cropthreash


Handmade wines since 1983.

 

 

1997 SYRAH CALIFORNIA
(From Roll, Bien Nacido, and Stolpman Vineyards)
 
It is hard to believe that this is our 15th vintage of California syrah. We were so excited about our first ones, but in hindsight there was much to learn. And I can honestly say that I was not completely satisfied with any of them until the 1989 vintage, and it was not until 1994 that we began to get the quality of grapes we needed to make really special wine. In 1997 we boosted the grenache and mourvedre percentage to 10% each, up from 1996's 5%. This gave depth and wild exotic aromatics to the wine. This syrah is exuberant, flavory, and has a bit more grip that the last two California syrahs, which for me makes it an altogether more satisfying drink.