Pop: Cork intact, well preserved with the tip evenly stained. This appears to be above average bottle craft. There was a Notable vinegar aroma on opening, this dissipated almost immediately. Color is dark garnet, opaque below the thin meniscus. Pour: strong plum and red berry notes on the nose. After 15min in the glass red berry scent is more subdued, heat is more noticeable. Fruit notes do not transfer to the palate, primary taste is mineral and (white?) pepper. After some time in the glass the heat blew off and I look forward to trying this on day two. I matched this with a rib eye and it worked well, but this is not a wine to drink on it's own. Overall first impression; this is a wine that needs to be paired with food. Drink now, I think this wine may be edging past it's prime.
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A bit non-descript. Quite peppery and simple. A bit underwhelming but I tend to prefer a different style of syrah (more on the creamy, vanilla side of things vs. black and white pepper).
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this just had no flavor ... it came across as very watered down and without structure or substance ... did not even drink a full glass and put the bottle away for vinegar
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Popped and Vinturi'd. The nose has some definite funk - some rubber and smoke. The wine seems light on it's feet, and with solid acidity - a definite welcome change from overdone CA syrah. The fruit is a bit austere, red and plummy, and the finish is nice with a hint of eucalyptus just sneaking in on the finish.
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An average grocery store wine. Like other have said, sourness on the midpalate and finish. A little too heavy on the oak for me. The heat on the finish was acceptable, but was a little distracting. We didn't hate it, but there are many other syrahs in this price range that are more appealling.
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This drinks as a complicated wine. I get that funkiness but it is still an enjoyable enough wine with some depth although I would not want to drink this all the time. I was intending to pair it with red meat but had it with chicken and pasta and it was still decent. Poured the rest of the bottle and it seemed more unrefined compared to the earlier glass that was decanted 2 hours.
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Quick note. My hopes on this were low. Fortunately reality interfered. Rich dark black-blood red. Big nose of mint, fruit and ultimately earthy, meaty. Medium to full-bodied, ripe with more rich fruit, cedar, lots of meat and mint. Nice somewhat tart finish. A bit hot but not to distraction. Still some tannin, this is good to go for the next 3-5 years.
I'm not sure why the CT notes are so low. This was a surprisingly good wine. Pretty yummy.
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Light fruit, more of an earthy / peppery scent to this one. Mild fruit through the middle, finishes peppery with a bit of heat. Not a favorite, but good QPR due to the winery's liquidation.
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This was mostly dark berries on the nose, but on the first sip it was full of bright raspberry and some alcohol heat. I definitely picked up on the white pepper cited on the label along with a hint of the lavender. The second day, after spraying in some preservative gas and re-corking, the dark berries predominated and it seemed less hot and more enjoyable.
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(375) Blackberries and vanilla oak flavors, ripe, a bit gamey. At first I liked this better, but it kind of stayed static over evening as Bourriquot developed some complexity over time. Still, not bad for a $10 half. B
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Funky gamey smell, bacon fat, herbs, toast and vanilla bouquet. A bit hollow in the middle. Shows some oaky yogurt and toast flavors. Strange bitterness on the finish. Some heat on nose and finish. Medium high acid, healthy level of tannin. Seems to have a serious, ambitious aromatic profile, but too much oak and bitterness on the palate. 80 points. (Cross post from T Block listing of this wine in CT DB as they are the same bottling.)
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1st night: Powerful smells. Ethanol with dark fruit and a strong, earthy, musty odor like Oregon pinot noir, mushrooms, or bacon. Silky smooth texture. More dark fruit. Peppery? finish. Interesting... 2nd night: Hey, this really mellowed out. It was pretty hard core yesterday, but now it's quite nice. I wonder if this means it would mellow in the bottle if cellared for a few years...? Will have to revisit this circa 2012. :-)
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The initial nose was very fruity with some oak undertones. The flavor was sour, very oakey with some vegetal undertones. Decanting for two hours did not help at all. Will try a vinturi for the next bottle. If that fails, these will sit for a few years before trying another.
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Deep almost-opaque violet-tinged burgundy. Complex nose that is savoury (gamey/meaty), earthy, leathery - with some dark plum and blackberry fruit. Lovely!
Bright, tart attack shows excellent (and surprising) acidity; the dark fruit/berries are very juicy, and quite present without being jammy or fruit-bomby - the fruit and acidity reminds me a lot of Petite Sirah. Mid-palate is more characteristically Syrah, deep and earthy and woody, though not overoaked - it does have that bit of dullness in the middle that I find typical of Syrah. The finish is long and smooth but bright; little hits of black pepper and tart berries pop as the wine fades away.
I popped and poured. This has good tannins and structure, but it's not so intense that it really requires decanting, and I think it's drinking beautifully right now. 88-89 pts. I'll re-evaluate my rating when I drink the rest of the bottle in a couple of days.
