Serious New World Effort (on steroids). - Decanted 1 hours - before Thanksgiving dinner - and it deserved 3x more time.
I don't even know how this depth and concentration is possible without 200% new oak! And/or 10,000 meters of altitude AND/or dehydrating the grapes to a 1 part skin: to 1 part pulp ratio).
Each glass felt like it had the essence of entire old world wine bottle down to 5 oz. Not for the faint of heart. Next bottle of this, if not going to auction, will be put up next to a ribeye.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
3 hour decant Dark dark red Most excellent with meatloaf 1st nite and Italian 2nd nite Rich long legged Syrah now in its drinking window glad we waited on this
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 3 1/2 hrs First dinner with friends (Jack and company) at my new place. The wine showed beautifully, big but well integrated. Paired excellently with Cajun ribeye
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Massive massive wine with loads of concentration. This just overwhelms the taste buds. It is is a somewhat overwhelming state and either needs a very long decant or a lot more time in the bottle to mellow and flesh out. Black fruit, earth, roasted meats and spice. Long finish. Won’t open another for a few years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Blind Syrahs at Chevalier (Chicago, IL): Tasted blind. Wow, a massive black fruit, asphalt and pepper nose. The palate is rich, lush and loaded with liqueur-like black fruit. Pretty over the top, and no longer in my wheelhouse. Hedonistic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This is an awesome California syrah. Super intense with a layered dark fruit profile, velvety and rounded with a core of unmistakable syrah funk and perfectly integrated oak. What is amazing is that a wine this big showed no heat from alcohol. It also tasted as if it has another 5-10 years of prime drinking although I doubt it will become much more complex.
Decanted 1.5 - 2 hours. Made for a great comparison with the 2006 Chave Hermitage that was lighter in body, offered less intense fruit and lacked the velvet mouthfeel of the Seymour, but was a more complex wine with a longer finish. A clear contrast, but both are great wines.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
BYO - US wines (Trio): Very powerful and compact and jammy fruit. Even though there is lots of sweetness and alcohol the high acidity is able to keep everything in a somewhat balance. There is actually also some complexity showing nice behind all the fruit. There is a lovely floral note that impresses mixed with the vanilla and toasted notes. In my opinion, this is a sexy wine that just maybe has gone slightly overboard on the alcohol but the flavors, complexity and balance is impressive. There is lots to love and hate in this wine depending on preferences. But I love it!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
there is absolutely no mistaking this wine. Distinctive and yet still very California in style. Ripe and rich with a flavor profile that is all Alban. Consistently one of my favorites.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ridiculous nose! Filled up the room right upon opening. Great taste and finish. Dark fruits like Cherry and Berrys. Dark tea flavor with smoke. Long lovely finish. What a wine. Wow!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The best wine I've had this year, simply wonderful.
Decant and bit of time helps but was remarkable immediately and just grew more and more stunning as the evening progressed. I've also had the 06 Reva and Lorraine, both great wines worthy of the accolades, but the Seymour's...wow
Save these for special occasions.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Stunning. Tremendous concentration, great nose and long finish, but like great hermitages this wine does not at all feel heavy - it has wonderful balance. Notes of dark black fruits, roasted meats and smoke.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Marks duckhouse – Beaucastel VV, Le Pavillon & a lot of domestic wines (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): It is interesting to guess when a wine is served blind, especially in a casual dining setting. Your mind plays trick as the smell of sautéed garlic and the bottle shape make you think twice. Incredible intensity, a bit of lavender, dark jammy blue fruits and the ending ink note tells me a domestic Syrah, perhaps SQN or Saxum. RJ tells us that it is not SQN. Not that I am trying to cheat but the bottle shape is like Shafer HSS. I stick with domestic syrah but that’s about it. Big, blueberry liquor, baking spices, rock, coffee, lavender and smoke. Unctuous palate, intense sweet jammy fruit palate impression and sweet tannins a that are completely covered by the chewy sweet fruits. Still very primary and not showing any heat. Very impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Berserker Fest Friday Dinner - SQN Table (Blue Star Bistro - Chicago, IL): Olive tapenade. Black coal and rock. Different from the rest of the group. Absolutely an Alban wine. Black cherries. Very much dark spice driven covered raspberry compote. Fatty sizzling bacon grease as well. Rich and robust. Very rustic sporting low toned fruit. I find this in the Seymour's bottlings more often than the other Syrah.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another contrarian example for me to throw at those who say I do not like big new world wines. Like the Raven before it, this is simply damn good. Even bigger, black as night, huge mouthfeel, filling every crevice of the palate with the essence of syrah. Highly extracted, but hitting all the correct cylinders, one forgets criticism and just sits back and enjoys.