Double decanted for 1 hour, deep ruby with lighter rim, red & black fruit with bacon & smoke, very N. Rhone, med. tannins, med/long finish; delicious, more advanced than last bottle & ready to drink
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When i pulled this out of the cellar it was only 2/3 full and i feared the worst. I then recalled that i had used a Coravin on it months ago. Happily, it held up very well and has aged very nicely. Plum, black fruit, a hint of funk, mineral and herbs. Well balanced and light to medium body. Nice crisp finish.
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Dark red in color. 13.4% ABV. Savory nose of olive tapenade, barbecued meats and smoke. Medium body with perfect acidity. Impressive concentration and balance. Cherries, olive brine, saline and cracked black pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Just a stunning Armada that is showing brilliantly at ten years of age. Best over the next 2-3 years.
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2013 Armada Surprisingly little funk to this! Quite clean nose, kalamata olives, a bit of bacon fat, herbs (rosemary). On the palate, this is med weight, medium acidity with some tannins on the cheeks, a touch meaty but with melange of dark berry fruits also with a long finish. Classy syrah, still youngish at 10 and while tannins and acidity could point to further aging, i think this delightful in an adolescent way right now. 93/94pts.
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-- decanted shortly before initial taste -- -- tasted non-blind over 2 - 3 hours --
NOSE: absolutely intoxicating aromas here! savory and red-fruited; slight olive note; hints of funk, cumin, and leather goods in Moroccan souks.
BODY: garnet color of medium-deep depth, with slight bricking. {forgot to note weight}
TASTE: no tannins; Cayuse funk; medium acid; 13.4% alc. is well-hidden for me (opposite for Ashley); roasted meat and iodine; hints of stony mineral and burning embers; I could go for a bit more tannin and a touch more acidity, but these are minor quibbles. Drink Now and over the Near Term. Ash's gut impression score is 89, on account of the alcohol being quite pronounced for her; by contrast, I'm far into Excellent territory for this Armada, largely on the strength of its captivating aromatics.
50, 5, 15, 17, 9 = 96
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Just a PNP. I know many love these wines but I’m in the minority of those who do not. A very well made Wine but the metallic rocks funk is just a distraction for me. You could put this rocks funk on any grape and you still wouldn’t know what grape it is. I guess I’m just a traditionalist. I’d rather drink a more traditional Northern Rhone. To each their own.
Nose of sweet bacon fat and silky, spicy, white pepper notes Palate is like silk, with notes of bacon fat, gamey, layers of flavor that fills your mouth. Long finish that demands another sip. Would buy again .
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Smoked meat, Gouda cheese, barn yard, black raspberry. Minerality is incredible and it gives way to bacon fat then finishes with dark fruit. Over my head complexity.
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On opening a wild, savory nose emerged--cigar ash, wet campfire, olive brine, seared meat--and slowly receded over three days. By the third day, the savory side of the nose had dissipated for the most part into blue and black fruits--overripe, sometimes on the verge of rotting it seemed. The palate followed a similar arc--savory at first with fruit mainly at the back. The same Amaro-like medicinal note I found in the '13 God Only Knows cropped up occasionally, but here it felt less intrusive, given the earthy character of the wine.
Perhaps what I found most interesting was that the fruit was clearest on the third day--both on the nose and the palate. Both showed sweet blue and black fruits unobstructed by the so-called Rocks funk. Because it took so long for the fruit to emerge, I think these wines may live longer than some believe. I doubt that the '13s--or at least the Armada--have even approached their prime.
Highly recommended--one of the most unique wines I've tried
initially stinky when opened. Back in the bottle after 30 minutes in decanter, and started drinking 1 hour after opening. Showing ripe and sweet fruit, leather, grilled meats. Very fragrant. Ripe on the palate and possibly a little too hot.
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opened at 9, decanted at 6pm and served at 8pm. Nose is full of olive tapenade, spices and violets. Nice acidity and length. Still can take a couple of more years to hit its best.
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Dark red in color. 13.4% ABV. Textbook Cayuse nose of smoke, olive brine and minerals. Medium body with strong acidity. Powerful with towering structure and concentration in spades. Black cherry, plums, barbecued meats and white pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. So very compelling and unique. Best over the next 3-5 years.
