Nice aged Syrah. It is holding up, but started to fade in the glass after an hour. It does not, at this point, taste like a heavy, extracted Parkerized wine. Balanced, in a rich way, but I suspect in its youth it was a handful to taste. I don’t think age has done much but flatten it out a bit.
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I was thoroughly impressed at how well this wine drank when my friends and I popped it. I thought, simply from the advice I received on-line that it would be on the decline, but when i popped the cork I was immediately surprised by the level of deep dark fruit it possessed, along with savory aromas of coffee, leather, scorched earth, and anise. This felt more like a well made Northern Rhone wine and less like a California Syrah from Napa. I feel like California wine is still progressing and becoming better and better with every vintage, and this wine is a testament to how well California wine can be when it is made with tremendous care and patience. On the palate it was just so rich and syrupy, but not to much so. It was not heavy or overwhelming, but extremely well balanced, and obvious that at one point in time this wine was decadently rich, deep, and over the top. But with the decade of age it retained all of its quality without the heavy weight. The finish lasted the length of time it took me to write this tasting note, which considering my chicken-peck was a while. God! I wish I had at least one more bottle, but I guess I will just have to make the last half glass last as long as I can... It's so good.
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Rich and luscious without being heavy or over the top. Not sure what the alcohol was but not at all warm. Still a bit of grip left but not one to last more than a few more years
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Very deep red, almost opaque. Wonderful woodsy and forest-like smells along with herbal and smokey notes. Complex flavors echoing the nose with a little dark very ripe plum thrown in. Nice medium long finish. Overall an excellent, very enjoyable wine.
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A nice complex wine. The nose of herbal hints though those decreased by the second day.. The taste lasted two days though. Nuances of smoke and dark fruits packed in a nice developed taste profile. I really liked this wine.
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Saxum/Rhone Ranger dinner with Justin Smith (New York): This has a great sauvage character to it that brings a Northern Rhone to mind, with a flavour profile of bloody meat, leather, smoke and blue and black fruits. Medium to full bodied on the palate and elegant with good acidity and a long finish.
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Tanglewood Cyn -- I so wanted to love this but a vegetal/weedy note kept creeping in (I guess '00 was a lesser year). There was lots of ultra ripe palate-coating fruit on the palate but even that was a tad lean. And yes there were aromatics that were awesome like mocha/blueberry, herbs, roasted meats but the vegetal funk would swirl in. Hmmmm...
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Really pretty nose - smoke, bacon fat, and blackberry liqueur. Rather compact palate, with forward alcohol and structure and a buried fruit profile. Lots of class evident, especially on the nose which is one of the best in Cali Syrah, but hard to say where this one will go. Enjoyable.
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this wine was tempting on the nose, but couldn't deliver the goods on either the mid palate or the finish. somewhat tannic, yet it didn't have a unity of structure. pleasant in a simple way.
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Deep purple color. Earth, mocha and dark fruit nose. Upon tasting flavors of blackberry with hints of pepper, mocha and earth. Moderate tannins. Very nice finish. Overall a good experience.
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Tried this in Las Vegas next to the 1995 Araujo CS Eisele. Medium bodied with notes of chocolate, black pepper and spice. A nice side by side. 90-91 points.
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Blind Syrah and Petites (Mercer Island): Flowers and Earth on the Nose. Lots of nice dark fruits. Rather complex and has some peppery notes that spice things up. Like this! [GroupAvg 1st place WOF. 1 1st place, 1 2nd place and 4 3rd place WON votes]
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J-P's Birthday (Vancouver): This wine was liquid candy. Surmature, but not over the top or hot. Candied fruit on the palate. Superfine tannins and a very full mouthfeel. A high quality wine. Syrah taken to the edge of where I like it.
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Black purple color. Aromas of black fruits, hint of mocha, vanilla. Forward black fruits on the palate, integrated toasty oak, hints of chocolate and vanilla, with some stewed tomatoes and a hint of pepper. This is a smooth, seemless wine with a 30 second finish. Moderate tannins hit at the end with just a touch of bitterness. Wish I had another to taste in 2 years.
