Last tasted three times in 2016, much different now. Our last bottle of this vintage. It's now ruby-garnet, slightly translucent, slight amber edge. Medium intensity aromas, complex and elegant, of black cherries and plums, none of the roasted meat "funk" of so many of Baron's syrahs. Soft, round, medium-bodied flavors to match the aromas, very elegant, almost seems like a mature St. Emilion, though obviously not merlot or cab franc! Definitely fully mature, should be consumed soon. I preferred it several years ago. For Cayuse's softer syrahs, like Cerise and Chamberlin, I think I like them best in the 6-9 year range rather than this old...individual taste, for sure. Addendum: this was better the second night, seemed to put on weight, intensity and complexity, especially black cherry notes. I raised the score from 93 to 95. Ric
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Soil to glass transfer wine! Beautiful florals on the nose as well as smoke, leather, roasted meat, tobacco, espresso; incredible palate of distinct black olive tapenade, iron, cigar box, chocolate, and dark rich mineral earth. Such a complex and undeniably beautiful wine, perfectly ready to drink now. Like drinking a painting.
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Lovely, lighter, this is getting a little burgundian. Still ripe with expressive cherry and blackberry nose, less meat and smoke and more underbrush and dried fruits. Palate is more Syrah with ripe sweet blackberry fruit, juicy with fine tannins and a decent long finish. Not the best Cayuse but still excellent nonetheless. (Note from second night open)(I rate based on quality and value)
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Dark red color, needed at least 2 hrs to develop a deep earty dark berry nose, dense luscious dark berry fruit, meaty and quite savory, long finish. Long long finish. Tried to save some to try the next day but that didn't work! Delicious wine with a prime rib roast.
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I'm still loving this wine. The right amount of stank, with good wine making and the WA / Cayuse Syrah vibe which is so unique. Drinking well and more years left, but I don't think its going to get better.
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Always fun to get to do some Cayuse with some age. This was one of the allocated bottles for some friends. It’s got a bit of bacon and gamey and a bit of spicy. Very juicy. Drinking nicely if still quite young.
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Rhone Rumble w/ JKW; 1/22/2021-1/23/2021 (Old Home of Woodward): I got this one right and gave it the same score as 15 mos ago. The hint of C-funk gave it away. Black cherry, black plum, leather, grilled meat and underbrush. This bottle was a recent ex-chateau arrival and could've gone another 5 years.
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A wild and gamey nose underpinned by dark fruit. The palate is sweet and concentrated yet balanced. Notes of black cherry, blackberry, dried meat, pepper and forest floor. A big and delightful wine.
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Nice lazy day wine, blueberry and strawberry scents with a hint of gravel, full and softened, with dark berries, plum sauce, herbs and earth on the palate, delicious, seductive, complete with a nice acidic backbone, drink now
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A love the Cayuse stank and this had it in plenty. Big wine, still drinking well - got a few years left. Big fruit, with that WA and Cayuse profile which is so different than other Syrah. A hedonist's drink.
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Ten year CdP and Bordeaux retro tasting (with ringers). Hosted by Grinner.
CdP Flight One - Wine Two:
One of few ten year old+ Cayuse bottlings I have tasted that did not feature large mammal whiz and poo. As such, it put my mind to the Old World. I guessed Gigondas, on account of the absence of CdP-like richness and the presence of firm, metallic ore-like tannins.
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The Annual Lyon 10 Year Retrospective (Chateau Lyon): I liked this blind better now than 3.5 years ago (unblinded). Both times the Cayuse Funk was restrained. Still had more black fruit, olive and pepper than most CdP's. I guessed correctly. 90 on day 2. Now-2021. Last time I said, "Now-2019", that's also reasonable!
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not the usual intensity of Caysue, but this is a very well balanced and tasty Syrah with nice character - some meat, soy, leather, less of the smoke and bacon than previous bottle - we'll see if it gains complexity with air overnight. Tonight just excellent rather than outstanding.
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Tasted initially a half hour after decanting. It was still a light tight but opened up beautifully over a couple of hours. Opulent and delicious. Black cherry, spice, cedar and olive. In a good spot now but plenty of life left in this one.