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Color of midnight purple...nose of creme de cassis, dusty white pepper, smoked cherry, charcoal. Just a HUGE mouthful of ooozleness! Full bodied and mouth coating...yet not too heavy or cloying. Well balanced for a big boy like this...really silky and not too hot. Amazing tasty flavors of berry liqueurs, white flower perfume, dusty white pepper/graphite, cherry wood smoked meat, slight forest floor. This is the youngest Seymour's I've had...not as stanky with the tar and asphalt...more pure in fruit, yet still built to age. Super tasty stuff! Will drink well for many decades. ++pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Liked this very much, classic Alban nose with notes of curry, spices and sunday roast. Unfortunately a tiny hint of sweet corn, which is i think specific to alban's 2006s. Very long and fat in the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Massive black ink that completely coats the palate. This wine is HUGE with rich vibrant flavors but it's also extremely well balanced. Notes of blackberry fruit, tar, asphault, pepper, wood smoke, leather and charred grill. We decanted this wine for about 5 hours which I think really helped it to show well. Very firm tannins so this will age for a long time but it's beautiful now if you give it a long decant.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Popped and poured over 5 hours watching the final round of the Master's golf tournament. Black purple opaque color. Powerful and pungent nose of spice, wood smoke, asphalt, pepper and blackberry. The palate is viscous, with high glycerine showing intense fruit in a surprisingly smooth, polished and balanced delivery. The wine is indeed intense, but also pliant and ultimately very enjoyable. The finish is long with flavors that linger on the tongue. Serve at cellar temperature, as the alcohol becomes noticeable as it warms.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
12/10/2022 - VinoGeeko Likes this wine: 94 Points
Serious New World Effort (on steroids). - Decanted 1 hours - before Thanksgiving dinner - and it deserved 3x more time.
I don't even know how this depth and concentration is possible without 200% new oak! And/or 10,000 meters of altitude AND/or dehydrating the grapes to a 1 part skin: to 1 part pulp ratio).
Each glass felt like it had the essence of entire old world wine bottle down to 5 oz. Not for the faint of heart. Next bottle of this, if not going to auction, will be put up next to a ribeye.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/20/2021 - gesusser Likes this wine: 95 Points
3 hour decant
Dark dark red
Most excellent with meatloaf 1st nite and Italian 2nd nite
Rich long legged Syrah now in its drinking window glad we waited on this
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/24/2020 - redknife Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for 3 1/2 hrs
First dinner with friends (Jack and company) at my new place. The wine showed beautifully, big but well integrated. Paired excellently with Cajun ribeye
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/27/2018 - mclanew wrote: 93 Points
Massive massive wine with loads of concentration. This just overwhelms the taste buds. It is is a somewhat overwhelming state and either needs a very long decant or a lot more time in the bottle to mellow and flesh out. Black fruit, earth, roasted meats and spice. Long finish. Won’t open another for a few years.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
2/3/2018 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind (Chicago, IL): Tasted blind. So reductive. Also very jammy. Massive and backward. Not a wine I can enjoy.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/3/2018 - Nanda wrote: 90 Points
Blind Syrahs at Chevalier (Chicago, IL): Tasted blind. Wow, a massive black fruit, asphalt and pepper nose. The palate is rich, lush and loaded with liqueur-like black fruit. Pretty over the top, and no longer in my wheelhouse. Hedonistic.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/5/2018 - MV2007 Likes this wine: 98 Points
This is an awesome California syrah. Super intense with a layered dark fruit profile, velvety and rounded with a core of unmistakable syrah funk and perfectly integrated oak. What is amazing is that a wine this big showed no heat from alcohol. It also tasted as if it has another 5-10 years of prime drinking although I doubt it will become much more complex.
Decanted 1.5 - 2 hours. Made for a great comparison with the 2006 Chave Hermitage that was lighter in body, offered less intense fruit and lacked the velvet mouthfeel of the Seymour, but was a more complex wine with a longer finish. A clear contrast, but both are great wines.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
11/25/2017 - Ridgerunner Likes this wine: 95 Points
I strongly believe this wine despite its terrific quality would improve with another five years off bottle aging.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/28/2017 - canan wrote: 98 Points
BYO - US wines (Trio): Very powerful and compact and jammy fruit. Even though there is lots of sweetness and alcohol the high acidity is able to keep everything in a somewhat balance.
There is actually also some complexity showing nice behind all the fruit. There is a lovely floral note that impresses mixed with the vanilla and toasted notes. In my opinion, this is a sexy wine that just maybe has gone slightly overboard on the alcohol but the flavors, complexity and balance is impressive.
There is lots to love and hate in this wine depending on preferences. But I love it!
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
7/28/2017 - bonedocnine Likes this wine: 96 Points
there is absolutely no mistaking this wine. Distinctive and yet still very California in style. Ripe and rich with a flavor profile that is all Alban. Consistently one of my favorites.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/29/2016 - rashcar Likes this wine: 97 Points
Ridiculous nose! Filled up the room right upon opening. Great taste and finish. Dark fruits like Cherry and Berrys. Dark tea flavor with smoke. Long lovely finish. What a wine. Wow!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/11/2016 - aRobles Likes this wine: 100 Points
The best wine I've had this year, simply wonderful.
