Powerful, sharp, amazingly textured while contrastingly pointed, this continues to be one of my favorite Syrahs in Paso. Not as well-distributed as their Rhone blends–or as boring–seek out these single-varieties whenever possible.
Black, thick crimson in the glass, not a trace of brick here at 9. Wildly savory nose dripping with ripe fruit: the herbaceous aspects sullied with earth, the fruit all pear-sauce and berry compote. Without tasting, I can tell you this little thing is BARELY hitting its stride–with decades to go. Name another San Luis Obispo County Syrah capable. The list is extremely short. And no, none of your precious bling-bro allocations or coveted popularity-contest winners are on it. Tobacco and black pepper fairly explode out, the bouquet chewingly tangy, with latex and green sapling woodiness to spare. Decanted generously.
In the mouth, the control-burn of alcohol casts a bit of pallor on otherwise fleshy surroundings. Even then, I don’t think it is one of your all-too-typical 15-5 darlings. Rather, I feel potency is playing into the hands of acidity, accentuating the bite. Ripe, delicious blackberry and cherry ram through the core, depositing dusty intensity on every surface with agonizing length and depth. The more air you give it, the better it gets: there’s NO hampering this wine’s happiness to be out of the bottle. Maraschino and Amaro churn up into the finish, wreaking havok on chalky green angst attempting to control afterthought.
2013 TABLAS CREEK Syrah Adelaida Dist. Paso Robles 14.5
Stephen McConnell 