If you are a fan of big, balanced, tannic syrahs–not huge, over-ripe fruit-bombs or thin, fruit-FWD plonk–but REAL SYRAH showing everything a middle-of-the-road Syrah is supposed to show, then I recommend seeking this bottle out. Surprise winery find in downtown Cambria West Village. Tiny, one-man operation (this particular bottle came from a 4-barrel lot). Met owner and winemaker, impressive resume, this bottle all estate grapes Paso North West–San Miguel, basically. Initial medium burnt-rubber, fresh asphalt nose disappears into full, ripe fruit and a touch of rubbing alcohol. Excellent entry starts perfect and ramps up impressively into full round mouthfeel before turning sharply to strong acids and ample tannin. Bitter, tannic finish. This is an impressive Syrah and I am very impressed–as typically my tourist-downtown-tasting-room surprise-walk-in experiments usually end poorly. (there are two versions of this wine Eastern European oak and French oak–this is the Russian)
2010 BLACK HAND CELLARS Syrah Reserve Paso Robles 14.5
Stephen McConnell 