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Beautiful wine. It's almost a rinse and repeat with the Cayuse Syrahs - they show much similar character and are so consistent. This was another one. Still looks young. Full bodied but not overpoweringly so, nicely balanced with juicy acidity and mild tannins to balance the meaty, smoky, bacony goodness that was the palate. There is some smooth blackcherry and blackberry fruit, but the secondary notes are so pronounced they are almost front stage. Just a lovely wine.
Had a really nice 2007 Cote Rotie a couple weeks ago, this basic Cayuse is easily the equal. Drinking super well right now.
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Probably the oldest En Cerise I've had. Still, it developed rather slowly on day 1, where the nose was the star of the show by the end of the night. The palate showed reticent Cayuse funk; this offering is the least brooding amongst its stable of syrah sisters. Day 2 brought out the iodine & ash, and I could tell by the end of the bottle it was about to reverse course & head downhill. Lovely wine, but drink them now.
Long time lover of Cayuse who loves the funk. Have had incredible En Cerise but this wasn’t one. While usually En Cerise is more fruit forward than earthy, this had no earthy notes at all and was all fruit on nose and palate. Not a significant finish. Not jammy thank God. Fruit was very good, mainly dark flavors, but there was not complexity. One bottle left, will probably drink up sooner than later. Sorry Cristophe
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Stunning Cayuse at peak. Roasted meat and blueberry pie on the nose, deep, lush, focused black fruit and licorice on the palate, very long finish. Popped and poured with charcuterie.
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Very French in style and polar opposite from the Alban Reva. Saline, savory, oyster shell, and a touch of iodine/band-aid on the finish. Not all palates would like this wine as it is more of an intellectual wine tasting experience that requires you to peek back the layers. Seems like this has more Viognier in the blend.
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We haven't had much Cayuse, but here is how I would describe the "funk" on the nose everyone talks about: a fatty piece of chewy, salty, peppery salami! That describes 80% of the funky nose. Digging deeper: salted curd meats. Olives. Anise. Earth.
On the nose, the funk is distant in the profile, which centers around very earthy, round blue and black fruit. Blackberry, pepper, savory earth. There's actually some "salt and pepper" happening here. A salty component is kind of fascinating but it's identifiable here.
Truly, Cerise is the only label with this salted meat profile that we've ever had, and it's a very unique and interesting thing. I am guessing it is a big reason for its enthusiastic following. Not quite sure if it's totally for me, but I certainly enjoyed this bottle and will be interested to open some more of my Cerise bottles.
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Popped and poured at Nostrana for Kelsey's birthday. Lovely nose with only a touch of the "Cayuse Funk" at first. Cherry fruit, grilled meat, pepper, and some plum. After an hour or so, the funk came out, and it was a glorious thing. Drinking really well right now, so I'm going to assume this one is very near peak. Drink now - 2020.
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Dark garnet, opaque, with no signs of browning. Immediate pronounced aromas of charred wood, black fruits, plums, mocha, pepper, quite complex. High glycerin, very viscous. Full-bodied flavors but perfectly balanced, tannins in the background. Black fruits with earth, hint of anise. A bit high on the alcohol. Very long finish, with anise becoming a bit more pronounced. En Cerise is one of my favorites of Baron's syrahs, always a great balance of power and elegance. This is fully mature but should easily hold another few years. Ric
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J & K Anniversary Wine Night (Joe's Bar and Grill): PNP, this wine has an immediate nose once in the glass, just swirling it 2 feet away from your schnoz gave up the first impressions black fruit, plum, earth, leather, and sangre de toro. A smidge of "Cayuse Funk" showed up later. Nice depth and complexity on the palate where it added a touch of pepper to the layers of fruit. Now-2019.
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Deep, dark garnet, completely opaque. Aromas moderately pronounced, of blackberries, dark plums, earth, roasted meat, showing some complexity. Extremely viscous, with very slow "legs". Flavors take a while to build on the palate, but become very thick, rich, dark, and mouth-coating, with some licorice and some bitterness after 30 seconds, which persists in the aftertaste, which is long. I don't like it as much as some of the other syrahs, but I'd just give it another year before trying another, to see if some of the bitterness resolves. Ric
We drank it in the middle of it window, it was smooth and went well with the dinner of beef at Bateau The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are slow. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like black currant (cassis) and black pepper.
