Wine & Spirits - February 2018 - 41

90 | Wilde Farm

$40

2014 Yorkville Highlands Halcon Vineyard Syrah ^ The schist soils of the Yorkville
Highlands tend to grow cool, black, spicy,
mineral syrah. Whole-cluster fermentation
amplifies that sense of compaction in this
2014; it's a tight wine right now, its tart purple fruit hinting at green-peppercorn spice
in the finish. Cellar it for a few years. (W&S
8/17; 125 cases) -L.S.
509466

89 | Santa Barbara Winery

$19

87 | Santa Barbara Winery

$19

2014 Santa Ynez Valley Syrah (Best Buy) ^
A buxom syrah, this wine's heady crushedstrawberry flavors are cut by saline, kelp-like
mineral tannins. Decant it for a spicy braised
pork shoulder. (1,293 cases)
509309
2013 Santa Ynez Valley Syrah (Best Buy) ^
This wine is all about extract, with a meaty,
oily intensity to its spicy, sweet fruit. Pour it
with a braise. (1,293 cases)

O REG O N
SYRAH

velvety syrah, the smoke and olive scents, the
garrigue-accented red-fruit flavors. And yet
the wine feels vivid and brisk, ready to pair
with lamb shoulder. (W&S 12/17; 220 cases)

WA S H I N GT O N
GRENACHE
447635

93 | Gramercy Cellars

$36

90 | Andrew Rich

$40

2014 Columbia Valley The Third Man
Grenache ^ A grenache with pinot noir aspirations, this silky wine is fine-boned and lustrous, less about power than finesse. It leads
with a pretty, brambly red-raspberry scent,
accented by tobacco-leaf savor. It's firm and
balanced in its raspberry flavors, sunny and
generous without overreaching, held in place
by firm, finely wrought tannins. (W&S 4/17;
605 cases)
509749
2014 Columbia Valley Ciel du Cheval
Vineyard Grenache ^ Scents of black currant
and cherry yield a savory, bark-like top note
in this warm-climate grenache. The flavors
are ripe, with a dark-plum core of fruit and
grippy tannins that suggest barbecue would
be a great foil. (50 cases)

SYRAH
449533

508143

91 | Amalie Robert

$100

2011 Willamette Valley Top Barrel Syrah ^
In a thrilling cool-climate experiment, the
team at Amalie Robert planted syrah and
viognier on a single acre in a cool vineyard west of Salem, drawing from the four
clones that Marcel Guigal recommended on
a visit to Oregon. This wine barely crosses
the threshold of 12 percent alcohol, and in
most respects would be thought of as backward. But the aromas-carob, smoke and
olive-are resolved and mature, the flavors
composed and quiet, dark red fruits marked
by charry, mature tannins. Decant it to serve
with lamb. (W&S 10/17; 25 cases)
508621

91 | Cowhorn

$75

2013 Applegate Valley Reserve Syrah ^ Bill
and Barbara Steele's biodynamically farmed
vineyard is now nine years old, and that
maturity is starting to show in their wines.
It's in the assertive savoriness of this dark,

94 | Reynvaan

$70

93 | àMaurice Cellars

$45

2014 Walla Walla Valley Foothills Reserve
Estate Foothills in the Sun Vineyard Syrah ^
In his reserve syrah, Matt Reynvaan is aiming for a richer, darker, more masculine version of Foothills fruit, and perhaps that's
achieved: There's a ton of intensity and concentration here. But the aromatics are so
detailed and precise-spiced chocolate, tanbark, a hint of stem bitterness-that it feels
as if a breeze is blowing through the glass.
The tannins close the wine firmly, but that lift
and detail give the wine the balance it needs,
for something meaty, say, a New York strip.
(W&S 8/17; 283 cases)
450313
2015 Walla Walla Valley Fred Syrah ^ While
2015 may have been a warm vintage, the
coolness of Mill Creek may give this estate
wine its contours. There's a hint of violets
and black plum in the aromas, and a dusty,
mineral note that prevails on the structure
of the tannins, along with an impression of
fruit extract that gives the wine some bounce
and suggests a long life. Even so, it's balanced
enough to drink now, with a steak. (W&S
10/17; 253 cases)
507662

GIESEN THE FUDER
C L AY V I N V I N EYA R D
C H A R D ON NAY
"Terroir and texture. 3.36 hectares
of Chardonnay, 5566 vines per
hectare. Clones are Mendoza,
95 and 15. 1,000 litre German
Fuder barrels."
- Alex Giesen

GiesenWines.com

https://giesen.co.nz http://www.amalierobert.com/top-barrel.html

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - February 2018