Color: inky purple core -> dense ruby rim. Decanted 45+ minutes. Blackberry, boysenberry, cassis, violets with a whiff of white pepper at the end. Palate still fruit forward; blue and black fruits -- quite sweet on the attack from the ripe fruit -- plump (Rubenesque!) and looong. Soft tannins with a high-viscosity mouthfeel. This wine is a bit of a conundrum for me; love the intensity and fruit but I'm looking for more complexity (roasted meats, leather, road tar, earth, etc.) and not really finding anything beyond the primary fruit and flower elements (touch of white pepper notwithstanding). It's certainly pretty but still very young and I'm unsure this will develop the complexity I'd love to see. One more bottle in the cellar; will try to wait at least 3+ years in the hopes for more . . . . I generally prefer the Ditch Digger as I feel it brings more to the table and this vintage of the Dirt Worshipper hasn't changed my mind.
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Massive wine, brilliantly layered with TONS of dark fruit, chocolate and licorice with a touch of oak. Nice balance with a silky finish that has me longing for more.
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We took this bottle to Chef Hubert Keller's Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay last night to serve blind with a couple of vine lover friends. It showed awesome, I really like how it is drinking now and don't see any need to wait. Last weekend while in Paso at Denner we spoke with owner Ron who new we still had one of these and told us to go ahead and enjoy it now. Good advice. It went excellent with the Merguez style lamb burger with tiziki sauce and tons of herbs. Everyone loved it!
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The wine has held its promise so far. It has violet aroma, some sage and pepper and a lot of dark berry fruit. The tannins still hold it together and it has aged beautifully so far.
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Decanted this, the last of 6, for 2 hours. Over the past year or so these have shown steady, albeit graceful, decline. The blackberry liquor and pine resin have lost some intensity and the structure loosened. As such, the focus is a bit fuzzy. Still quite tasty and an excellent wine but like a great athlete winding down the career, you can see the end. Drink now!
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The wine looks inky colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like blackberry and black currant (cassis). It tastes like blackberry, black currant (cassis), gooseberry, prune, plum, fig, apricot, clove and hazelnut. The body is medium/full. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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Wonderful. Decanted about 45 minutes. Definite Syrah colors with deep dark integrated purple berry fruit notes well integrated with an earthy base. At with Italian food. Definitely ready to drink now. I don't think I'd wait much longer despite the original Denner tasting notes recommending 2017-2018
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After I noticed earlier this year that the 2008 Dirt Worshipper (DW) may not be as great of a wine as it used to be, and someone else pointed it out on Cellar Tracker as well, I decided to do a mini vertical tasting, with the 2008, 2009 and 2011 vintage.
Here are some of my notes: 2008: purple hue, dark color, slightly hazy, aromatic aroma, still youthful in its development and clear blackcurrant and blackberry aromas, off dry, full-bodied, smooth acidity, low levels of and soft tannins, powerful flavor intensity, finish very long. 95+ 2009: ruby hue, deep color and some cloudiness, aromatic and youthful with blackcurrant, blackberry, pepper and bilberry, dry, medium body, crisp and lively acidity, medium and soft/round tannins, very flavorful, long finish. 93 2011: garnet hue, medium color depth, slight haze, very aromatic, youthful, aromas not clear, very dry, medium body and tart acidity. 92+
The 2011 DW was just released and it was clear that tart acidity needed to become softer. It was clear that this wine was still very young, somewhat uptight and in need for some cellaring. Everyone liked it. It was the first of the three we tasted.
The 2009 DW was smooth and soft and had complex aromas. Everyone like this more than the 2011. “Wow, this one is clearly better and lovely.”
The 2008 DW was a lot better yet! There was no doubt that it was the highlight of the evening.
Although it is possible that the 2008 DW is not as grand as it used to be, but it still reigns over the latest vintages. The five of us enjoyed the tasting and agreed with the ranking.
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I agree with the person who wrote thta everytime he tasted it, it was less impressive. This wine was fantastic, about two years ago, but i would drink up now. Reidel syrah glass.