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Dark garnet with hints of violet, opaque, and dense color. The smells are charred smoke, toast, blackberry, and dark jolly rancher. The tastes are hoisin, dark fruit, tar, espresso, and peppery sweet spice. The tannins are sweet and the finish is long.
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used coravin and tasted a couple of 1 oz. samples. very interesting- paler in color than I had expected and a little 'lighter' than expected. on exposure to air, smell went from funky, to slight perfume/fruit smell, to slight meaty smell. taste sort of the same. long finish, very tannic, and hi etoh!
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A good civilized Cayuse. Raspberries, blackberries, cherries, but no funk in sight on this bottle unfortunately. Still, the wine delivers with a complex and deep palate, pure fruit, and a smooth velvety finish.
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Sat in the decanter for 2 hrs at cellar temp. Nose of salted meat, veggies, rose, pepper, red and blue fruits. Palate of red mature red fruit, fresh herbs, salted cured meat, uplifting tropical fruit note, and ash. Paired perfectly with lamb stew.
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Tasted blind. Ruby - garnet, showing some signs of aging. The nose is clean, medium (+) in intensity, with aromas of tar, menthol, burnt match, black fruit, plum, earth, coffee, dark chocolate. The nose is developed. The palate is dry, consistent with the nose, with medium acidity, medium (+) tannins and medium (+) to high alcohol (14.6%). There's black fruit and licorice on the medium (+) long finish. This is full-bodied red has medium (+) flavor intensity. It is drinking well now, but may benefit from another 5 years of aging for it all to become even better integrated. A little pricey, but a great example of how complex Washington wines can be.
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This is a layered and rich wine full of dark fruit and cola favors. The finish lasts for about 35 sec and the only negative might be the slight bitterness or tartness but that also might be something that holds this wine in balance. Ate with roasted veggies and rotisserie chicken.
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This was outstanding, but I thought just a shade less so than En Chamberlin and Cailloux, because it seemed just a bit more closed and tight than those. It may just need more time to fully open. Deep inky garnet, completely opaque. The nose took awhile to open, then was slightly less pronounced than the others. Qualitatively much the same, though, with dark fruits, French oak, smoke, earthy notes, all typical of Cayuse syrahs. Big mouth-coating flavors of rich syrah, perfectly balanced, with a very long but slightly hot aftertaste and just a bit of a "bite" on the back of the tongue. Interesting that most people think of this as a Washington wine, but the vineyard and winery are actually in Oregon! I'd let this wine sit another 1-2 years to let it open more, and drink En Chamberlin and Cailloux of the same vintage sooner. Ric
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There are wines that are good, and then there are wines that are really good. This was one of the latter. Bright fruit, meat, spice, and lots of tapenade. Long finish. Tannins were noticeable as the wine warmed; think this has many years of life left.
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Popped and slow o'ed for an hour. The one bottling of Cayuse that I have the least amount of experience with is the En Cerise. It's been on my wishlist for a few years but can't seem to get an offering. This wine certainly lives up to its name as it bursts at the seams with bright cherry fruit. That cherry fruit had a nice interplay going with some chinese five spice, woodsmoke, and natural earth. Not as much depth as the 08 but possesses a great purity of fruit with a polished feel. Really good bottle of wine. 93 pts.
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Consumed at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort. Amazing stuff. I can't write like the critics but tons of complexity with a distinct smoky meat flavor. The finish went on-and-on. Glad I had the opportunity to sample. If scoring 94-96.
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This spent 2 hours chillin' in the cellar in a decanter. Intoxicating nose of red fruit, olive, tar, cigar ash, smoked sandalwood, meat, Five-spice, and vegetable broth. Fairly clean palate of bright red fruit, salted meat, white pepper, earth, and cinnamon. Delish with lamb chops with olive tapenade. Drinking well after the decant, but needs a few years for the mid to transition to the long finish.
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An incredibly tasty and bold wine. This wine provided a journey from jammy blueberries, to a bouquet of violets and jasmine, to a thick meaty beast. It had a little bit of heat towards the end which leads me to believe this could continue to mature in the cellar for a few years even though I thoroughly enjoyed it in its youth.
