Syrah vs Pinot

Are Syrahs generally more fruit forward and accessible early than Pinots?

Syrahs are probably more fruit-forward, in general, as they are a bigger wine, but many are made in a more rustic style. Pinots are much lighter, and I would say in general are more accessible early than Syrah, as the full bodied wines, like Syrah, can be a lot to handle for those who are not accustomed to drinking ‘big’ wines.

It’s actually a tough question to answer, full of generalities, so I wonder if you could specify perhaps a bit more on what types of Syrah or Pinot, from what regions, and maybe what price points?

The sweet spot for my tastes so far seem to be about $50-75. I do enjoy some wines under $20 but very few.

KB is my favorite Pinot while I like the Shafer Relentless and Two Hands Bellas Garden a lot.

Just trying to zone into what I might like more. I don’t mind experimenting but it gets expensive for my budget.

Oh wow, you are playing in the big zones, then…

KB is a bigger-styled Pinot than many on the market. Did you have a chance to look at the many Syrah and Pinot offers on BerserkerDay on Jan 27th? A TON of great, harder-to-find small producers had some offers. Experimenting is expensive for your budget, but you might find that you enjoy wines that are less pricey than KB and Shafer, so it’s worth experimenting on others as it might cost you less in the long run.

Nguyen,

Based on your Pinot likes, I would suggest you try some of the Walla Walla and Horse Heaven Hills syrahs. Washington makes some bright and structured but still rich and fruit- laden syrahs. If you were to check out Bunnell Family Cellars, for example, there are some great wines that might be to your tastes in the $30-40 range. You might also try some of the Ridge Rhone style blends.

There are a lot of great Aussie shirazes with the in your face fruit forward… Torbreck, Carnival of Love, even Dead Arm. Many within your price…

I prefer Pinots too and Walla Walla is really nice one, thank for the tip

I would also recommend Willamette Valley Pinots. If you can find a 2009 St. Innocent I think you’ll be impressed. Pinot Noir is probably my favorite for all the reasons outlined by Miles in the movie ‘Sideways’, but I also love Syrahs from California’s central coast (Paso Robles).

FIFY

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I’m liking the cool climate Syrahs with a PN restrained style and those made by PN winemakers. Actually I much prefer most wines with some age where the acid prevails over the fruit and there is a good balance of tannins on the finish.