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Way too tight for pop-and-pour. Much better after vinturification, with aromas of toffee, blackberries, and sweet spice. On the palette, interesting notes of dark fruit, chocolate and leather, with a hint of bacon. However, still a bit tight, sour and out of balance - should improve in a year or so, or perhaps with more time to breathe. I'll report back if it's significantly different tomorrow.
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A fruit forward Syrah. More red fruits on the palate as opposed to blue fruit. I do get a little spice there, but not as much as many Syrah's. It drinks really smooth, with a short-to-medium finish. This is good, but not exceptional.
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Pop and poured. Lavendar nose w/ no hints of spice. If it were a blind tasting, I would have a hard time discerning this was a syrah (I should say a Cal syrah). More of a Rhone style syrah.
Paired well with food. Tasted it w/ some sliders and the wine really accented the spice and peppers in the burger. A simple wine (w/ not much complexity) w/ great qpr.
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3/5/2017 - mdfuller Does not like this wine: 85 Points
First night it was very sharp ... hardly drinkable.
The second night was much better - really opened up - but still not the better
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11/1/2015 - Wicked Panda wrote: 80 Points
Poor cella ring and wasn't a great wine to start
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3/7/2014 - Loughlin101 wrote: 80 Points
Suffering through this one. Wasn't great a few years ago. Hasn't improved with time.
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2/26/2014 - p2002 wrote: 84 Points
Pop: Cork intact, well preserved with the tip evenly stained. This appears to be above average bottle craft. There was a Notable vinegar aroma on opening, this dissipated almost immediately.
Color is dark garnet, opaque below the thin meniscus.
Pour: strong plum and red berry notes on the nose. After 15min in the glass red berry scent is more subdued, heat is more noticeable. Fruit notes do not transfer to the palate, primary taste is mineral and (white?) pepper. After some time in the glass the heat blew off and I look forward to trying this on day two. I matched this with a rib eye and it worked well, but this is not a wine to drink on it's own.
Overall first impression; this is a wine that needs to be paired with food. Drink now, I think this wine may be edging past it's prime.
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1/12/2014 - John McCabe wrote: 88 Points
A bit non-descript. Quite peppery and simple. A bit underwhelming but I tend to prefer a different style of syrah (more on the creamy, vanilla side of things vs. black and white pepper).
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12/16/2012 - mdfuller Does not like this wine: 85 Points
this just had no flavor ... it came across as very watered down and without structure or substance ... did not even drink a full glass and put the bottle away for vinegar
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5/5/2012 - DaleW wrote:
375 ml
Ripe dark berry fruit, leather and a touch of barnyard, a touch clipped. B-
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11/26/2011 - wirelesswine wrote: 89 Points
Consistent with prior notes
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8/6/2011 - boatman72 wrote: 85 Points
drank just ok
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5/12/2011 - wirelesswine wrote: 89 Points
Popped and Vinturi'd. The nose has some definite funk - some rubber and smoke. The wine seems light on it's feet, and with solid acidity - a definite welcome change from overdone CA syrah. The fruit is a bit austere, red and plummy, and the finish is nice with a hint of eucalyptus just sneaking in on the finish.
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2/18/2011 - balkmr@hotmail.com wrote: 78 Points
An average grocery store wine. Like other have said, sourness on the midpalate and finish. A little too heavy on the oak for me. The heat on the finish was acceptable, but was a little distracting. We didn't hate it, but there are many other syrahs in this price range that are more appealling.
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12/13/2010 - DaleW wrote:
Dark berry fruit, smoke and a little whiff of barnyard. Midbodied, a spicy edge, not very long. Enough tannin to go a bit further. B/B-
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10/27/2010 - boatman72 wrote: 84 Points
Some spice, smoke, and stone fruit, but it turns sour on the midpalate and a little heat on the finish. Not very complex
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9/11/2010 - JJHACamp wrote: 87 Points
still some fruit..smokiness and leather notes..
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8/21/2010 - ckeilah wrote: 84 Points
Funky nose on opening that faded away, revealing a nice, not too big, Syrah. Fruit was muted but present.
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8/13/2010 - midai wrote: 83 Points
This drinks as a complicated wine. I get that funkiness but it is still an enjoyable enough wine with some depth although I would not want to drink this all the time. I was intending to pair it with red meat but had it with chicken and pasta and it was still decent. Poured the rest of the bottle and it seemed more unrefined compared to the earlier glass that was decanted 2 hours.
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6/11/2010 - ChrisBeacham wrote: 90 Points
Quick note. My hopes on this were low. Fortunately reality interfered. Rich dark black-blood red. Big nose of mint, fruit and ultimately earthy, meaty. Medium to full-bodied, ripe with more rich fruit, cedar, lots of meat and mint. Nice somewhat tart finish. A bit hot but not to distraction. Still some tannin, this is good to go for the next 3-5 years.
