 |
And the usual comments from the BloodyPulpit:
-
Andrew Murray: I've followed young Andrew's wines from the very start,
when he first showed them at the WineCask futures tasting. Over the yrs,
he's refined his style from the big/very tannic/structured Syrahs he first
made. Alas, I've also observed that his wines have become a bit erratic
in character. Four or five yrs ago, there was a strong EA/volatility showing
in many of his reds. He seems to have licked that problem, though I still
see a bit more than I'd like in them occasionally. The wines just don't
seem to have the focus & excitement they used to have. OTOH, every
once in awhile, Andrew swats one outta the park. And I've found his whites
much improved and consistently very good.
-
DrewWines: These are made by Jason Drew, who was formerly a winemaker for
Brian Babcock afore he struck out on his own. His first vintage last year
showed some very good wines. These two Syrahs were even more impressive.
A young man to keep your eyes on.
-
Larner Vineyard: It's hard to tell how much of the Drew Syrah is due to
the Larner contribution. But, nonetheless, I've been mightly impressed
by the wines thus far from Michael Larner's new vnyd (www.LarnerVineyard.com),
which also includes Viognier. Another SantaBarbara vnyd to keep your eyes
on.
-
Tensley: Joey Tensley first came to my attention some yrs ago when he was
asst winemaker at FessParker. A good friend, Margaux Singleton (Enoteca),
visited Parker and Joey showed here around the wnry. He then tried her
on some of his own wines there and she was blown away by them. She admonished
me I should keep my eyes on this guy. Turn out MX was right. He went on
to become winemaker at BeckmenWnry afore he struck out on his own. I've
been mightly impressed by every wine of his I've had. These 2002's strike
me as his best yet. Killer Syrahs. These were the WineCask futures price
w/ shipping.
-
PurismaMtn Vineyard: This is the vnyd that has come on-line in the last
3 yrs. Owned by Steve Beckmen of that winery. Located right adjacent to
the Stolpman Vineyard. Some mightly impressive wines have been coming from
here; including some killer Grenaches.
-
ColsonCanyon Vineyard: This is a relatively new vnyd located high above
the SantaMariaVlly in the mtns to the East, up ColsonCanyonRd, where Byron
Wnry is located. This would put a few miles South and East of the Bien
Nacido Hillside Vineyard.
-
MargerumWines: These are the wines made by Doug Margerum (www.MargerumWineCompany.com),
of SantaBarbara's WineCask. At 200 ft**2; he's probably the smallest garagiste
in Calif. All of his wines I've had thus far are mightly impressive. Even
his Pinot Gris, a variety that's pretty unthrilling in Calif, is a terrific
wine.
-
Kenneth-Crawford: Prices are WineCask futures plus shipping except for
the Thompson. The K-C Syrahs appeared on the scene w/ the 2001 vintage
a yr ago. They made quite an impression on me. This 2002 trio of Syrahs
is even more impressive. All three quite distinctive; all three stunning
wines.
-
Rocca Syrahs: First tried these wines last year at HdR and was pretty impressed
with them. Owned by Mary Rocca and Eric Grigsby, the winemaker. Eric is
easy to spot in a crowd at 6-6 or 6-8 or so. Used to play basketball at
Fordham or somewhere, as I recall. I presume he plays BB up in Napa w/
Steve Lagier. Scarey. Anyway, these are two pretty impressive Syrahs; one
of the best new Napa Valley Syrahs I've had since the first Lagier-Merediths
came out; which it resembles quite a bit. A Syrah made like a Syrah, with
a modicum of oak; not like a Napa Valley Cab. Impressive wines.
-
This tableau of Syrahs was a mightly impressive way to launch the new year.
Although there are Syrahs in the NorthCoast that are as impressive as these;
I don't think the overall level of quality in Syrah is as high anywhere
in the world as it is in the Central Coast, particularly in SantaBarbara.
You have to search to find an ordinary one, I think. Killer tasting.
TomHill
Return to the Tom Hill Archive Index |