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--- COLOR: Opaque purple-ruby with med-ruby rim NOTE: I hate it when such a great wine seems to decline from inception, but this seems to be the case here. Each time I taste/rate it I seem to be less and less impressed, usually with the mouth but especially the finish. This was a mind-blowing Syrah upon release and it held up for the first couple of years but now it seems to be out of balance. Each bottle seems to be more prickly/hot and less fruity than the prior one. Don't get me wrong, this is still great juice and far better than 90% of all other Cali Syrahs out there right now, but it's just not the same lovely beast it started out as. Heat is more pronounced from nose to finish, and the fruit seems to have yielded to the tobacco/leather elements. I'd advise that you drink up as soon as possible and do so with nice fatty meals, especially beef.
DECANT: 1- 3 hr GLASS USED: Syrah TASTE: 9.3 OTHER: COST: 85 VALUE: 6.0 TRY AGAIN: now-2015 PAIRING: ribeye Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net ---
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Decanted 3 hrs and served with grilled strip steaks. No formal notes taken but this was fantastic. Great synergy between the cool weather syrah funkiness, warm weather black-fruited power, lovely perfume, and beautiful savory elements. So well balanced and perfectly proportioned. Medium+ body, polished supple texture, fine acidity, good structure, and great depth. Still evolving over the hour or so we drank it... more to offer with additional cellaring. A great wine!
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The wine seems to have closed up for the time. Its tannins are tight right now and it will be interesting to see if it opens up as nicely as it was a year ago. No rating for the time being but I would not give this wine the 97 pts I gave it before.
Inky purple in the glass. On the palate, blackberry, blueberry and cherry with a medium length finish. 5 percent Viognier gives this wine a musky, floral complexity. Outstanding. Sadly, subsequent vintages are not even close.
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Excellent wine. I was expecting a much bigger, bolder wine but as pleasantly surprised by the soft, inviting character it displayed. Very gamey cook fruit notes were powerfully obvious, along with an intense stone dust aroma. Very similar notes on the palate. This went beautifully with strip steaks and veggies with bacon in them.
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Fantastic wine right from pop'n'pour and got smoother and more complex with more air in the glass. Intoxicating nose in a lovely way... I could smell this wine forever. Very full body taste of lots of berries... blackberry, blueberry and boysenberry. The 5% Viognier adds a bit of a nice floral component too. Even though it is a big wine, it is also very balanced and seamless... no heat at all. Bravo.
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One of my favorite wines over the last few years. A 95% Syrah/5% Viognier co-fermented wine with exquisite berry flavor and a smooth, almost silky, texture. I can't praise this wine enough. It will go with any food. I have tasted this wine repeatedly over the last two years and think it is getting even more rounded and delicate than it was when it was first released in 2010.
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Great fruit but also some chewyness to the wine. Blueberries and blackberries on the palate. Really a step above most rhone blends in both taste and substance. Only drawback is the high alc.
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Expressive nose of blueberry, violets, white pepper and herbs. Medium plus body of dark cherry, blueberry, licorice and white pepper. Medium plus finish.
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Fantastic example of the Denner syrah blends, which are the best in the central valley if not the state. So rich it reminds me of chocolate at times. Packs a velvet punch.
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Mayfair tasting group does Syrah (Denver, CO): Slow-O 1 hour, served blind. Purple toward opaque color, no sign of age. Alcohol and ripe black and blue fruits; Some herbs, red floral, smoke, earth and plum sauce. Full body(+) palate, with barely enough acid to float the heft, but it managed. A polarizing wine, and one which I'd not care to drink again unless it were 5 years from now and only then to see where it's gone. My #5, group #1 (only because of the spurious high 90's scores from the New World gang). This did show above average complexity, but since I really don't prefer wines that are a meal in and of themselves, it's largely forgettable for me. Naturally there were others that raced to drain the bottle. 95% Syrah, 5% Viognier. Drink thru 2017, 15,6% abv, score: B+
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(Tasted in a flight with 2009 Denner Grenache, 2009 Denner Ditch Digger, 2008 Denner Dirt Worshipper and 2008 Denner Mother of Exiles) The 2008 Dirt Worshipper is a very good example of how Viognier may actually boost Syrah. The nose is full of dark fruit, morellos, sun dried flowers and lilac. I wrote 'brutal' in my tasting note and I still think it is a bit brutish, but what a lovely and flirty brute! The palate is tremendously clean and vivid providing a lot pleasure but also a lot of structure and texture. The overall impression is very positive but this wine needs a couple of more years or so to calm down. Everything is in place here, but patience is required - how much I will leave unsaid for now. Indeed a very nice effort from Denner Vineyards. (score is 93-94)
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Beast of a wine. Dark, deep, dense, full, and rich. I kept thinking I was drinking a big fruit bomb Aussie Shiraz. The ripeness level takes this over the line for my palate. A bit too sweet. Pretty shocked at the 97 point rating on the basis of the lack of balance.