I'm not sure why the CT notes are so low. This was a surprisingly good wine. Pretty yummy.
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5/7/2010 - thumperstain wrote: 82 Points
Light fruit, more of an earthy / peppery scent to this one. Mild fruit through the middle, finishes peppery with a bit of heat. Not a favorite, but good QPR due to the winery's liquidation.
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4/29/2010 - K is for Kate wrote: 88 Points
This was mostly dark berries on the nose, but on the first sip it was full of bright raspberry and some alcohol heat. I definitely picked up on the white pepper cited on the label along with a hint of the lavender. The second day, after spraying in some preservative gas and re-corking, the dark berries predominated and it seemed less hot and more enjoyable.
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4/25/2010 - DaleW wrote:
(375) Blackberries and vanilla oak flavors, ripe, a bit gamey. At first I liked this better, but it kind of stayed static over evening as Bourriquot developed some complexity over time. Still, not bad for a $10 half. B
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3/28/2010 - jdabrowski1027 wrote: 88 Points
smoky and barnyard nose, old world syrah. different for cali. Good QPR
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3/6/2010 - klezman wrote: 87 Points
Earthy but still with some fruit. Spicy and a little smoke. Could use a while longer to age, I think.
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3/6/2010 - Cabfrancophile wrote:
Funky gamey smell, bacon fat, herbs, toast and vanilla bouquet. A bit hollow in the middle. Shows some oaky yogurt and toast flavors. Strange bitterness on the finish. Some heat on nose and finish. Medium high acid, healthy level of tannin. Seems to have a serious, ambitious aromatic profile, but too much oak and bitterness on the palate. 80 points. (Cross post from T Block listing of this wine in CT DB as they are the same bottling.)
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2/10/2010 - ckeilah wrote: 88 Points
1st night: Powerful smells. Ethanol with dark fruit and a strong, earthy, musty odor like Oregon pinot noir, mushrooms, or bacon. Silky smooth texture. More dark fruit. Peppery? finish. Interesting...
2nd night: Hey, this really mellowed out. It was pretty hard core yesterday, but now it's quite nice. I wonder if this means it would mellow in the bottle if cellared for a few years...? Will have to revisit this circa 2012. :-)
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2/2/2010 - raptor114 wrote: 72 Points
The initial nose was very fruity with some oak undertones. The flavor was sour, very oakey with some vegetal undertones. Decanting for two hours did not help at all. Will try a vinturi for the next bottle. If that fails, these will sit for a few years before trying another.
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2/1/2010 - dsm0721 wrote: flawed
Bottle tasted of vinegar and had a signifigant non pleasing bite. Hope the other bottle is better
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1/27/2010 - fairnymph wrote: 89 Points
Deep almost-opaque violet-tinged burgundy. Complex nose that is savoury (gamey/meaty), earthy, leathery - with some dark plum and blackberry fruit. Lovely!
Bright, tart attack shows excellent (and surprising) acidity; the dark fruit/berries are very juicy, and quite present without being jammy or fruit-bomby - the fruit and acidity reminds me a lot of Petite Sirah. Mid-palate is more characteristically Syrah, deep and earthy and woody, though not overoaked - it does have that bit of dullness in the middle that I find typical of Syrah. The finish is long and smooth but bright; little hits of black pepper and tart berries pop as the wine fades away.
I popped and poured. This has good tannins and structure, but it's not so intense that it really requires decanting, and I think it's drinking beautifully right now. 88-89 pts. I'll re-evaluate my rating when I drink the rest of the bottle in a couple of days.
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1/27/2010 - RossR wrote: 82 Points
I don't hate it, but I won't remember it.
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1/22/2010 - horseman612 wrote: 86 Points
Way too tight for pop-and-pour. Much better after vinturification, with aromas of toffee, blackberries, and sweet spice. On the palette, interesting notes of dark fruit, chocolate and leather, with a hint of bacon. However, still a bit tight, sour and out of balance - should improve in a year or so, or perhaps with more time to breathe. I'll report back if it's significantly different tomorrow.
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1/13/2010 - woodwardcellar wrote: 84 Points
A fruit forward Syrah. More red fruits on the palate as opposed to blue fruit. I do get a little spice there, but not as much as many Syrah's. It drinks really smooth, with a short-to-medium finish. This is good, but not exceptional.
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12/20/2009 - KDutti wrote: 82 Points
Pop and poured. Lavendar nose w/ no hints of spice. If it were a blind tasting, I would have a hard time discerning this was a syrah (I should say a Cal syrah). More of a Rhone style syrah.
Paired well with food. Tasted it w/ some sliders and the wine really accented the spice and peppers in the burger. A simple wine (w/ not much complexity) w/ great qpr.
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