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Christophe Baron, the brilliant winemaker and proprietor, made again an outstanding WA syrah. If this is very much similar to a very good cote rotie, it has on top a WA dimension, in the sense that the wine is more viscous, and more seamless than any cote rotie from France. Quite clear in color, with a sexy nose of strawberries and raspberries, a dash of licorice and menthol notes with a hint of sandalwood, some spicyness and reduction which went away after 2 hours of air. So this wine must be decanted as it was aged on its lees for an extended period of time.
In the mouth, the wine is very lush, pure silk, totally seamless, the mid palate is dense and the tannins are totally integrated, the wine ends with a mellow grip, in a relatively fresh finish with good lenght. There is a huge amount of pure red fruited sap, this is really delivering outstanding pleasure. This is impressive considering the young age of the vines. Very fine juice! In style this is close to Ogier cote rotie, or to Vieux Chateau Certan in Pomerol, plush and complex, a wine for the hedonists. This wine can be drunk now with decant, and will age well and will gain complexity in the next five years.
'A day without wine is like a day without sun" says the label on the back of the bottle, and this is just spot on, Outstanding juice.
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P&P. Lots of funk on this one! Grilled beef, iodine, Rocks Funk, black peppercorn, tar, oh, and some blackberry fruit hiding in there too. Quite elegant and light on it's feet despite the savory flavors. Tannins integrated, acid is medium, rather light on the fruit, especially at first, but it did show much more fruit on day 2, with less funk. Drink now - 2028+.
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Nose: licorice, meat, barnyard. Palate: perfect balance, smooth, no tannins, medium body, Off putting green leaf taste, broccoli and edamame. Not my favorite. Didn’t get any fruit flavor.
Crimson in color. 13.4% ABV. Savory nose of red fruits, olive brine, barbecued meats and flowers. Medium body with ample acidity. Lithe and light with sneaky concentration that seems to build with time in the glass. Cherries, plums, roasted herbs and cracked black pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. A unique Armada in the context of other recent vintages. I think this would have shown even better had I let it spend a couple hours in a decanter. I’ll keep that in mind with my next few bottles. Best over the next 2-4 years.
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Served with leg of lamb Nose has the unmistakable Cayuse funk. Olive brine, raw meat. Palate is silky, layered, notes of iodine, raw red meat, spice and stems. Little fruit, but interestingly complex. Certainly a good example of one extreme end of the syrah spectrum.
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Medium to full bodied. Not decanted, but drank 1 glass a day for 4 days. Best day 4, blackberry, black pepper iron. If drinking in one night, recommend at least a 4 hour decant.
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Beautiful wine. Complex nose, hints of smoke with dark fruit. Not too olivey, as in other incarnations. Not as brawny as other Armadas, but well balanced. Drinking quite well. The ‘13s are rocking it right now!
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Drank in a fairly lively party setting, but I did come back to it throughout the evening, notes from memory.
Rich and smokey nose with dark fruits and some mild meaty components, fairly restrained. The palate follows this act, with a very brothy saline quality, backed by dark black fruits. Overall very savory with a medium body and very smooth silky texture. Some buffering tannin, but fairly resolved on that front. This was by no means a massive or fruit bomb of a wine, very elegant.
My first Cayuse experience, very good but definitely not what I expected, and I mean that in a positive way. None of what I expected as I keep hearing about the Rocks region funkiness, no brett. I didn't get any specifically N. Rhone olive qualities, but it certainly is in that vein and was texturally reminiscent of good burgundy. Blind, I would definitely not have guessed new world.
Definitely will be opening more Cayuse to get a better sense of things. Interesting to note some of the variation in notes below ranging from "Massive" to "Restrained".
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Decanted 90 min. Still just a baby! Super funky nose, with black olive, seaweed, tar and blood. Flavors of roasted beef, iron, white pepper, olive and hints of blackberry compote. Lower acidity, integrated tannins, but still a fairly massive wine. Drink now with air - 2033.
