2005 SYRAH THOMPSON
Santa Barbara County
Traditionally our most burly syrah, Thompson is the slowest of
our wines to evolve. Since 2002, we have added a bit of grenache
and/or mourvedre to add to the complexity of flavors and to make
this wine a little less monolithic. The results have not been
dramatic, as the wine is still a monster, but it is now friendlier
in its youth.
In 2005 we took another step towards better balance and began
fermenting the Thompson in a different way. We are attempting
to extract more of the flavors from the grape skins earlier in
the fermentation. As a result, we are now mixing the grapes (punching
down) more frequently prior to and at the start of fermentation,
and doing less after the midpoint. The theory is that, as the
wine ferments and gains in alcohol, that alcohol extracts harsh
tannins from the grape skins, so extracting the flavors early
gives more fruitiness and less bite. I have a customer who was
quite concerned that these changes would transform the hearty
wine that Thompson is into something meek. Quite the contrary,
this wine is mouth-coating and dense, showing beautiful aromatic
purity. While it is enticing today, ideally this syrah should
be cellared for another 7-10 years, allowing all its potential
to be realized.
90% Syrah, 5% Grenache, 5% Mourvedre (Thompson Vineyard)