Here is an update on the wine. Drinking some remnants from yesterday in the shade of my OC backyard, where it is finally cooling down after 2 frigging brutal days of heat. I didn’t think syrah on an afternoon today would work but I grabbed some cheese, crackers, nectarine and poured a glass. It’s working well so off to get another glass as I enjoy this breeze coming off the ocean…thank god.
2007 Copain Syrah Hawks Butte Vineyard- USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands (7/8/2018)
Bottle #15, this came from a buddy’s cellar who sourced it from Winebid. It was opened yesterday and I took the remnants home and stuck in the fridge under the open cork. Drinking 24 hrs later, with the air it has seen and at the ideal temp as I let it warm from the fridge. Plus, this is the only wine in front of me, which is my best setting to taste as I can get focused. 18 months since my last bottle, one that gave me the indication the wine was reaching peak, yet with this bottle it shows the wine is continuing to age really well, no signs of fading. Aromatics of garrigue and light stem, pepper, cooked meat and white flower…all of what typically makes Hawks Butte stand out for me. The palate is plush, with a savory blue and red fruited core, with black olive, rosemary, tang, a tarry/meaty finish, along with a char/espresso note. Finally, some finishing tannin and with so much air on this wine, this is why I revise how I see this wine aging as there is moderate structure still here that gives some grip. My thought now is that this will go another 5 years, and while it can be enjoyed now (as I do like structure), it should continue to keep well. Terrific too that at now passing almost its 11th birthday, it’s drinking this well.
Frank, Thanks again for another useful data point. I was thinking of pulling my last bottle out for this summer, but your note has me more likely to roll the dice and hold off another year or three to see what happens. I bought a few 07’s Syrah from Copain, the HB, JB, and Thompson - usually the HB comes out on top but that 07 JB can be a pretty frisky customer sometimes.
2007 Copain Syrah Hawks Butte Vineyard- USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands (7/14/2019)
This was a gift from a friend. This wine is easy to love right now, but I started with a 60 minute decant. IN the glass there’s minimal bricking to indicate this is a 12 year old wine. Scents of violets, crushed granite, leather, low-bush blueberries, and dark fruit with a hint of heat on the nose that slightly burns in the nostrils reminding me that 2007 was a warmer vintage in California. On the palate there is an elegance and restraint that calls to mind an influence that I could see coming from some of my favorite producers in the Northern Rhone. Flavors of blackberry, plum, 90% Dark Chocolate, a kiss of oak, and a dry tannic finish that leads me to think that this is a wine that could still be showing well in another decade+ with good storage. However, if you have some there is no reason not to open and enjoy one now. Outstanding!!
Note from last night below - Re reading this thread I love Glenn’s observation a few posts above that if served blind, not sure he could tell if it was domestic.
2007 Copain Syrah Hawks Butte Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands (6/27/2020)
3rd and final bottle of this gem. P&P, ready to perform right from the first sip. Dark Syrah scents and what I always find in riper CA Syrah, roasted corn which I find very appealing. At 13 years in, this is going quite fine thank you. A solid core of blackberries for sure, but it has retreated as other savory elements have stepped in and joined the fray. At once playful and complex, hard to imagine someone not digging it. Put another way, we had this right after the 10 Levet Journaries, and it was easily apparent the two wines had their souls in the same place despite the technical differences one might notice if looking from a purely analytic point of view. Certainly at peak, no rush, but too good not to enjoy the 07 Hawkes Butte in the Summer of 2020. (94 points)
I love seeing these notes. I don’t know how I missed or forgot to respond to Kirk’s from almost a year ago. This is one of my favorite bottlings from Kopan, and I think the 06 and 07 has been so good for so long, and will continue to age for quite a long time. I definitely get that warm vintage character is there on this one, but it is still a wine that shows elegance and some restraint.
Hello to you! I can’t tell you how surprised I was with this bottle. I don’t drink much California wine these days, but this bottle was a delight. Wells certainly made some really good syrah back in the day. Still holding out hope that Dale and I can make it down to So Cal to drink with you one day. Hope you and your family are safe and sound
If you and Dale ever come down this way, we’ll rally some OC dorks and have a great meal with you. We’re doing OK down here, adjusting to the constraints like everyone else and trying to do the right things.
I found this in the back of the fridge tonight while looking for something to drink with NCAA basketball (and meat). I have to say, reading through earlier posts that the “Copain guys” posted a long time ago was nostalgic. It brought back good memories.
That said, this wine today seems ageless. The trademark red fruit and herbs remain, but grilled meat notes really take the stage. While the wine still seems youthful, it is enthralling and has layers of flavor. If you discover (as I did) that you have a bottle of this wine that you forgot, don’t worry. It is alive and well.
Very cool Brad, and thank you for checking back on this gem all these years layer. These 03 to 07 Copains bring back some many good memories both the for wines and my friends and family I enjoyed them with. Probably a good time to tee up “In My Life”… Cheers.