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Doran's. Lots of smoked paprika, doesn't have the acidity we expected. Very different from the last bottle Doran shared 9 or 10 months ago that drank like a good burgundy.
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Matter of taste (London): Rich and overpowering in style. Loads of smoke, bacon fat and meat on the nose and then again more of the same. Just too much. A great wine and vineyard no doubt, but I would have preferred a bit more restraint. Maybe time will allow it to come together. 92-95p
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Meaty, smoky, concentrated dark fruit, spices on the nose. Despite all that rich- and sweetness good balance on the palate, silky tannins, great length. Impressive. 92-93+
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Not as tannic as expected and I like the pungent salinity and smoked meat character of Cayuse Syrah generally, also found in this bottle along with tart cherries balanced by blackberry preserve. With no formal notes taken on this occasion and months between each bottle I don't have a bead on the terroir(s), but something has to be cut to make way for the Bionic Frog and I thought the Armadas might be on the more massive/substantial end of the range, and now I'm not so sure. It doesn't matter much because they are all balanced and surprisingly juicy. Yum yum yum.
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Doran's. Absolutely gorgeous. Lighter bodied than I would have predicted, drinks more like a Burgundy than an American syrah (all to the good IMO). All red fruit, plum and strawberry, glides across the palate into a bright and precise finish. My WOTN.
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PnP, but then drank over 8 hours. Intoxicating nose of pine, seaweed, blackberry, red plum, and wet stones. Palate shows bright acids, soft tannins, and similar profile, with some additional herbal and iron notes. The acid here is really nice. medium (+) finish. Great balance.
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-- decanted for 2 - 3 hours before initial taste -- -- tasted non-blind over a couple hours --
Had with Y&S at S+W with steak dinner. Very funky nose; savory. Medium+ acidity. Medium bodied. Savory and funky; red-fruited; 13.4% alc. not noticeable; not very tannic (I expected more tannins); surprisingly, my favorite of the night. Drink Now with a long decant (3+ hours) or continue to Hold through at least 2022. Excellent.
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3/12/2024 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Double decanted for 1 hour, deep ruby with lighter rim, red & black fruit with bacon & smoke, very N. Rhone, med. tannins, med/long finish; delicious, more advanced than last bottle & ready to drink
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12/31/2023 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 92 Points
When i pulled this out of the cellar it was only 2/3 full and i feared the worst. I then recalled that i had used a Coravin on it months ago. Happily, it held up very well and has aged very nicely. Plum, black fruit, a hint of funk, mineral and herbs. Well balanced and light to medium body. Nice crisp finish.
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11/6/2023 - tomlee wrote: 96 Points
Dark red in color. 13.4% ABV. Savory nose of olive tapenade, barbecued meats and smoke. Medium body with perfect acidity. Impressive concentration and balance. Cherries, olive brine, saline and cracked black pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Just a stunning Armada that is showing brilliantly at ten years of age. Best over the next 2-3 years.
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9/23/2023 - Merengue Likes this wine: 94 Points
2013 Armada
Surprisingly little funk to this! Quite clean nose, kalamata olives, a bit of bacon fat, herbs (rosemary). On the palate, this is med weight, medium acidity with some tannins on the cheeks, a touch meaty but with melange of dark berry fruits also with a long finish. Classy syrah, still youngish at 10 and while tannins and acidity could point to further aging, i think this delightful in an adolescent way right now. 93/94pts.
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9/19/2023 - grafstrb wrote: 96 Points
-- decanted shortly before initial taste --
-- tasted non-blind over 2 - 3 hours --
NOSE: absolutely intoxicating aromas here! savory and red-fruited; slight olive note; hints of funk, cumin, and leather goods in Moroccan souks.
BODY: garnet color of medium-deep depth, with slight bricking. {forgot to note weight}
TASTE: no tannins; Cayuse funk; medium acid; 13.4% alc. is well-hidden for me (opposite for Ashley); roasted meat and iodine; hints of stony mineral and burning embers; I could go for a bit more tannin and a touch more acidity, but these are minor quibbles. Drink Now and over the Near Term. Ash's gut impression score is 89, on account of the alcohol being quite pronounced for her; by contrast, I'm far into Excellent territory for this Armada, largely on the strength of its captivating aromatics.