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Really amazing texture, so velvety. Classic Cayuse flavor profile, smoked ham, strawberry and rainier cherry. Not super complex but long finish that is very pleasant. Good stuff
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Rich, absolutely delicious, full-bodied blackberry fruit with loads of gamey, black olive, licorice, and earthy flavors, superb structure, great depth, beautiful texture, long finish, very accessible, not sure if Cayuse gets any better than this wine, usually I prefer the Armada or the Bionic Frog but this is just too good
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Too young, but promising. Funky earth and mushroom, along with dark fruit, on the nose. Structured and tight on the palate, with a good finish. Probably fantastic in a couple years, right now only hinting at what may be.
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Barrel sample. Finally put this wine on my wishlist and am glad I did. Another wine that I think is improving with each successive vintage. Deep nose of bright cherries, moist earth, mushroom, and a bit of pork. Very clean palate of cherry liqueur, meat, dark fruit, and a nice undercurrent of minerality. I think this wine will be terrific in 3-5 years. 92-94pts.
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barrel sample at release party; The first sign of the big funk showed up on nose and palate. Earth, cherries, raspberries/kirsh, saline, beets, light mint and smoke. Some fun red kookaburra licorice on the palate helped balance out the funk. A little shy right now but felt like it has lots of potential. Hold for at least 5 years.
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barrel sample tasted at release party nose: sweet licorice, ash palate: very precise, very clean. unfortunately my notes run out there, but I remember this as one of my top 4 of the day.
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Barrel sample at Private Release Weekend. This wine had flavors of dark cherries, smoked meat and a light mint note. This was a well made wine, but not among my favorites that we tasted today.
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3/19/2024 - Ron Slye wrote: flawed
Corked! Ugh. Luckily the 2008 En Chamberlin was singing.
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12/23/2022 - danielbleier Likes this wine: 95 Points
Really singing - black olive counteracts the blackberry and plum notes...slightly meaty and earthy undertones to remind you that this is from Cayuse.
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3/9/2022 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 95 Points
Last tasted three times in 2016, much different now. Our last bottle of this vintage. It's now ruby-garnet, slightly translucent, slight amber edge. Medium intensity aromas, complex and elegant, of black cherries and plums, none of the roasted meat "funk" of so many of Baron's syrahs. Soft, round, medium-bodied flavors to match the aromas, very elegant, almost seems like a mature St. Emilion, though obviously not merlot or cab franc! Definitely fully mature, should be consumed soon. I preferred it several years ago. For Cayuse's softer syrahs, like Cerise and Chamberlin, I think I like them best in the 6-9 year range rather than this old...individual taste, for sure.
Addendum: this was better the second night, seemed to put on weight, intensity and complexity, especially black cherry notes. I raised the score from 93 to 95.
Ric
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1/13/2022 - danicaradovanov@gmail.com Likes this wine: 96 Points
Soil to glass transfer wine! Beautiful florals on the nose as well as smoke, leather, roasted meat, tobacco, espresso; incredible palate of distinct black olive tapenade, iron, cigar box, chocolate, and dark rich mineral earth. Such a complex and undeniably beautiful wine, perfectly ready to drink now. Like drinking a painting.
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12/8/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wonderful mineral and earthy aromas with layers of complexity on the silky ripe palate with a long finish.
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11/27/2021 - thebonnydooner wrote: 91 Points
Lovely, lighter, this is getting a little burgundian. Still ripe with expressive cherry and blackberry nose, less meat and smoke and more underbrush and dried fruits. Palate is more Syrah with ripe sweet blackberry fruit, juicy with fine tannins and a decent long finish. Not the best Cayuse but still excellent nonetheless. (Note from second night open)(I rate based on quality and value)
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11/25/2021 - Schwarzer Hund Likes this wine:
Dark red color, needed at least 2 hrs to develop a deep earty dark berry nose, dense luscious dark berry fruit, meaty and quite savory, long finish. Long long finish. Tried to save some to try the next day but that didn't work! Delicious wine with a prime rib roast.
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10/7/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
As delicious as the previous bottle!
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5/15/2021 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar to prior note after 90 min double decant, so Cote Rotie! Outstanding & ready to drink, no rush
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5/15/2021 - mlawren1 wrote: 94 Points
Rich and chewy. Dark plums and currants give way to minerals and earth.
