10/26/2023 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Drinking well. Aromatically exspessive. Nice red fruit with plus acidity and modest tannins. Better than I expected based on prior notes.

9/5/2023 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Showing really well with plenty of life left. I wish this was my first bottle rather than my last. Still quite youthful.

7/2/2023 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Another great bottle of Syrah from Delmas. Expressive on the nose and palate. It’s well balanced and really hard to set down

Several bottles tasted over the last 8 years from the 12’s-17’s. It never disappoints. A more elegant wine making expression of this AVA. If I could only cellar only one Rocks Syrah this would be the one. It opens up predictably with a couple hour decant being sufficient although you could get by with less. This has been my biggest disappointment with some of the other producers in this area. It’s hard to know how long to decant prior to a meal due to bottle variation within the same label and vintage.

3/2/2023 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Wonderful balance, still plenty of life left. My last one. Winery notes said prime drinking 21-23. I wish I had held them all. Best one yet.

3/2/2023 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Bright red.berry fruit with plenty of acidity. Enjoyable wine.

12/27/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Opened this at a family gathering with lots of distractions. Just ended up with a small pour and it exceeded my expectations

11/20/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Last of 3 and by far the best. I was beginning to think this was overhyped. It may be that I should’ve been more patient This vintage is now outshining the 13’s. We’ll done.

10/6/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Fragrant and delicious. Still singing. Slightly better than my last bottle and note.

8/29/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Much better than the previous bottle No decant, slight funk that blew off in short order. Out of the gate there was a lot of tart cherry and acid. With time the acid softened to reveal sweeter fruits and the usual rocks notes in nice balance and not at all over the top.

8/13/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Enjoyable wine on the sweet side but not overwhelming. I typically don’t care for sweeter wines but this one was irresistible

6/25/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Paired with A5 ribeye and Australian wagyu strip. Outstanding bottle in a great place. I’m happy to have one left. I thoroughly enjoyed, but I was probably more tuned into the meat,

6/19/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

A wonderful CS. Should’ve recorked and saved some for later but I didn’t want to risk it. Really solid value.

6/19/2022 - Bladams13 wrote:

Preferred this wine a little younger. Not bad just lost a little structure. Lacked the acidity I wanted with my grass fed rib chop. Palate moved a little more towards plum and a little fleshy. Still good but I liked it better a few years back. My pairing probably didn’t help.

5/14/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Phenomenal Pinot. Ready to go from the start and very expressive on the nose and palate

3/12/2022 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

This has always been my preferred block at Lenne. The distress gives up a wine with rusticity and character. Aromas of red berries, lavender and other florals, and wet gravel. Still showing ample acidity and tannin. Dark red fruits and earthiness on the palate with nice depth and length. Still youthful, I’ll wait a few years to consume my last bottle.

12/31/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Sour funk upon opening. Nose blew off before the palate resolved. Took about an hour and a half. Beautiful nose of candied violets, dust, and dark red fruits. Medium bodied with moderate acidity. Tastes of dark red fruit, iron, olive, and brine. Very savory

11/16/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Really nice Pinot. Intensity with elegance. Nose rose petals, other florals, forest floor, and dark berries fading to strawberry. Palate of dark berries and cola with a moderate acidity that lingers through the finish. Really well done.

9/21/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Last bottle. Really well done. It has improved since my last note. Similar to previous note with amplified expression. Exceeded my expectations. 93+

9/4/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Rocks character with elegance and northern Rhône like acidity. I wish I had a case of this.

5/12/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Very nice. Gave it an hour of air. My notes are very similar to KR’s. The only thing I’d add is some nice floral notes on the nose. No drop off on day two. Down to two bottles. Need to get more.

4/29/2021 - Bladams13 wrote:

I guess I’m an outlier here, I found this very average. The sour funk was overpowering everything for the first five hours in the decanter. It started to soften in the nose and gained some violet floral notes, but after eight hours it had yet to come together. Bottled it and revisited the next night without dramatic improvement. Probably the most disappointing Cayuse Syrah I’ve had, and I typically enjoy En Chamberlin.

4/3/2021 - Bladams13 wrote:

Somewhat disappointing based on my last bottle and the cost. Decanted for an hour before dinner. Which was not enough, although it was much better with my grilled skirt steak than on it’s own. It continued to improve until I bottled half to check out on day two at about 4 1/2 hours. Day two really didn’t show any dramatic improvement.

3/13/2021 - Bladams13 wrote:

I have mixed feelings about this wine. IMO it’s a poor value. Initially it left a cooked impression, but that dissipated after a couple hours and it evolved into an enjoyable bottle and held the next day. It’s just hard to ignore that I could get similar quality at a third of the price.

3/13/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Outstanding. Kept getting better until it was gone. Followed after a 2 hour decant through hour 5.

3/9/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Really nice. Needed a few hours of air, nice evolution after that and the next day. It doesn’t wow you, but it’s really well constructed and incredibly balanced.

2/25/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Decanted one hour. Sediment was an issue, trying to steal back the bottom 2 inches. I’m beginning to think I should have a ooffee filter on hand when opening a Leonetti wine for the bottom of the bottle. A clear garnet in color. Blackberry, florals, and spice on the nose. Juicy blackberries and cherries, chocolate, and dusty earth. Medium bodied with refreshing acidity. The tannins are present but soft unless you allow your glass to approach room temp at which point it gets quite grippy. Wonderful wine for the vintage. May have lent some elegance.

2/5/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

I failed to take notes, but I found this enjoyable. I recall it having nice dark fruit, nice texture and density. It also had an element of salinity.

