The old Sawyer coming in strong here at an infantile 11 years old and this vineyard has come under a lot of changes in those years. Pretty sure Brooke is gone, while multitudes of producers source from this hallowed spot downstream and across the street from Alban. Row-contracts with their obligatory ripeness quotients notwithstanding, some people still get beautiful fruit from this foggy, north-facing vineyard. One of my favorite Edna Valley plots of earth, the chalky effervescence grinds hard against supple berry in ways hard to describe but the finish product shines in ways Alban never will. Nor will the Herman Story or Mcprice or Levo or various other 27° producers. Here we have a standout in pure syrah terms: a glossy tannic influx of smokey briar delirium washed down on grasp so heavenly your mind muddles. It’s not something the 99 will appreciate, but old-skool ABC people will immediately gravitate toward, as Clendenen superlatives make a wine so reaching in structure NO ONE can contest. This is the syrah we’re looking for. Please make wines like this go on forever.

2014 @qupewine #syrah #sawyerlindquistvineyard #ednavalley #SLOcoastava 13.5