9.5-. Same as last couple of notes. These just sing. Everyone, even the non-appreciators in the group, enjoyed this. Had at Umami Burger in Hollywood. Truffle Burger all the way with onion rings baby (they were out of cheesy tater tots that day).
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95% Syrah and 5% Viognier. Black in color. Nose of black cherry Jello. Tastes of black cherry, leather, tobacco, earth, and cedar. Sweet tannin. Complex mid palate. Long powerful finish with nice grip and length. 15.6% alcohol. My second contribution on the night.
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decanted 2 hours. i was not fond of the candied sweetness of this, which overshadowed the nice framework. 3 hours later the wine was developing in the glass so patience, strong, long decanting at this juncture is a must. i also gassed 3 ounces and held in the fridge over night. it held it's own. hold.
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A massive wine with a silty, muddy appearance. Aromatically complex with dried blueberries, bacon cooking on a Saturday morning, and white pepper. Stunning depth and density. High abv and I had some concerns about it being overripe. But it keeps thing under control and I enjoyed it.
--- COLOR: Purple-garnet NOTE: I just can't keep my hands off these. When Laube gives a Cali Syrah a 96+ rating, take note. The nose on this is ethereal blackberry, whifs of pipe tobacco smoke, caramelized sugar. Mouth is rich but elegant, bursting with black plum, blackberry, black currant, licorice and tar. Finish is 45+ seconds of the same. Tannins are so smooth and ripe. Didn't get as much floral character this time, but probably because I was writing my note after having already had a glass.
DECANT: 1 hr GLASS USED: Syrah TASTE: 9.5- COST: 50 VALUE: 9.1 PREVIOUSLY TASTED: 03/11 TRY AGAIN: 2013 - 2016 PAIRING: The Habit char cheeseburger and onion rings!!! Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net ---
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Great wine - easy to drink - medium bodied - good fruit - smooth finish - the fruit opened up more with the 2nd bottle - would decant it - 97 points is a high bar - but this is a great wine that should get better with a little more time. Everyone loved it and went well with dinner (grilled tri-tip, chicken, veggies)
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--- COLOR: Opaque black/purple with medium purple rim NOTE: Best Cali Syrah (or any Syrah) since 2003 Bonaccorsi Star Lane. Cote-Rotie in style due to the Viognier. Beautiful floral nose of jasmin, violets, blackberry liqueur, roasted meats, hints of tar & oregano. Mouth is delightfully heavy and rich with perfectly ripe sweet blackberry and boysenberry juices, great acid. Tannins are ripe but a tad drying in 45+ second finish that maintains fruit purity and introduces more boquet garni. Another 2 years and this will sing. Points can only go up. Throws a ton of sediment even at this young age, so decant carefully.
DECANT: 1 hr GLASS USED: Syrah TASTE: 9.4+ COST: 50 VALUE: 9.0 PREVIOUSLY TASTED: n/a TRY AGAIN: 2013 - 2018 PAIRING: Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net ---
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This is a wine deserving of poetry. After decanting for about an hour, it started to really settle into its own. Deep berry and precise caramel on the nose, nice weight and polish on midpalate and here's where things get interesting. This wine performs this harmonious flip on the palate where this streak of citrus comes out of nowhere and makes the finish absolutely sing and sustains forever. It's clearly the 5% Viognier that causes this, and I've had many Syrahs with 5% Viognier but never had this amazing effect be so focused and in harmony with the rest of the experience. Absolutely a thrill to drink this wine.
-- Consumed at at cellar temp: 60°-65° F. Friends don't let friends drink red wine at room temp!