50, 5, 15, 17, 9 = 96
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9/1/2023 - WineGuyDelMar wrote:
Just a PNP. I know many love these wines but I’m in the minority of those who do not. A very well made Wine but the metallic rocks funk is just a distraction for me. You could put this rocks funk on any grape and you still wouldn’t know what grape it is. I guess I’m just a traditionalist. I’d rather drink a more traditional Northern Rhone. To each their own.
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5/6/2023 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
Nose of sweet bacon fat and silky, spicy, white pepper notes
Palate is like silk, with notes of bacon fat, gamey, layers of flavor that fills your mouth.
Long finish that demands another sip.
Would buy again .
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4/15/2023 - Goofienewfy Likes this wine: 95 Points
Smoked meat, Gouda cheese, barn yard, black raspberry. Minerality is incredible and it gives way to bacon fat then finishes with dark fruit. Over my head complexity.
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3/21/2023 - Elkcims Likes this wine: 93 Points
Enjoyable after 2 hour slow-ox.
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1/23/2023 - Oberunter-5 Likes this wine: 95 Points
100% Syrah
On opening a wild, savory nose emerged--cigar ash, wet campfire, olive brine, seared meat--and slowly receded over three days. By the third day, the savory side of the nose had dissipated for the most part into blue and black fruits--overripe, sometimes on the verge of rotting it seemed. The palate followed a similar arc--savory at first with fruit mainly at the back. The same Amaro-like medicinal note I found in the '13 God Only Knows cropped up occasionally, but here it felt less intrusive, given the earthy character of the wine.
Perhaps what I found most interesting was that the fruit was clearest on the third day--both on the nose and the palate. Both showed sweet blue and black fruits unobstructed by the so-called Rocks funk. Because it took so long for the fruit to emerge, I think these wines may live longer than some believe. I doubt that the '13s--or at least the Armada--have even approached their prime.
Highly recommended--one of the most unique wines I've tried
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10/16/2022 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Double decanted for 2 hrs, deep ruby, dark fruit with bacon, med. tannins, med/long finish; delicious, drink or hold, no rush
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8/20/2022 - Peech Likes this wine: 93 Points
initially stinky when opened. Back in the bottle after 30 minutes in decanter, and started drinking 1 hour after opening. Showing ripe and sweet fruit, leather, grilled meats. Very fragrant. Ripe on the palate and possibly a little too hot.
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8/8/2022 - Hanibal Likes this wine: 93 Points
opened at 9, decanted at 6pm and served at 8pm. Nose is full of olive tapenade, spices and violets. Nice acidity and length. Still can take a couple of more years to hit its best.
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8/5/2022 - Mario17 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nez très Syrah, olives, violettes, poivre, un peu fumé, bouche puissante mais avec une texture riche et soyeuse mais sans excès, excellent. 93-94
Very typical Syrah, pepper, violets, olives, a touch of smoke, powerful but with no excess, rich and savory, nice length, gorgeous.
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7/23/2022 - tomlee wrote: 95 Points
Dark red in color. 13.4% ABV. Textbook Cayuse nose of smoke, olive brine and minerals. Medium body with strong acidity. Powerful with towering structure and concentration in spades. Black cherry, plums, barbecued meats and white pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. So very compelling and unique. Best over the next 3-5 years.
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6/23/2022 - Mag357 Likes this wine:
Christophe Baron, the brilliant winemaker and proprietor, made again an outstanding WA syrah. If this is very much similar to a very good cote rotie, it has on top a WA dimension, in the sense that the wine is more viscous, and more seamless than any cote rotie from France. Quite clear in color, with a sexy nose of strawberries and raspberries, a dash of licorice and menthol notes with a hint of sandalwood, some spicyness and reduction which went away after 2 hours of air. So this wine must be decanted as it was aged on its lees for an extended period of time.
