegant, round and beautifully balanced with flavors of raspberry, blackberry, black cherry, cocoa and spice. 93+
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Washington Wine Trip; 6/15/2012-6/19/2012: An elegant Syrah, 2.5% Viognier, plum and wet rocks on the nose, tart plum and bing cherry on the palate, licorice and pepper in the medium finish.
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PnP. Deep Purple/Garnet color. Medium legs. Full nose of Blackberry and Cedar. Tastes of Blackberry, Black Cherry, Cocoa and Tobacco. Soft texture. Very good balance. Medium finish. 14.9% ABV.
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12/16/2023 - Doug Ray Likes this wine: 91 Points
Beautiful! Full of fruit, tannins soft. Great with baked ham or bacon
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1/27/2020 - kerryychuang Likes this wine: 90 Points
Still lush on the palate with soft tannins. Dark fruits, baked cherry flavors. Beautiful!
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11/27/2019 - RDB Wine Likes this wine: 80 Points
Drank from cellar. Cost $39 and purchased October 2012. Hint of berry on nose. Dark purple. Full body chaulk tannins oak cherry. Could lay down for years. 8/10.
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4/2/2019 - RDB Wine Likes this wine: 60 Points
Consumed with Condon’s. Spice oak. Dark purple. Burst acid wood touch cherry. Past prime. 5/10. Cellar 10/2012, $39.
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1/6/2019 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep, dark, earthy with pepper on the back end. Oaky and thick with lots of mouthwatering flavor
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12/10/2018 - WAWINEFAN wrote: 90 Points
My only criticism on this wine is that it has a high alcohol content and you can taste it a bit on your palate. Other than that, it is full of flavor and yummy.
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6/29/2018 - garambler Likes this wine: 93 Points
Friends opened this for a 6/29/18 card game. It had a deep, rich bouquet of smoked meat, blackberry, plum, licorice, pepper, anise, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, layered, dry and elegant with flavors that followed the nose.
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4/7/2017 - CHanover Likes this wine: 93 Points
This Syrah has really developed over the past 8 years... Smooth, Inky, robust, and juicy. Wish I had more of this!
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2/15/2017 - snowingfun Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted 2 hours. The bouquet was phenomenal, I could burry my nose in the glass all night. Deep spice flavors, a bold syrah. Some raspberry fruit but not a fruity wine. Long finish, wish I had more.
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7/14/2016 - profittj Likes this wine: 91 Points
Great spice in this, holds its own with a mild chili as well. A little boozy on the finish, but not distracting. Blackberry, and touch of sweet cream with a velvet mouthfeel.
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4/1/2016 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 93 Points
Good fruit and not too hot despite the 15% alcohol. Drank side by side with a Stolpman from Santa Ynez. Liked both but appreciated the richness and soft tannins vs the more austere Californian. Both very good
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11/29/2015 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 90 Points
Dark red cherry and chocolate, soft tannins and a rich, full bodied expression of Washington grapes. Excellent with grilled steak and sweet potatoes.
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10/8/2015 - Pedroel Likes this wine:
Syrah throw down, with this and '07 Grand Reve, '09 Kerloo Les Collines and '09 Waters Forgotten Hills. All were fabulous, and the three of us all had different favorites. This was a solid second favorite. The nose is restrained, but all is forgiven with the first sip. Not scoring for this foursome, but would probably lower my previous 95 to about 93, due to the lack of an impressive nose.
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7/13/2015 - eeddy Likes this wine: 92 Points
Hot with alcohol on opening but dark plummy fruit & hints of smoked meat, are present as well. This is a rich, deeply colored Syrah with an almost black core. Over time the boozy quality backs off. There is ripping acidity on the finish. Overall this is a voluptuous wine with enough tannic grip to make me think it has more years left than might be obvious on first glance. Washington State version of Cote Rotie.
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1/13/2015 - tc from santee Likes this wine: 90 Points
A very Northern Rhone Cote d Rote in its style and mouth feel. It really is a temperature driven wine. opening to its best about 68 - 70 degrees. Dark fruit, spicy with leather overtones. A nice kiss of sweetness on the finish. I liked this Syrah.