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15.6% alcohol. Decanted. Opaque purple color. Strongly oaky on the nose, with jammy blueberry, cream, light pepper, and some earth on the nose. In the mouth, a big, ripe wine, with a less jammy sensibility than the nose. Plenty of oak influence on the palate, with a more earthy notes, but this is all about big fruit. Minimal acidity and a slightly hot finish. B+/A-
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Well I've had two of these in the past week and waited to rate this until I'd tried it again. This wine is the absolute best syrah I have ever had. It is just an amazing wine. WS rated it 97 pts and I'm not going to argue with them. It's that good. If you can find it buy it. I just joined their wine club to make sure I can get this in the future.
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– tasted a single glass non-blind over approx. 10 minutes – – 95% Syrah, 5% Viognier –
Purple color of great depth. Earthy dark grapiness on the Nose. Medium-full to full bodied. Glycerin mouthfeel. Very sweet and oaky on the palate, showing purple fruits, a hint of earth, and prickly alcohol; tannins are soft, and the acidity is not noticeable; round, and doesn’t seem very well-structured; the sweetness is very off-putting to me. Pales in comparison to the excellent 2006 vintage of this bottling.
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Wish I could agree with the raves; a bit too sweet, smooth, and blueberry-driven for me; not a lot of complexity or balance for a terroir-driven syrah; less tightly-wound than the '07 right now and showing less promise
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12/29/2023 - Rezy13 wrote:
Still so much sweet purple fruit, high octane, a semblance of balance but at such a high ABV of 15.6%, actually aging pretty well.
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9/4/2020 - Tallhoyalawya wrote: 90 Points
Dark fruit is still there but the taste didn't evolve overtime when drinking for two days. No complexity but good structure.
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3/12/2017 - BVal wrote: 91 Points
Color: inky purple core -> dense ruby rim. Decanted 45+ minutes. Blackberry, boysenberry, cassis, violets with a whiff of white pepper at the end. Palate still fruit forward; blue and black fruits -- quite sweet on the attack from the ripe fruit -- plump (Rubenesque!) and looong. Soft tannins with a high-viscosity mouthfeel. This wine is a bit of a conundrum for me; love the intensity and fruit but I'm looking for more complexity (roasted meats, leather, road tar, earth, etc.) and not really finding anything beyond the primary fruit and flower elements (touch of white pepper notwithstanding). It's certainly pretty but still very young and I'm unsure this will develop the complexity I'd love to see. One more bottle in the cellar; will try to wait at least 3+ years in the hopes for more . . . .
I generally prefer the Ditch Digger as I feel it brings more to the table and this vintage of the Dirt Worshipper hasn't changed my mind.
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11/11/2016 - sesalmon Likes this wine: 94 Points
Massive wine, brilliantly layered with TONS of dark fruit, chocolate and licorice with a touch of oak. Nice balance with a silky finish that has me longing for more.
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5/8/2016 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 96 Points
Huge wine, LOTS of fruit, silky texture with fine tannins, really in a great place right now -- this is excellent! Really enjoying it.
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10/30/2015 - sanjuanlewis Likes this wine: 96 Points
Outstanding. Too bad this is our last bottle! Wonderful full, bright fruit with great acid balance.
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9/29/2015 - sanjuanlewis Likes this wine: 95 Points
Still awesome. Great depth and balance.
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9/20/2015 - Djfermentation Likes this wine: 95 Points
We took this bottle to Chef Hubert Keller's Burger Bar in Mandalay Bay last night to serve blind with a couple of vine lover friends. It showed awesome, I really like how it is drinking now and don't see any need to wait. Last weekend while in Paso at Denner we spoke with owner Ron who new we still had one of these and told us to go ahead and enjoy it now. Good advice. It went excellent with the Merguez style lamb burger with tiziki sauce and tons of herbs. Everyone loved it!
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8/30/2015 - mattdathan Likes this wine: 95 Points
Holy cow - worship this baby, oh yes! Just wonderful in all respects, especially with some good meat.
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7/12/2015 - sanjuanlewis Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinking well, still lots of life.