In the mouth, the wine is very lush, pure silk, totally seamless, the mid palate is dense and the tannins are totally integrated, the wine ends with a mellow grip, in a relatively fresh finish with good lenght. There is a huge amount of pure red fruited sap, this is really delivering outstanding pleasure. This is impressive considering the young age of the vines. Very fine juice! In style this is close to Ogier cote rotie, or to Vieux Chateau Certan in Pomerol, plush and complex, a wine for the hedonists. This wine can be drunk now with decant, and will age well and will gain complexity in the next five years.
'A day without wine is like a day without sun" says the label on the back of the bottle, and this is just spot on, Outstanding juice.
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3/6/2022 - RPerro Likes this wine: 94 Points
P&P. Lots of funk on this one! Grilled beef, iodine, Rocks Funk, black peppercorn, tar, oh, and some blackberry fruit hiding in there too. Quite elegant and light on it's feet despite the savory flavors. Tannins integrated, acid is medium, rather light on the fruit, especially at first, but it did show much more fruit on day 2, with less funk. Drink now - 2028+.
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8/30/2021 - matiasox@gmail.com Does not like this wine: 85 Points
Nose: licorice, meat, barnyard. Palate: perfect balance, smooth, no tannins, medium body, Off putting green leaf taste, broccoli and edamame. Not my favorite. Didn’t get any fruit flavor.
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6/13/2021 - tomlee wrote: 94 Points
Crimson in color. 13.4% ABV. Savory nose of red fruits, olive brine, barbecued meats and flowers. Medium body with ample acidity. Lithe and light with sneaky concentration that seems to build with time in the glass. Cherries, plums, roasted herbs and cracked black pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. A unique Armada in the context of other recent vintages. I think this would have shown even better had I let it spend a couple hours in a decanter. I’ll keep that in mind with my next few bottles. Best over the next 2-4 years.
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4/10/2021 - peternelson wrote:
Very good, don't remember much but thought it was Rhone with a little more oak. H's backyard dinner party.
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2/21/2021 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
Served with leg of lamb
Nose has the unmistakable Cayuse funk. Olive brine, raw meat.
Palate is silky, layered, notes of iodine, raw red meat, spice and stems. Little fruit, but interestingly complex. Certainly a good example of one extreme end of the syrah spectrum.
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1/4/2021 - leadpencil wrote: 94 Points
Medium to full bodied. Not decanted, but drank 1 glass a day for 4 days. Best day 4, blackberry, black pepper iron. If drinking in one night, recommend at least a 4 hour decant.
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10/18/2020 - Clark W Griswold Likes this wine: 93 Points
Double decant. Gorgeous ruby red color. Raspberry and country ham. Killer texture. Really long smoky finish. Drinking very well.
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6/13/2020 - MatLot Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tres bon facile de finir la bouteille. +4h carafe mais bcp trop chers pour ce que cest. Asser simple mais digeste.
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5/6/2020 - Radboy wrote: 95 Points
A wonderful drink.
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3/21/2020 - tjross Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted about 30 minutes. Followed ‘13 Frog, which was superior. Improved with more air time. No rush on future bottles.
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2/26/2020 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
Nose is full on funk. Olive tapenade, brine, black bramble fruit
Palate is dark with raw meat and blood. Long savory finish.
Would buy again
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2/9/2020 - Radboy wrote: 94 Points
Beautiful wine. Complex nose, hints of smoke with dark fruit. Not too olivey, as in other incarnations. Not as brawny as other Armadas, but well balanced. Drinking quite well. The ‘13s are rocking it right now!
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10/25/2019 - Hanibal Likes this wine: 93 Points
olive tapenade, bacon, smoke....smoking hot wine...still a baby... early taste of things to come. Delicious
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9/29/2019 - joshbryer Likes this wine:
Drank in a fairly lively party setting, but I did come back to it throughout the evening, notes from memory.
Rich and smokey nose with dark fruits and some mild meaty components, fairly restrained. The palate follows this act, with a very brothy saline quality, backed by dark black fruits. Overall very savory with a medium body and very smooth silky texture. Some buffering tannin, but fairly resolved on that front. This was by no means a massive or fruit bomb of a wine, very elegant.