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2/21/2021 - Winevestor Likes this wine: 94 Points
I'm still loving this wine. The right amount of stank, with good wine making and the WA / Cayuse Syrah vibe which is so unique. Drinking well and more years left, but I don't think its going to get better.
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2/13/2021 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Always fun to get to do some Cayuse with some age. This was one of the allocated bottles for some friends. It’s got a bit of bacon and gamey and a bit of spicy. Very juicy. Drinking nicely if still quite young.
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2/7/2021 - Radboy wrote: 95 Points
Fabulous wine, this is holding up well.
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1/22/2021 - Grinner wrote: 94 Points
Rhone Rumble w/ JKW; 1/22/2021-1/23/2021 (Old Home of Woodward): I got this one right and gave it the same score as 15 mos ago. The hint of C-funk gave it away. Black cherry, black plum, leather, grilled meat and underbrush. This bottle was a recent ex-chateau arrival and could've gone another 5 years.
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1/1/2021 - A.Hansen Likes this wine: 94 Points
A wild and gamey nose underpinned by dark fruit. The palate is sweet and concentrated yet balanced. Notes of black cherry, blackberry, dried meat, pepper and forest floor. A big and delightful wine.
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1/1/2021 - whits wrote: 90 Points
Nice lazy day wine, blueberry and strawberry scents with a hint of gravel, full and softened, with dark berries, plum sauce, herbs and earth on the palate, delicious, seductive, complete with a nice acidic backbone, drink now
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12/25/2020 - redzins Likes this wine:
Decanted for 2 hours while cooking dinner for Christmas. I would drink this wine within the next year or so.
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11/15/2020 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Similar to prior notes after a 3 hr. double decant (forgot about it...); outstanding & ready to drink
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11/9/2020 - Winevestor Likes this wine: 93 Points
A love the Cayuse stank and this had it in plenty. Big wine, still drinking well - got a few years left. Big fruit, with that WA and Cayuse profile which is so different than other Syrah. A hedonist's drink.
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3/12/2020 - tantotinto wrote: 94 Points
Our last bottle. Still going strong.
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1/11/2020 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar to prior note after 90 min double decant; outstanding, drink or hold
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11/8/2019 - Motz wrote: 93 Points
Ten year CdP and Bordeaux retro tasting (with ringers). Hosted by Grinner.
CdP Flight One - Wine Two:
One of few ten year old+ Cayuse bottlings I have tasted that did not feature large mammal whiz and poo. As such, it put my mind to the Old World. I guessed Gigondas, on account of the absence of CdP-like richness and the presence of firm, metallic ore-like tannins.
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11/2/2019 - Grinner wrote: 94 Points
The Annual Lyon 10 Year Retrospective (Chateau Lyon): I liked this blind better now than 3.5 years ago (unblinded). Both times the Cayuse Funk was restrained. Still had more black fruit, olive and pepper than most CdP's. I guessed correctly. 90 on day 2. Now-2021. Last time I said, "Now-2019", that's also reasonable!
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10/21/2019 - jsmorris707 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Double decanted for 90 min, deep ruby, dark fruit with a touch of bacon, no Cayuse funk, med. tannins, long finish; outstanding, drink or hold
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8/24/2019 - thebonnydooner wrote: 90 Points
not the usual intensity of Caysue, but this is a very well balanced and tasty Syrah with nice character - some meat, soy, leather, less of the smoke and bacon than previous bottle - we'll see if it gains complexity with air overnight. Tonight just excellent rather than outstanding.
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8/6/2019 - tantotinto wrote: 94 Points
Tasted initially a half hour after decanting. It was still a light tight but opened up beautifully over a couple of hours. Opulent and delicious. Black cherry, spice, cedar and olive. In a good spot now but plenty of life left in this one.
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6/29/2019 - thebonnydooner wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful wine. It's almost a rinse and repeat with the Cayuse Syrahs - they show much similar character and are so consistent. This was another one. Still looks young. Full bodied but not overpoweringly so, nicely balanced with juicy acidity and mild tannins to balance the meaty, smoky, bacony goodness that was the palate. There is some smooth blackcherry and blackberry fruit, but the secondary notes are so pronounced they are almost front stage. Just a lovely wine.