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Seattle Tasting Group does Syrah (Seattle, WA, USA): The nose is somewhat mineral and shows a lot of barrel char. On the palate there was lots of searing, tannic depth. This is very black and powerful, ripping!
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Good fruit. Meaty, bloody with loads of black fruits. Nice, but overpriced... or so it seemed on the first night. But on the second day, this wine was much more resolved, silky and deep. Better earthiness and minerality. Quite lengthy and delicious.
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4/29/2021 - Freddygofast wrote:
That wine was still very good in April 2021!
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3/2/2019 - dlduchon Likes this wine: 89 Points
Nice aged Syrah. It is holding up, but started to fade in the glass after an hour. It does not, at this point, taste like a heavy, extracted Parkerized wine. Balanced, in a rich way, but I suspect in its youth it was a handful to taste. I don’t think age has done much but flatten it out a bit.
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7/24/2015 - ScottPreston wrote: 94 Points
What an incredible wine. This is definitely getting close to peak, but has another 2 years of beautiful drinking.
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4/25/2015 - ASG24 wrote: flawed
Corked, really corked.
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4/17/2012 - sqn19 wrote: 90 Points
Opaque purple and jammy. Good, but does not have the tannins to suggest this will last much longer. Drink up.
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5/7/2011 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com wrote: 94 Points
David's wine. @Hakkassan, Fountainebleu, Miami Beach. WOTN. Outclassed my 02 Chevillon Vaucrain. Rich intense syrah, with a never ending finish. Delicious!
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10/1/2010 - buckeye76 wrote: 93 Points
RICH FRUIT IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR WITH BLACK CHERRIES AND BLACKBERRIES AND A HINT OF SMOKINESS. LONG FINISH
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6/15/2010 - clericjohnbrown wrote: 97 Points
I was thoroughly impressed at how well this wine drank when my friends and I popped it. I thought, simply from the advice I received on-line that it would be on the decline, but when i popped the cork I was immediately surprised by the level of deep dark fruit it possessed, along with savory aromas of coffee, leather, scorched earth, and anise. This felt more like a well made Northern Rhone wine and less like a California Syrah from Napa. I feel like California wine is still progressing and becoming better and better with every vintage, and this wine is a testament to how well California wine can be when it is made with tremendous care and patience. On the palate it was just so rich and syrupy, but not to much so. It was not heavy or overwhelming, but extremely well balanced, and obvious that at one point in time this wine was decadently rich, deep, and over the top. But with the decade of age it retained all of its quality without the heavy weight. The finish lasted the length of time it took me to write this tasting note, which considering my chicken-peck was a while. God! I wish I had at least one more bottle, but I guess I will just have to make the last half glass last as long as I can... It's so good.
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4/4/2009 - Johann Von Mastiff wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for aboutn four hours. Very feminine and pretty wine. Not at all overblown. It has some floral aromatics, red fruit and some bacon fat.
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3/29/2009 - mappleton wrote:
Rich and luscious without being heavy or over the top. Not sure what the alcohol was but not at all warm. Still a bit of grip left but not one to last more than a few more years
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3/14/2009 - Wine Drinker wrote: 92 Points
Very deep red, almost opaque. Wonderful woodsy and forest-like smells along with herbal and smokey notes. Complex flavors echoing the nose with a little dark very ripe plum thrown in. Nice medium long finish. Overall an excellent, very enjoyable wine.
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2/17/2009 - brynmair wrote: 95 Points
A nice complex wine. The nose of herbal hints though those decreased by the second day.. The taste lasted two days though. Nuances of smoke and dark fruits packed in a nice developed taste profile. I really liked this wine.
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10/17/2008 - Cheryl wrote:
Justin Smith of Saxum Comes to NYC (New York, NY): Nice, pepper. Wouldn't buy it though.
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10/17/2008 - salil wrote: 93 Points
Saxum/Rhone Ranger dinner with Justin Smith (New York): This has a great sauvage character to it that brings a Northern Rhone to mind, with a flavour profile of bloody meat, leather, smoke and blue and black fruits. Medium to full bodied on the palate and elegant with good acidity and a long finish.