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5/14/2015 - Ltomanek Likes this wine: 95 Points
The wine has held its promise so far. It has violet aroma, some sage and pepper and a lot of dark berry fruit. The tannins still hold it together and it has aged beautifully so far.
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12/20/2014 - Smiths22 wrote: 93 Points
Perfect - nice fruit smooth
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11/8/2014 - Redguy wrote: 92 Points
Decanted this, the last of 6, for 2 hours. Over the past year or so these have shown steady, albeit graceful, decline. The blackberry liquor and pine resin have lost some intensity and the structure loosened. As such, the focus is a bit fuzzy. Still quite tasty and an excellent wine but like a great athlete winding down the career, you can see the end. Drink now!
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10/20/2014 - jvest Likes this wine: 93 Points
The wine looks inky colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like blackberry and black currant (cassis). It tastes like blackberry, black currant (cassis), gooseberry, prune, plum, fig, apricot, clove and hazelnut.
The body is medium/full. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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7/4/2014 - TheRhoneranger wrote: 94 Points
Delicious! Drank over 4 hours. Best about 2 hrs fatter decanting. Great bright red fruits.
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3/7/2014 - alfazed wrote: 93 Points
With FM and MF for MF's birthday with Indian food - delicious, syrupy, black fruit and chocolate, soft tannins. Wonderful.
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11/30/2013 - ppeterson99 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wonderful. Decanted about 45 minutes. Definite Syrah colors with deep dark integrated purple berry fruit notes well integrated with an earthy base. At with Italian food. Definitely ready to drink now. I don't think I'd wait much longer despite the original Denner tasting notes recommending 2017-2018
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11/15/2013 - Ltomanek Likes this wine: 95 Points
After I noticed earlier this year that the 2008 Dirt Worshipper (DW) may not be as great of a wine as it used to be, and someone else pointed it out on Cellar Tracker as well, I decided to do a mini vertical tasting, with the 2008, 2009 and 2011 vintage.
Here are some of my notes:
2008: purple hue, dark color, slightly hazy, aromatic aroma, still youthful in its development and clear blackcurrant and blackberry aromas, off dry, full-bodied, smooth acidity, low levels of and soft tannins, powerful flavor intensity, finish very long. 95+
2009: ruby hue, deep color and some cloudiness, aromatic and youthful with blackcurrant, blackberry, pepper and bilberry, dry, medium body, crisp and lively acidity, medium and soft/round tannins, very flavorful, long finish. 93
2011: garnet hue, medium color depth, slight haze, very aromatic, youthful, aromas not clear, very dry, medium body and tart acidity. 92+
The 2011 DW was just released and it was clear that tart acidity needed to become softer. It was clear that this wine was still very young, somewhat uptight and in need for some cellaring. Everyone liked it. It was the first of the three we tasted.
The 2009 DW was smooth and soft and had complex aromas. Everyone like this more than the 2011. “Wow, this one is clearly better and lovely.”
The 2008 DW was a lot better yet! There was no doubt that it was the highlight of the evening.
Although it is possible that the 2008 DW is not as grand as it used to be, but it still reigns over the latest vintages. The five of us enjoyed the tasting and agreed with the ranking.
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11/4/2013 - Les Kangas Likes this wine: 91 Points
I agree with the person who wrote thta everytime he tasted it, it was less impressive. This wine was fantastic, about two years ago, but i would drink up now. Reidel syrah glass.
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11/1/2013 - ledwards wrote: 93 Points
I am glad I waitied for some bottle age on this. Bought on release. Rich but well integrated. Classic Syrah notes are all there. Well done.
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10/1/2013 - tp096255 Likes this wine: 93 Points
---
COLOR: Opaque purple-ruby with med-ruby rim
NOTE: I hate it when such a great wine seems to decline from inception, but this seems to be the case here. Each time I taste/rate it I seem to be less and less impressed, usually with the mouth but especially the finish. This was a mind-blowing Syrah upon release and it held up for the first couple of years but now it seems to be out of balance. Each bottle seems to be more prickly/hot and less fruity than the prior one. Don't get me wrong, this is still great juice and far better than 90% of all other Cali Syrahs out there right now, but it's just not the same lovely beast it started out as. Heat is more pronounced from nose to finish, and the fruit seems to have yielded to the tobacco/leather elements.