Had a really nice 2007 Cote Rotie a couple weeks ago, this basic Cayuse is easily the equal. Drinking super well right now.
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5/5/2019 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wonderful mineral and earthy aromas with layers of complexity on the silky palate with a long finish. Killer Syrah!
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2/8/2019 - fitchbuck Likes this wine: 95 Points
Probably the oldest En Cerise I've had. Still, it developed rather slowly on day 1, where the nose was the star of the show by the end of the night. The palate showed reticent Cayuse funk; this offering is the least brooding amongst its stable of syrah sisters. Day 2 brought out the iodine & ash, and I could tell by the end of the bottle it was about to reverse course & head downhill. Lovely wine, but drink them now.
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2/18/2018 - perlasteve wrote: 89 Points
Long time lover of Cayuse who loves the funk. Have had incredible En Cerise but this wasn’t one. While usually En Cerise is more fruit forward than earthy, this had no earthy notes at all and was all fruit on nose and palate. Not a significant finish. Not jammy thank God. Fruit was very good, mainly dark flavors, but there was not complexity. One bottle left, will probably drink up sooner than later. Sorry Cristophe
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1/3/2018 - Quiet Lion Likes this wine: 96 Points
Stunning Cayuse at peak. Roasted meat and blueberry pie on the nose, deep, lush, focused black fruit and licorice on the palate, very long finish. Popped and poured with charcuterie.
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12/23/2017 - Francophile1 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very French in style and polar opposite from the Alban Reva. Saline, savory, oyster shell, and a touch of iodine/band-aid on the finish. Not all palates would like this wine as it is more of an intellectual wine tasting experience that requires you to peek back the layers. Seems like this has more Viognier in the blend.
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9/23/2017 - WineGold wrote: 94 Points
We haven't had much Cayuse, but here is how I would describe the "funk" on the nose everyone talks about: a fatty piece of chewy, salty, peppery salami! That describes 80% of the funky nose. Digging deeper: salted curd meats. Olives. Anise. Earth.
On the nose, the funk is distant in the profile, which centers around very earthy, round blue and black fruit. Blackberry, pepper, savory earth. There's actually some "salt and pepper" happening here. A salty component is kind of fascinating but it's identifiable here.
Truly, Cerise is the only label with this salted meat profile that we've ever had, and it's a very unique and interesting thing. I am guessing it is a big reason for its enthusiastic following. Not quite sure if it's totally for me, but I certainly enjoyed this bottle and will be interested to open some more of my Cerise bottles.
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7/30/2016 - RPerro Likes this wine: 94 Points
Popped and poured at Nostrana for Kelsey's birthday. Lovely nose with only a touch of the "Cayuse Funk" at first. Cherry fruit, grilled meat, pepper, and some plum. After an hour or so, the funk came out, and it was a glorious thing. Drinking really well right now, so I'm going to assume this one is very near peak. Drink now - 2020.
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7/23/2016 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 97 Points
Dark garnet, opaque, with no signs of browning. Immediate pronounced aromas of charred wood, black fruits, plums, mocha, pepper, quite complex. High glycerin, very viscous. Full-bodied flavors but perfectly balanced, tannins in the background. Black fruits with earth, hint of anise. A bit high on the alcohol. Very long finish, with anise becoming a bit more pronounced. En Cerise is one of my favorites of Baron's syrahs, always a great balance of power and elegance. This is fully mature but should easily hold another few years.
Ric
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5/28/2016 - Grinner wrote: 93 Points
J & K Anniversary Wine Night (Joe's Bar and Grill): PNP, this wine has an immediate nose once in the glass, just swirling it 2 feet away from your schnoz gave up the first impressions black fruit, plum, earth, leather, and sangre de toro. A smidge of "Cayuse Funk" showed up later. Nice depth and complexity on the palate where it added a touch of pepper to the layers of fruit. Now-2019.
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4/14/2016 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep, dark garnet, completely opaque. Aromas moderately pronounced, of blackberries, dark plums, earth, roasted meat, showing some complexity. Extremely viscous, with very slow "legs". Flavors take a while to build on the palate, but become very thick, rich, dark, and mouth-coating, with some licorice and some bitterness after 30 seconds, which persists in the aftertaste, which is long. I don't like it as much as some of the other syrahs, but I'd just give it another year before trying another, to see if some of the bitterness resolves.
