Wine Article

The fifth Sandler version of Sally and Brian Connell's vineyard-designated Syrah emerges from another cool vintage. We normally wait until late October to harvest the Connell Syrah, and 2009 was no exception. But weather played a major role in when we decided to pick in '09. There was a large rainstorm that hit northern California in mid October, and the Syrah survived without a problem. We waited two more weeks for the soil to dry out and the flavors to develop further in the fruit. Then we saw additional rainstorms on the horizon, with no definite dry periods to follow. So the decision was made, and we harvested on October 20. Luckily, that signature peppery and raspberry flavor had just emerged from the fruit.

The 2009 Sandler Connell Vineyard Syrah is definitely a wine to lay down. We just bottled the wine recently, and at that time it seemed like this was in need of at least 3 years, maybe longer, before it would begin to approach drinkability. You could try this sooner, but I would recommend a long, aerative decanting. 151 cases produced.