I'd advise that you drink up as soon as possible and do so with nice fatty meals, especially beef.
DECANT: 1- 3 hr
GLASS USED: Syrah
TASTE: 9.3
OTHER:
COST: 85
VALUE: 6.0
TRY AGAIN: now-2015
PAIRING: ribeye
Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net
---
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8/23/2013 - Redguy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted 3 hrs and served with grilled strip steaks. No formal notes taken but this was fantastic. Great synergy between the cool weather syrah funkiness, warm weather black-fruited power, lovely perfume, and beautiful savory elements. So well balanced and perfectly proportioned. Medium+ body, polished supple texture, fine acidity, good structure, and great depth. Still evolving over the hour or so we drank it... more to offer with additional cellaring. A great wine!
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4/5/2013 - Ltomanek wrote:
The wine seems to have closed up for the time. Its tannins are tight right now and it will be interesting to see if it opens up as nicely as it was a year ago. No rating for the time being but I would not give this wine the 97 pts I gave it before.
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1/25/2013 - RobertDwyer wrote: 87 Points
Didn't enjoy the second bottle of this nearly as much as the first. This one's overripeness showed and the flavors ran towards raisins and prunes.
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1/21/2013 - Dagalaifus Likes this wine: 93 Points
Inky purple in the glass. On the palate, blackberry, blueberry and cherry with a medium length finish. 5 percent Viognier gives this wine a musky, floral complexity. Outstanding. Sadly, subsequent vintages are not even close.
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1/9/2013 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
Brown Bag Wine Dinner at Two Chefs - Double Blind; 1/8/2013-1/9/2013 (TWO CHEFS, MIAMI, FL): - Purple color with medium forming legs. It's balanced with a medium/full body. Polished texture with a medium finish - Brian's wine from Paso Robles(near Linne Collado and L'Aventure).Syrah was evident.
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1/2/2013 - mr.spock wrote: 88 Points
First day - I opened and decanted for an hour...very fruit forward and jammy with a spicy finish.
Second day - drank the remaining half of the bottle. It mellowed out a lot and was not nearly as spicy as the first day.
Drank with Thomas Keller's recipe for roasted chicken.
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1/1/2013 - tp096255 Likes this wine: 94 Points
9.4-.
No formal note, but it was still lovely. Perhaps not decanted long enough. Seemed a little less complex than other outings.
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12/22/2012 - TheWinedown Likes this wine: 95 Points
Excellent wine. I was expecting a much bigger, bolder wine but as pleasantly surprised by the soft, inviting character it displayed. Very gamey cook fruit notes were powerfully obvious, along with an intense stone dust aroma. Very similar notes on the palate. This went beautifully with strip steaks and veggies with bacon in them.
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10/27/2012 - Justin B wrote: 96 Points
Fantastic wine right from pop'n'pour and got smoother and more complex with more air in the glass. Intoxicating nose in a lovely way... I could smell this wine forever. Very full body taste of lots of berries... blackberry, blueberry and boysenberry. The 5% Viognier adds a bit of a nice floral component too. Even though it is a big wine, it is also very balanced and seamless... no heat at all. Bravo.
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7/6/2012 - Ltomanek wrote: 97 Points
One of my favorite wines over the last few years. A 95% Syrah/5% Viognier co-fermented wine with exquisite berry flavor and a smooth, almost silky, texture. I can't praise this wine enough. It will go with any food. I have tasted this wine repeatedly over the last two years and think it is getting even more rounded and delicate than it was when it was first released in 2010.
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6/3/2012 - haldolugr wrote: 92 Points
Still delicious, drank with family, great fruit and solid finish.
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5/30/2012 - Fateful Destiny Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great fruit but also some chewyness to the wine. Blueberries and blackberries on the palate. Really a step above most rhone blends in both taste and substance. Only drawback is the high alc.
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5/9/2012 - bobpsi wrote: 91 Points
Expressive nose of blueberry, violets, white pepper and herbs. Medium plus body of dark cherry, blueberry, licorice and white pepper. Medium plus finish.