Ric
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3/26/2016 - drscholl Likes this wine: 95 Points
We drank it in the middle of it window, it was smooth and went well with the dinner of beef at Bateau
The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are slow. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like black currant (cassis) and black pepper.
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11/4/2015 - hackey37 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark garnet with hints of violet, opaque, and dense color. The smells are charred smoke, toast, blackberry, and dark jolly rancher. The tastes are hoisin, dark fruit, tar, espresso, and peppery sweet spice. The tannins are sweet and the finish is long.
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9/26/2015 - malbec cat wrote:
used coravin and tasted a couple of 1 oz. samples. very interesting- paler in color than I had expected and a little 'lighter' than expected. on exposure to air, smell went from funky, to slight perfume/fruit smell, to slight meaty smell. taste sort of the same. long finish, very tannic, and hi etoh!
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8/7/2015 - ron m wrote:
A good civilized Cayuse. Raspberries, blackberries, cherries, but no funk in sight on this bottle unfortunately. Still, the wine delivers with a complex and deep palate, pure fruit, and a smooth velvety finish.
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4/19/2015 - Vinsant Likes this wine:
Sat in the decanter for 2 hrs at cellar temp. Nose of salted meat, veggies, rose, pepper, red and blue fruits. Palate of red mature red fruit, fresh herbs, salted cured meat, uplifting tropical fruit note, and ash. Paired perfectly with lamb stew.
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3/22/2015 - redzins Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark red. Aromas of raspberry, blueberry, and a hint of spice. Raspberry jam flavors with hints of savory meat. A long finish that goes on and on.
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2/11/2015 - calodo2011 wrote: 94 Points
Maritana Grille - 2.11.2015
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1/19/2015 - TannicBeast Likes this wine: 90 Points
Tasted blind. Ruby - garnet, showing some signs of aging. The nose is clean, medium (+) in intensity, with aromas of tar, menthol, burnt match, black fruit, plum, earth, coffee, dark chocolate. The nose is developed. The palate is dry, consistent with the nose, with medium acidity, medium (+) tannins and medium (+) to high alcohol (14.6%). There's black fruit and licorice on the medium (+) long finish. This is full-bodied red has medium (+) flavor intensity. It is drinking well now, but may benefit from another 5 years of aging for it all to become even better integrated. A little pricey, but a great example of how complex Washington wines can be.
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1/4/2015 - tonysmith72 wrote: 93 Points
This is a layered and rich wine full of dark fruit and cola favors. The finish lasts for about 35 sec and the only negative might be the slight bitterness or tartness but that also might be something that holds this wine in balance. Ate with roasted veggies and rotisserie chicken.
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12/21/2014 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 96 Points
This was outstanding, but I thought just a shade less so than En Chamberlin and Cailloux, because it seemed just a bit more closed and tight than those. It may just need more time to fully open. Deep inky garnet, completely opaque. The nose took awhile to open, then was slightly less pronounced than the others. Qualitatively much the same, though, with dark fruits, French oak, smoke, earthy notes, all typical of Cayuse syrahs. Big mouth-coating flavors of rich syrah, perfectly balanced, with a very long but slightly hot aftertaste and just a bit of a "bite" on the back of the tongue. Interesting that most people think of this as a Washington wine, but the vineyard and winery are actually in Oregon! I'd let this wine sit another 1-2 years to let it open more, and drink En Chamberlin and Cailloux of the same vintage sooner.
Ric
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12/1/2014 - skifree Likes this wine: 94 Points
There are wines that are good, and then there are wines that are really good. This was one of the latter. Bright fruit, meat, spice, and lots of tapenade. Long finish. Tannins were noticeable as the wine warmed; think this has many years of life left.
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8/16/2014 - Radboy wrote: 94 Points
I think there are short fills in these bottles as they always seem to disappear too quickly!
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5/2/2014 - Jimywags wrote: 93 Points
Popped and slow o'ed for an hour. The one bottling of Cayuse that I have the least amount of experience with is the En Cerise. It's been on my wishlist for a few years but can't seem to get an offering. This wine certainly lives up to its name as it bursts at the seams with bright cherry fruit. That cherry fruit had a nice interplay going with some chinese five spice, woodsmoke, and natural earth. Not as much depth as the 08 but possesses a great purity of fruit with a polished feel. Really good bottle of wine. 93 pts.