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10/3/2014 - Pedroel Likes this wine: 95 Points
Hard to imagine this being any better. Rich, balanced, great mouth-feel, long-lasting and absolutely yummy. Did not take notes, just reveled in the pleasure of it.
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4/23/2014 - goodvitis.com Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is a deeply dark red. Nose: pungent cherries and raspberries. Pretty strong herbs de Provence, as well, namely rosemary. Nice bit of spice and a touch of tar. Seems pretty classically Syrah. The alcoholic heat is a bit strong at first, but it smooths out over time allowing some dark cocoa to emerge. Palate: Nice heavy weight for a Syrah; not overbearing or distracting but a welcomed surprise. Smooth, dusty and fine tannins pair nicely with medium acidity. Early on it's the earthy bits that come through more than the fruit. We're talking menthol, tar, tobacco and some very nice gaminess and white pepper. Definitely salt of the Earth wine. No more than 20 minutes into this the fruit starts coming out, mostly cherries and blackberries, very sweet ones. After a good 1.5 hours of air, the weight reduces and the acidity rises as the wine gets lighter on its feet. It still maintains its richness, but it gets savvier and the cocoa gets rich. This isn't New World like Aussie Shiraz, but it isn't Old World Washington Syrah like Gramercy or Waters - it's a nice tweener'. Finish: pretty long with the earthy bits mentioned above, especially the tar, saline, and pepper. The fruit fades pretty quickly, but the acidity lasts, ensuring the darker and dirtier flavors don't overwhelm. The last flavor to fire is the cocoa - it's a big party of this wine. Overall great balance between weight, acidity, and sweetness. The tannins are in a great place right now - holding the wine up and everything in-line, but do not hide nuances. I wouldn't call this a steal at the price, but the quality certainly matches the price. Paired well with a steak with Marsala mushrooms and thyme Rapini. I see this going another 2-3 years easy without declining, but given how nice it is right now I'm not sure I'd like it any better if I waited.
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9/20/2013 - garambler wrote: 92 Points
I had this with an after dinner cheese plate on 9/20/13. It had a fragrant, elegant and beautifully integrated bouquet of violet, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry, plum, anise, cinnamon, spice and cocoa aromas. The palate was complex, elegant and dry with flavors of blueberry, blackberry, burnt toast, licorice, pepper, spice and cocoa. 91+
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9/1/2013 - W2WineGuy Likes this wine: 91 Points
amazed at how integrated this wine tastes right now. Spicy, deep, dark, nose of dark cherries and deep dark fruit, currants, bite deep in the back of the tongue and mouth, years left, but impressed how good it is now
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4/24/2013 - garambler wrote: 92 Points
I had this with an after dinner cheese plate on 4/24/13. It had a complex, seamless, and elegant bouquet of violet, blackberry, blueberry, plum, burnt toast, cocoa, licorice and spice aromas. The palate was smooth, round, and well integrated with flavors of blackberry, plum, blueberry, burnt toast, cocoa, licorice, spice. Terrific wine, but not nearly as nice as it was at DeLille’s fall release party. 91+
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11/4/2012 - garambler wrote: 93 Points
Friends and I tasted this at DeLille’s 11/4/12 fall release. Our experience was quite contrary to that of the community. It had an elegant, harmonious and expressive bouquet of floral, raspberry, blackberry, plum, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was elegant, round and beautifully balanced with flavors of raspberry, blackberry, black cherry, cocoa and spice. 93+
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6/16/2012 - drrobvino wrote: 89 Points
Washington Wine Trip; 6/15/2012-6/19/2012: An elegant Syrah, 2.5% Viognier, plum and wet rocks on the nose, tart plum and bing cherry on the palate, licorice and pepper in the medium finish.
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4/6/2012 - sabrage Likes this wine: 88 Points
PnP. Deep Purple/Garnet color. Medium legs. Full nose of Blackberry and Cedar. Tastes of Blackberry, Black Cherry, Cocoa and Tobacco. Soft texture. Very good balance. Medium finish. 14.9% ABV.
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