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2/5/2012 - mgottberg wrote: 93 Points
Fantastic example of the Denner syrah blends, which are the best in the central valley if not the state. So rich it reminds me of chocolate at times. Packs a velvet punch.
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1/28/2012 - Tim Heaton wrote:
Mayfair tasting group does Syrah (Denver, CO): Slow-O 1 hour, served blind. Purple toward opaque color, no sign of age. Alcohol and ripe black and blue fruits; Some herbs, red floral, smoke, earth and plum sauce. Full body(+) palate, with barely enough acid to float the heft, but it managed. A polarizing wine, and one which I'd not care to drink again unless it were 5 years from now and only then to see where it's gone. My #5, group #1 (only because of the spurious high 90's scores from the New World gang). This did show above average complexity, but since I really don't prefer wines that are a meal in and of themselves, it's largely forgettable for me. Naturally there were others that raced to drain the bottle. 95% Syrah, 5% Viognier. Drink thru 2017, 15,6% abv, score: B+
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12/26/2011 - PowerJ wrote: 98 Points
Blackberries, huckleberry and deep currants. Wow!
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10/29/2011 - haldolugr wrote:
Opened late in the night so no rating. Was tasting good and easy to drink.
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9/15/2011 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 93 Points
(Tasted in a flight with 2009 Denner Grenache, 2009 Denner Ditch Digger, 2008 Denner Dirt Worshipper and 2008 Denner Mother of Exiles) The 2008 Dirt Worshipper is a very good example of how Viognier may actually boost Syrah. The nose is full of dark fruit, morellos, sun dried flowers and lilac. I wrote 'brutal' in my tasting note and I still think it is a bit brutish, but what a lovely and flirty brute! The palate is tremendously clean and vivid providing a lot pleasure but also a lot of structure and texture. The overall impression is very positive but this wine needs a couple of more years or so to calm down. Everything is in place here, but patience is required - how much I will leave unsaid for now. Indeed a very nice effort from Denner Vineyards. (score is 93-94)
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9/3/2011 - jtinto wrote: 89 Points
Beast of a wine. Dark, deep, dense, full, and rich. I kept thinking I was drinking a big fruit bomb Aussie Shiraz. The ripeness level takes this over the line for my palate. A bit too sweet. Pretty shocked at the 97 point rating on the basis of the lack of balance.
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8/1/2011 - tp096255 wrote: 95 Points
9.5-. Same as last couple of notes. These just sing. Everyone, even the non-appreciators in the group, enjoyed this. Had at Umami Burger in Hollywood. Truffle Burger all the way with onion rings baby (they were out of cheesy tater tots that day).
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6/18/2011 - haldolugr wrote: 93 Points
This is an outstanding wine - dark fruit, great balance and finish - give it some more time and I see the 97pt potential!!
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5/19/2011 - kstoddard Likes this wine: 93 Points
95% Syrah and 5% Viognier. Black in color. Nose of black cherry Jello. Tastes of black cherry, leather, tobacco, earth, and cedar. Sweet tannin. Complex mid palate. Long powerful finish with nice grip and length. 15.6% alcohol. My second contribution on the night.
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5/19/2011 - jeff nowak wrote: 92 Points
decanted 2 hours. i was not fond of the candied sweetness of this, which overshadowed the nice framework. 3 hours later the wine was developing in the glass so patience, strong, long decanting at this juncture is a must. i also gassed 3 ounces and held in the fridge over night. it held it's own. hold.
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4/15/2011 - RobertDwyer wrote: 93 Points
A massive wine with a silty, muddy appearance. Aromatically complex with dried blueberries, bacon cooking on a Saturday morning, and white pepper. Stunning depth and density. High abv and I had some concerns about it being overripe. But it keeps thing under control and I enjoyed it.
Hard to stop drinking. Quite nice. Read more...
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4/1/2011 - tp096255 wrote: 95 Points
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COLOR: Purple-garnet
NOTE: I just can't keep my hands off these. When Laube gives a Cali Syrah a 96+ rating, take note. The nose on this is ethereal blackberry, whifs of pipe tobacco smoke, caramelized sugar. Mouth is rich but elegant, bursting with black plum, blackberry, black currant, licorice and tar. Finish is 45+ seconds of the same. Tannins are so smooth and ripe. Didn't get as much floral character this time, but probably because I was writing my note after having already had a glass.