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9/20/2008 - danstrings wrote: 88 Points
Tanglewood Cyn -- I so wanted to love this but a vegetal/weedy note kept creeping in (I guess '00 was a lesser year). There was lots of ultra ripe palate-coating fruit on the palate but even that was a tad lean. And yes there were aromatics that were awesome like mocha/blueberry, herbs, roasted meats but the vegetal funk would swirl in. Hmmmm...
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2/24/2008 - psmith wrote:
Really pretty nose - smoke, bacon fat, and blackberry liqueur. Rather compact palate, with forward alcohol and structure and a buried fruit profile. Lots of class evident, especially on the nose which is one of the best in
Cali Syrah, but hard to say where this one will go. Enjoyable.
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11/26/2007 - dbg wrote:
outstanding
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11/25/2007 - shaferguy91 wrote: 92 Points
Decanted 1.5 hours. Very good especially for a weak year.
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9/26/2007 - dbg wrote:
excellent
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5/1/2007 - Screameagle wrote: 93 Points
Incredibly expressive and complex nose. A beautiful wine in a difficult year. This wine is actually worth the stiff tariff. A wonderful syrah.
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1/18/2007 - jeff nowak wrote: 89 Points
this wine was tempting on the nose, but couldn't deliver the goods on either the mid palate or the finish. somewhat tannic, yet it didn't have a unity of structure. pleasant in a simple way.
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9/4/2006 - Vette Z06 wrote: 92 Points
Deep purple color. Earth, mocha and dark fruit nose. Upon tasting flavors of blackberry with hints of pepper, mocha and earth. Moderate tannins. Very nice finish. Overall a good experience.
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8/13/2006 - shaferguy91 wrote: 92 Points
Decanted 2.5 hours
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1/7/2006 - shaferguy91 wrote: 92 Points
Better next day indicating further improvement likely.
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1/3/2006 - shaferguy91 wrote: 91 Points
Decanted 2 hours.
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12/9/2005 - Vino Me wrote: 90 Points
Tried this in Las Vegas next to the 1995 Araujo CS Eisele. Medium bodied with notes of chocolate, black pepper and spice. A nice side by side. 90-91 points.
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11/26/2005 - lorenzo wrote: 92 Points
Blind Syrah and Petites (Mercer Island): Flowers and Earth on the Nose. Lots of nice dark fruits. Rather complex and has some peppery notes that spice things up. Like this!
[GroupAvg 1st place WOF. 1 1st place, 1 2nd place and 4 3rd place WON votes]
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6/14/2005 - Blair Curtis wrote: 92 Points
J-P's Birthday (Vancouver): This wine was liquid candy. Surmature, but not over the top or hot. Candied fruit on the palate. Superfine tannins and a very full mouthfeel. A high quality wine. Syrah taken to the edge of where I like it.
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3/11/2005 - onholiday wrote: 92 Points
Black purple color. Aromas of black fruits, hint of mocha, vanilla. Forward black fruits on the palate, integrated toasty oak, hints of chocolate and vanilla, with some stewed tomatoes and a hint of pepper. This is a smooth, seemless wine with a 30 second finish. Moderate tannins hit at the end with just a touch of bitterness. Wish I had another to taste in 2 years.
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2/27/2005 - mdefreitas wrote: 94 Points
Meaty, bloody and deep. Lots of fruit, but well balanced. Almost french in style.
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5/14/2004 - Eric wrote: 90 Points
Seattle Tasting Group does Syrah (Seattle, WA, USA): The nose is somewhat mineral and shows a lot of barrel char. On the palate there was lots of searing, tannic depth. This is very black and powerful, ripping!
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3/17/2004 - mdefreitas wrote: 94 Points
Good fruit. Meaty, bloody with loads of black fruits. Nice, but overpriced... or so it seemed on the first night. But on the second day, this wine was much more resolved, silky and deep. Better earthiness and minerality. Quite lengthy and delicious.
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