Decant and bit of time helps but was remarkable immediately and just grew more and more stunning as the evening progressed. I've also had the 06 Reva and Lorraine, both great wines worthy of the accolades, but the Seymour's...wow
Save these for special occasions.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/4/2016 - Knicksfan wrote: 97 Points
Just remarkable; fruit, tannin, yet not heavy; long finish, terrific.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/17/2016 - bonedocnine Likes this wine: 95 Points
another stunner!!!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2015 - bobwire Likes this wine: 97 Points
AWESOME
drinking great needs a solid hour of decanting
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/4/2015 - mclanew Likes this wine: 96 Points
Stunning. Tremendous concentration, great nose and long finish, but like great hermitages this wine does not at all feel heavy - it has wonderful balance. Notes of dark black fruits, roasted meats and smoke.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/19/2014 - dcwino wrote: 97 Points
Marks duckhouse – Beaucastel VV, Le Pavillon & a lot of domestic wines (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): It is interesting to guess when a wine is served blind, especially in a casual dining setting. Your mind plays trick as the smell of sautéed garlic and the bottle shape make you think twice. Incredible intensity, a bit of lavender, dark jammy blue fruits and the ending ink note tells me a domestic Syrah, perhaps SQN or Saxum. RJ tells us that it is not SQN. Not that I am trying to cheat but the bottle shape is like Shafer HSS. I stick with domestic syrah but that’s about it. Big, blueberry liquor, baking spices, rock, coffee, lavender and smoke. Unctuous palate, intense sweet jammy fruit palate impression and sweet tannins a that are completely covered by the chewy sweet fruits. Still very primary and not showing any heat. Very impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/2/2013 - Knicksfan wrote: 95 Points
Big big big. 2-hr decant. Dark fruit and highly extracted. Great
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2013 - beezer6 wrote: 95 Points
Berserker Fest Friday Dinner - SQN Table (Blue Star Bistro - Chicago, IL): Olive tapenade. Black coal and rock. Different from the rest of the group. Absolutely an Alban wine.
Black cherries. Very much dark spice driven covered raspberry compote.
Fatty sizzling bacon grease as well. Rich and robust. Very rustic sporting low toned fruit.
I find this in the Seymour's bottlings more often than the other Syrah.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/17/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: 89 Points
Chicago Berserkerfest Dinner (Blue Star Bistro - Chicago IL): Fat and hedonistic wine, well made and powerful with good balance. I just found a slightly chemical character that was difficult to get past.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/13/2013 - cadamson Likes this wine: 95 Points
Another contrarian example for me to throw at those who say I do not like big new world wines. Like the Raven before it, this is simply damn good. Even bigger, black as night, huge mouthfeel, filling every crevice of the palate with the essence of syrah. Highly extracted, but hitting all the correct cylinders, one forgets criticism and just sits back and enjoys.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/27/2012 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine: 96 Points
Color of midnight purple...nose of creme de cassis, dusty white pepper, smoked cherry, charcoal. Just a HUGE mouthful of ooozleness! Full bodied and mouth coating...yet not too heavy or cloying. Well balanced for a big boy like this...really silky and not too hot. Amazing tasty flavors of berry liqueurs, white flower perfume, dusty white pepper/graphite, cherry wood smoked meat, slight forest floor. This is the youngest Seymour's I've had...not as stanky with the tar and asphalt...more pure in fruit, yet still built to age. Super tasty stuff! Will drink well for many decades. ++pts
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/11/2012 - sumshark wrote: 94 Points
Wait several more years for next bottle or a very long decant.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/10/2012 - G_H Likes this wine: 94 Points
Liked this very much, classic Alban nose with notes of curry, spices and sunday roast. Unfortunately a tiny hint of sweet corn, which is i think specific to alban's 2006s. Very long and fat in the palate.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/25/2011 - jce733 wrote: 98 Points
Massive black ink that completely coats the palate. This wine is HUGE with rich vibrant flavors but it's also extremely well balanced. Notes of blackberry fruit, tar, asphault, pepper, wood smoke, leather and charred grill. We decanted this wine for about 5 hours which I think really helped it to show well. Very firm tannins so this will age for a long time but it's beautiful now if you give it a long decant.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
4/10/2011 - llink wrote:
Popped and poured over 5 hours watching the final round of the Master's golf tournament. Black purple opaque color. Powerful and pungent nose of spice, wood smoke, asphalt, pepper and blackberry. The palate is viscous, with high glycerine showing intense fruit in a surprisingly smooth, polished and balanced delivery. The wine is indeed intense, but also pliant and ultimately very enjoyable. The finish is long with flavors that linger on the tongue. Serve at cellar temperature, as the alcohol becomes noticeable as it warms.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment