One of the most opulent, intoxicating, fabulous, just SHOCKING surreal heavenly bouquets you have ever stuck your nose into.  Now, typically, the above verbiage is reserved for 10-15yo Cab.  Or possibly 4-5yo Pinot.  Rarely Syrah.  The nose on this thing makes you want to go out and mate with unicorns over and over in clouds of rainbows.  The most polished, deep forest-floor, North-African-spice sorta thing you ever did done smell.  With a huge asterisk.  *Alochol .  Nothing this amazing can come un-molested (except 15yo Cab).

While the nose is amazing, the alcohol sears the hairs.  I have been drinking this for 3 hours and still haven’t looked at the ABV.  I’m scared for two reasons:  Either it is high, which will be the better of the two evils;  Or it is low, which immediately spells doom for an unbalanced wine.  I am going to guess 15-1.  It shows up again in the finish, where it kinda pickles the sides of your tongue as it goes into a huge long amazing finish.  Have we mentioned the middle?  Solid fruit of the intensely ripe and polished variety.

Let us not forget this is a wine which sat around from your Kindergarten year til you went to college.  And only a 25$ wine at that.  This is not necessarily the peak for this wine.  Yes it has huge alcohol.  BUT!  it has a nose which dispels any doubt of longevity. The fruit is there.  The fruit is bigger than both the AL and the tannin, and the acid is in balance.  Why are we having a discussion about the longevity of a 25$ 12yo SY?  Drink it.  Drink it.  Drink it.

2001 HITCHING POST Syrah Purisima Mountain Santa Ynez Valley Santa Barbara Co. 14.9

http://www.hitchingpost2.com/HPWinery.html