DECANT: 1 hr
GLASS USED: Syrah
TASTE: 9.5-
COST: 50
VALUE: 9.1
PREVIOUSLY TASTED: 03/11
TRY AGAIN: 2013 - 2016
PAIRING: The Habit char cheeseburger and onion rings!!!
Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net
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3/18/2011 - haldolugr wrote: 93 Points
Great wine - easy to drink - medium bodied - good fruit - smooth finish - the fruit opened up more with the 2nd bottle - would decant it - 97 points is a high bar - but this is a great wine that should get better with a little more time. Everyone loved it and went well with dinner (grilled tri-tip, chicken, veggies)
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3/1/2011 - tp096255 wrote: 94 Points
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COLOR: Opaque black/purple with medium purple rim
NOTE: Best Cali Syrah (or any Syrah) since 2003 Bonaccorsi Star Lane. Cote-Rotie in style due to the Viognier. Beautiful floral nose of jasmin, violets, blackberry liqueur, roasted meats, hints of tar & oregano. Mouth is delightfully heavy and rich with perfectly ripe sweet blackberry and boysenberry juices, great acid. Tannins are ripe but a tad drying in 45+ second finish that maintains fruit purity and introduces more boquet garni. Another 2 years and this will sing. Points can only go up. Throws a ton of sediment even at this young age, so decant carefully.
DECANT: 1 hr
GLASS USED: Syrah
TASTE: 9.4+
COST: 50
VALUE: 9.0
PREVIOUSLY TASTED: n/a
TRY AGAIN: 2013 - 2018
PAIRING:
Inquiries can be addressed to troypeterson@usa.net
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2/20/2011 - ZekeBoston wrote: 96 Points
Incredible
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2/18/2011 - Gestalted wrote: 94 Points
This is a wine deserving of poetry. After decanting for about an hour, it started to really settle into its own. Deep berry and precise caramel on the nose, nice weight and polish on midpalate and here's where things get interesting. This wine performs this harmonious flip on the palate where this streak of citrus comes out of nowhere and makes the finish absolutely sing and sustains forever. It's clearly the 5% Viognier that causes this, and I've had many Syrahs with 5% Viognier but never had this amazing effect be so focused and in harmony with the rest of the experience. Absolutely a thrill to drink this wine.
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Consumed at at cellar temp: 60°-65° F. Friends don't let friends drink red wine at room temp!
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1/16/2011 - gutt22 wrote:
15.6% alcohol. Decanted. Opaque purple color. Strongly oaky on the nose, with jammy blueberry, cream, light pepper, and some earth on the nose. In the mouth, a big, ripe wine, with a less jammy sensibility than the nose. Plenty of oak influence on the palate, with a more earthy notes, but this is all about big fruit. Minimal acidity and a slightly hot finish. B+/A-
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1/12/2011 - phlegls wrote: 97 Points
I agree - Yup it's gooood.....
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1/8/2011 - russdan60 wrote: 97 Points
Well I've had two of these in the past week and waited to rate this until I'd tried it again. This wine is the absolute best syrah I have ever had. It is just an amazing wine. WS rated it 97 pts and I'm not going to argue with them. It's that good. If you can find it buy it. I just joined their wine club to make sure I can get this in the future.
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12/5/2010 - grafstrb wrote:
– tasted a single glass non-blind over approx. 10 minutes –
– 95% Syrah, 5% Viognier –
Purple color of great depth. Earthy dark grapiness on the Nose. Medium-full to full bodied. Glycerin mouthfeel. Very sweet and oaky on the palate, showing purple fruits, a hint of earth, and prickly alcohol; tannins are soft, and the acidity is not noticeable; round, and doesn’t seem very well-structured; the sweetness is very off-putting to me. Pales in comparison to the excellent 2006 vintage of this bottling.
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10/5/2010 - SWLS wrote: 88 Points
Wish I could agree with the raves; a bit too sweet, smooth, and blueberry-driven for me; not a lot of complexity or balance for a terroir-driven syrah; less tightly-wound than the '07 right now and showing less promise
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