2/5/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Wow. Les Collines brings the fruit, spice, and florals. This is your other WW Syrah. Nothing like a rocks Syrah. It has an expressive nose of dark fruits, herbs, florals, and spice. Dark berries, plums, and spice on the palate with a long finish.

1/24/2021 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Typical Leonetti profile. It was smooth and balanced, but definitely more restrained than I’m accustomed to. This was my only bottle of this vintage and I much prefer the ‘05. No complaints just not a good QPR at this point IMO. Lots of sediment while decanting. I ended up dumping probably a couple ounces. Standing up the bottle for a day probably would have helped.

12/20/2020 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

From about a week ago. Plentiful fruit up front, ample acidity, quite fragrant. It’s not fresh in my mind so I’m light on details, but it was really enjoyable and held up nicely on day two as well.

10/31/2020 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

This was better than expected based on recent notes. Decanted for 1 hour. Bright nose of dark fruit, florals, smoke, and spice. Taste initially dominated by olive and brine opening up with more dark fruit after just a little more air. Nice density and lingering acidity on the finish. Definitely on the earthy side, but with ample fruit. I found it hard to put down.

5/6/2020 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Really enjoyable bottle at a good price. It really improved after an hour in the decanter.

2/3/2020 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

With a 4 hour decant this was enjoyable but still rough around the edges. Vacu-vined over night. Things really smoothed out by the next night, and it was quite delicious. Give it plenty of air and you’ll be rewarded.

11/29/2019 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Had this with Thanksgiving dinner. Drinking really well.

4/20/2019 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Enjoyed this. Fruit was secondary to the savory, gamy, and earthy notes at first. After a couple hours in the decanter the brambly fruit started to come out. It’s surprising that this is almost half Grenache, because I feel that the other varietals dominate the blend with their dark fruit, game, and savory elements. I’ve only tried a handful of Betz wines, but I think this is my favorite so far.

4/11/2019 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Golden straw in color. Aromas of lemon, apple, and pear. The palate follows in line with the nose with nice minerality. This has a rich mouthfeel with a buttery apple and pear note in the mid palate, but the acidity from the citrus notes leaves you with a crisp finish that I really like. I’ve tasted Anderson Chardonnay’s from 11-16, and my palate has always had an affinity for the 13’s. To me they just have a wonderful balance.

4/11/2019 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

On the nose candied red berries, savory herbs, dust, pepper, and smoke. It tastes of cherry, plum, fennel, and basalt. Moderate grip and acid. The mineral element is more prominent than the fruit on the palate, but I love it.

12/14/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Very nice. I felt it was better on day two. The funk element gave it a bit of sourness initially that I find detrimental. It blows off just fine leaving a wine with smoke, spice, florals, and red and blue fruit. Also noted anise and evergreen. The nose is expressive, the body is medium , the tannins are soft, acid was medium, with quite a long finish 45 seconds or so. Easy to drink slow and ponder, but difficult for me to put down, particularly on day two.

11/22/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Similar to my last note from June. Slow ox’d for two hours and was great from the start. 93+

11/17/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Dark red fruit, dark chocolate, and dusty earth. Poured one glass and when I went back for more it was gone. I found it appealing and apparently others agreed.

11/11/2018 - Bladams13 wrote:

1st of six decanted for 3 hours. Aromas of florals, dark fruits, sweet spices, and mild funk. Sweet and sour. Leads with a dominant sweet dark fruit and spice backed up by green olive and a subtle sour funk element. Overall very pleased.

Day 2 nose and palate evolved showing more ripe dark red fruit the savory side regressed slightly. Picked up more body and length. Outstanding.

10/29/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

So good. A rocks feel to the nose with smoke, funk, tobacco, olive, blueberries, violets and anise. Tastes like black cherry, plum, iron, brine, and anise. Medium full bodied, moderate tannins, and moderate acidity. Decanted for an hour got better with additional air.

10/16/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Cassis, chocolate, leather, spice, and ash on the nose. Palate is similar with tart acidity and a modest tannic presence. This is a very food friendly offering, and IMO punches well above its price tag. Great effort and from what I recall the 13 was even more impressive.

10/16/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Well done and an excellent value.

10/16/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Not sure the that it makes one think Tempranillo, but enjoyable in a big fruit and alcohol kind of way nonetheless.

10/7/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

This needed 45 minutes in the glass to open up at dinner and was better the next night. Big fruit dominant Pinot. Wasn’t expecting to get blue fruit with the red on the nose a little rose petal, star anise and smoke as well. Medium full and silky with a mild tannins and a little heat on the back end.

9/27/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Garnet in color fading at the rim. Aromatics are quite full leading with floral notes and earth. Complimented by smoke and cinnamon. Tart acidity with moderate tannins. Medium bodied and not as full flavored as the nose would have you believe, with tart cherry, blackberry, and dusty earth filling it out.

9/20/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

Too much wine not enough notes this weekend. I really liked this. Beautiful nose bright berries, florals and spice. Palate followed suit, with ripe fruit and enough acidity to balance it out. It came across a little thin at first but filled out with air.

9/10/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

This performed better than the couple times I tasted it at the winery. Really delicious, ideally I should’ve given it more air. Unfortunately opened right before dinner and the nose took about an hour to wake up. Nice length.

8/25/2018 - Bladams13 Likes this wine:

My takeaway is about the same as Radboy’s 11/17 note. Really long on the finish. I had a bottle in 4/17 slow oxed for a couple hours and followed for 3 hours. It never reached a peak and was just starting to come around near the end. This time a wide bottom decant was singing at about 2 hours, much better result. An outstanding bottle of wine, without a doubt.