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3/12/2014 - dontime wrote:
Consumed at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort. Amazing stuff. I can't write like the critics but tons of complexity with a distinct smoky meat flavor. The finish went on-and-on. Glad I had the opportunity to sample. If scoring 94-96.
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2/23/2014 - Vinsant wrote:
This spent 2 hours chillin' in the cellar in a decanter. Intoxicating nose of red fruit, olive, tar, cigar ash, smoked sandalwood, meat, Five-spice, and vegetable broth. Fairly clean palate of bright red fruit, salted meat, white pepper, earth, and cinnamon. Delish with lamb chops with olive tapenade. Drinking well after the decant, but needs a few years for the mid to transition to the long finish.
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10/20/2013 - aruddy wrote: 94 Points
This was a 2008. Green olives, vegetables, brine topped with cherries. Excellent and unique.
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6/7/2013 - S R U D I N Likes this wine: 93 Points
An incredibly tasty and bold wine. This wine provided a journey from jammy blueberries, to a bouquet of violets and jasmine, to a thick meaty beast. It had a little bit of heat towards the end which leads me to believe this could continue to mature in the cellar for a few years even though I thoroughly enjoyed it in its youth.
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5/10/2013 - pakabear Likes this wine: 93 Points
Really amazing texture, so velvety. Classic Cayuse flavor profile, smoked ham, strawberry and rainier cherry. Not super complex but long finish that is very pleasant. Good stuff
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12/26/2012 - pakabear Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wonderful ham notes, medium to dark red fruit, mostly cherry and pomegranate. This is some serious stuff, right out of the gate!
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11/4/2012 - Amerique wrote: 95 Points
Rich, absolutely delicious, full-bodied blackberry fruit with loads of gamey, black olive, licorice, and earthy flavors, superb structure, great depth, beautiful texture, long finish, very accessible, not sure if Cayuse gets any better than this wine, usually I prefer the Armada or the Bionic Frog but this is just too good
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6/17/2012 - cadamson wrote: 91 Points
Too young, but promising. Funky earth and mushroom, along with dark fruit, on the nose. Structured and tight on the palate, with a good finish. Probably fantastic in a couple years, right now only hinting at what may be.
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4/30/2011 - Jared wrote:
Barrel sample. Finally put this wine on my wishlist and am glad I did. Another wine that I think is improving with each successive vintage. Deep nose of bright cherries, moist earth, mushroom, and a bit of pork. Very clean palate of cherry liqueur, meat, dark fruit, and a nice undercurrent of minerality. I think this wine will be terrific in 3-5 years. 92-94pts.
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4/10/2011 - Vinsant wrote:
barrel sample at release party; The first sign of the big funk showed up on nose and palate. Earth, cherries, raspberries/kirsh, saline, beets, light mint and smoke. Some fun red kookaburra licorice on the palate helped balance out the funk. A little shy right now but felt like it has lots of potential. Hold for at least 5 years.
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4/10/2011 - tarheel17 wrote:
barrel sample tasted at release party
nose: sweet licorice, ash
palate: very precise, very clean.
unfortunately my notes run out there, but I remember this as one of my top 4 of the day.
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4/9/2011 - last chance wrote:
Barrel sample at Private Release Weekend. This wine had flavors of dark cherries, smoked meat and a light mint note. This was a well made wine, but not among my favorites that we tasted today.
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4/9/2011 - bajayngo wrote:
quick 2011 release note - Menthal, funk city, fresh muddled fruits, ash, a hint of pepper. A big dense wine with a LONG finish.
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4/9/2011 - manonthemoon wrote: 94 Points
WA Tasting trip Day 2: Cayuse, Gramercy, Spring Valley, More Cayuse?? and Jim German; 4/9/2011-4/12/2011 (Walla Walla, WA): Tasted at the winery.
Nose was really nice with boysenberry, black cherry, funk, black olive, bacon.
Palate of blueberry, black cherry, meat, bacon, charcoal, pepper, spice.
Long finish and good mix of acidity and tannin. 93-95
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