Community Tasting Note

• sid_loves_wine Likes this wine: 94 points

  March 21, 2022 - Gorgeous wine for my 800th CT review. I was a little worried about buying this even for $50 on winebid, given that the CT notes are really varied, and many describe some flaws, or at least that it's unbalanced or inexpressive. I made the purchase anyway and I'm glad I did- even if there's some bottle variation, I must have gotten one of the really good ones.
  
  To me this is one of those syrahs that feels exactly like how syrah "should" be in it's purest form. That's not to say it's the most incredible syrah I've had in my life, nor is it the only style of syrah I love, but it shows a truly rare sense of balance and beauty with absolutely nothing out of place. I don't say lightly that if I blinded this I would probably call Northern rhone, either a somewhat higher-end St Joseph or a Cote Rotie (reminded me very intensely of the entry-level Rotie from Clusel Roch, around the same price.) A lot of Washington syrah is very savory, but that doesn't mean it's necessarily Rhone-like.
  
  Nose shows loads of pure, pretty, fresh but also dense and ripe blueberries- plus a bunch of high-toned gamey/briney accents that were intense without ever getting in the way of the fruit, nor ever appearing truly "vegetal" (which I don't always love). Cured meat, olive brine, a little funk, but not overwhelming. Not really any noticeable oak. It's complex, but in another way it's straightforward - a pure, harmonious combo of rich dark fruit and super fun, well-integrated savory tones.
  
  Palate is just the same. Super elegant, fresh, lithe, but still intensely concentrated blue fruits glide down with silken tannins, while a pop of briney acidic energy dances in the background. Again extemely harmonious, and extremely delicately or carefully crafted- it's truly amazing how much depth there is here along with such freshness and elegance.
  
  It's not the *best* QPR ever for the usual $80+ price, as I've had a few $50 syrahs that feel very similar, but there's no denying this is special stuff. Compared to other Washington heavyweight syrahs such as the K Vintners Hidden or Cattle King, I found much greater beauty in this (although it was very similar to the K vintners Rock Garden, which is less expensive.)

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3 Comments

• boillatm commented:

  3/21/22, 2:59 AM - Nice note, but I assume you wanted to rate this wine a bit higher than 80 points ;)

• GramercyCellars commented:

  3/21/22, 11:23 AM - Why 80 points?

• sid_loves_wine commented:

  3/22/22, 12:00 AM - Oh, wow. I guess my finger slipped, literally. I intended to give it a 94. Editing now. Cheers guys, and thanks Gramercy

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