My first Cayuse experience, very good but definitely not what I expected, and I mean that in a positive way. None of what I expected as I keep hearing about the Rocks region funkiness, no brett. I didn't get any specifically N. Rhone olive qualities, but it certainly is in that vein and was texturally reminiscent of good burgundy. Blind, I would definitely not have guessed new world.
Definitely will be opening more Cayuse to get a better sense of things. Interesting to note some of the variation in notes below ranging from "Massive" to "Restrained".
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9/21/2019 - Dagman Does not like this wine:
Possibly a bad bottle - tasted way off.
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12/21/2018 - Amerique wrote: 95 Points
Great wine. Drank with 2013 Horsepower Tribe and 2013 No Girls. The Horsepower was the preferred with the other two a close 2nd. All were scored 95.
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12/9/2018 - RPerro Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted 90 min. Still just a baby! Super funky nose, with black olive, seaweed, tar and blood. Flavors of roasted beef, iron, white pepper, olive and hints of blackberry compote. Lower acidity, integrated tannins, but still a fairly massive wine. Drink now with air - 2033.
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11/16/2018 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Doran's. Lots of smoked paprika, doesn't have the acidity we expected. Very different from the last bottle Doran shared 9 or 10 months ago that drank like a good burgundy.
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11/10/2018 - jgreco Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wine Advocate: Grand Walkabout Tasting (NYC): Wow just wow. Animalistic. Powerful. Tannic. This is a beast of a wine.
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10/27/2018 - Mascarello59 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Matter of taste (London): Rich and overpowering in style. Loads of smoke, bacon fat and meat on the nose and then again more of the same. Just too much. A great wine and vineyard no doubt, but I would have preferred a bit more restraint. Maybe time will allow it to come together. 92-95p
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10/27/2018 - rossi.wine wrote: 93 Points
Meaty, smoky, concentrated dark fruit, spices on the nose. Despite all that rich- and sweetness good balance on the palate, silky tannins, great length. Impressive. 92-93+
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9/23/2018 - silton Likes this wine: 93 Points
Not as tannic as expected and I like the pungent salinity and smoked meat character of Cayuse Syrah generally, also found in this bottle along with tart cherries balanced by blackberry preserve. With no formal notes taken on this occasion and months between each bottle I don't have a bead on the terroir(s), but something has to be cut to make way for the Bionic Frog and I thought the Armadas might be on the more massive/substantial end of the range, and now I'm not so sure. It doesn't matter much because they are all balanced and surprisingly juicy. Yum yum yum.
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7/24/2018 - Roentgen Ray wrote: 94 Points
Fruity, dark, and complex.
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7/8/2018 - Guia wrote: 92 Points
Medium body, olive brine, less forward fruit, good full flavor throughout with some length.
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1/11/2018 - Neecies Likes this wine: 94 Points
Doran's. Absolutely gorgeous. Lighter bodied than I would have predicted, drinks more like a Burgundy than an American syrah (all to the good IMO). All red fruit, plum and strawberry, glides across the palate into a bright and precise finish. My WOTN.
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10/27/2017 - ews3 wrote: 93 Points
PnP, but then drank over 8 hours. Intoxicating nose of pine, seaweed, blackberry, red plum, and wet stones. Palate shows bright acids, soft tannins, and similar profile, with some additional herbal and iron notes. The acid here is really nice. medium (+) finish. Great balance.
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8/18/2017 - robertek wrote: 94 Points
Young but intriguing and complex nose that you keep coming back to. Loved it.
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3/4/2017 - grafstrb wrote:
-- decanted for 2 - 3 hours before initial taste --
-- tasted non-blind over a couple hours --
Had with Y&S at S+W with steak dinner. Very funky nose; savory. Medium+ acidity. Medium bodied. Savory and funky; red-fruited; 13.4% alc. not noticeable; not very tannic (I expected more tannins); surprisingly, my favorite of the night. Drink Now with a long decant (3+ hours) or continue to Hold through at least 2022. Excellent.
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4/5/2016 - bajayngo wrote:
Quick barrel tasting note - probably the wine of the release with the Walluh. Dark brooding fruit, iodine, kelp, ash, mineral and mouth coating.
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