1995 Edmunds St. John Syrah Durell Vineyard

Community Tasting Notes (29) Avg Score: 90.4 points

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  7/6/2021 - DaleW wrote:

  Last bottle of an old fave. Served blind, initial guesses Rhone, then as soon as Cali they got ESJ, though guesses were in this century. Rich dark fruit, meat on the grill, some olive and herb. Balanced and long. A-

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  6/15/2020 - RussW wrote:

  My last bottle and 25 years young. This is my benchmark of the heights that CA Syrah can reach in the right hands. The balance is amazing with a light hand that allows the fruit and structure to dance with one another and creates a memorable drinking experience. This is a dead ringer for a great Northern Rhône. Bravo Steve!!

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  11/3/2017 - MartyL wrote: 91 Points

  Still kicking. Dark and earthy, aromas of smoke, olives, and black fruit. Tannins resolved, some nice acidity lending balance. Very Northern Rhône in style. Drinking well right now but seems like it’s got plenty of life left.

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  3/9/2017 - KeithAkers wrote: 93 Points

  Nose: The nose is highly perfumed, aromatic, and deep with iodine, black cherries, raspberries, leather tones, spices, earth notes, and herbs.
  
  Taste: Medium/full bodied with medium acidity and medium+ tannins. Though the structure has essentially resolved, the tannins are still persistent and form an excellent frame. The feel is deep and polished with iodine, black cherries, raspberries, leather, and spice notes.
  
  Overall: This was a real treat to have. It's unfortunate that Edmunds St John doesn't get to work with these Syrah vines anymore as this was one of of the more expressive and impressive old American syrahs that I have had.

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  3/9/2017 - salil wrote: 94 Points

  The last of my small stash of Durell Syrah, and the best. It still feels remarkably youthful, showing a density and level of structure that suggest this could easily roll on another decade and then some. It starts out showing lots of meat and dark berried fruit with a brightness that hints at its Californian origins, though we agreed this would be a dead ringer for a Cornas. Then with more air (a couple of hours after opening), it turns more savoury and salien on the palate, while higher toned herbal and faintly minty notes emerge on the nose. There's amazing depth here and it just keeps getting more compelling with air, until the bottle is finally drained.
  
  At that point we all just agreed that Steve Edmunds is a genius.

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