A little closed in, a little funky, a little grainy-green, a little stir-fry, a little fresh pasta, a little vacuum cleaner, a little herbs de Provence, a little caramel.
Key word: little. Little bits and pieces of wonderful. I have gone on record numerous times saying Ballard Canyon is the Paso Robles of Santa Barbara. But here we have a wine which plays the little European nuances deftly instead of the bruisers commonly carrying this AVA on the label. I’m not going to go so far as to call it *cool climate* but it definitely heads in this direction.
Bright translucent ruby and only 13-5, it all hits the tongue in an artemisiac infusion of bullish fruit barely able to get a word in before blistering acid and all the tannin you asked for crashes the party, escorting everyone to the door and then dashing off, allowing the dark, tea-infused cherry one last deft curtsy.
2015 BEVELA WINES Syrah Ballard Canyon Santa Barbara County 13.5
Stephen McConnell 