TN: 2007 Copain James Berry Vineyard Syrah

This is the last of my nine bottles, all purchased direct from the winery at or shortly after release. My last bottle, drunk at least a year ago, was disappointing in that it seemed dried out, hard, and a bit astringent. This bottle is nothing like the last one.

The wine is still youthfully dark and inky in color and has a pleasing nose of violets and wet cement. Eight years from vintage, this wine finally seems to have smoothed out and lost some of the hard-edged rusticity it seemed to take on a few years after release. The palate impression for me shows ripe blackberry, wet slate, and a bit of char. The mid-palate, in particular, also features a pleasant herbal component. While the wine may not possess the lifting acidity of some of Copain’s cooler-climate offerings, it is not flabby or soft by any measure. A drying sensation on the (otherwise fairly long) finish detracts a bit from the experience. At the end of the day, though, this wine has exceeded my expectations. I expect to have a glass or two left tomorrow and will report if there is anything noteworthy to add.

Cheers! [cheers.gif]

Brad, thanks for the note. I too have 9 bottles under TN now, with still three 750s and a 3L left to enjoy. The notes continue to be favorable in CT and the wine doesn’t seem to have faded, if anything, still trending upwards. I drank a bottle last July so it’s probably time to tee one up again.

Did you revisit your bottle since Thursday?

Here was my last TN, to go with yours now.

  • 2007 Copain Syrah James Berry Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (7/19/2014)
    Opened this about 24 hours ago, didn’t decant nor aerate, simply left in the bottle under open cork. Aromatically, like the bottle this past February, the stem inclusion accents the aromatic, joining the purple flower note. Those same stems add a savory, herbal quality to the fruit, that shows both red and black. What I notice about the wine this time is the intensity in the core, with a lot of licorice in this bottle that really adds energy. Along with the licorice, there is the tar and chalk that I have found in past bottles. Then to the finish, which is peppery, a bit savory, a molten, rocky quality with bitter chocolate. I’d probably be best suited to leave the last glass for another few days but we’ll finish it today. As to a drink window, the intensity and youthful structure here keep me thinking this won’t peak for another 3 years, then go another 5 more. All together, a very good James Berry and savory enough to really captivate my attention.

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Frank – I had a glass on Friday and finished the bottle on Saturday. The wine didn’t budge much and remained enjoyable, but it continued to dry out on the finish. This was quite good, especially compared toy last bottle. It leaves me confident that the wine has a few years left, but I question whether it will get any better given that it could be drying out a bit. I will have to rely on you to tell me, though, because as I said this was my last bottle.

While helping my dad move some wine around yesterday afternoon, the sneaky guy had a stash of 4 of these, so we promptly cracked one for din din. This being my 6th or so bottle of the 07 JB, last nights performance was near the top or perhaps the best showing yet. P&P, the aromatics were really something, full on floral oils / spices / and deep layers of succulent dark berries - all in unison. Continued on the palate with added dimensions of the exotic - camphor, perhaps a little road tar but more importantly the ripe Paso Fruit carried a wonderful freshness and edge. Absolutely IN THE ZONE!

I don’t have any '07 left, but have hoarded an '06. IIRC, I also have '06 JBs hanging around from Carlisle and Saxum. One of these days …

Had an '07 Carlisle JB back in May and it was stunning.
2007 Carlisle Syrah James Berry Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (5/3/2018)
My last bottle of this beauty and it was drinking at peak. A very hedonistic wine with beautiful nose and palate. Everything integrated. Wish I had more of these to enjoy over the next 3-5 years. (96 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

My buddy Sean Kennedy, who is on the Board occasionally, got married last year and we did a 3L of this stuff. It was drinking great.

  • 2007 Copain Syrah James Berry Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (7/1/2017)
    Bottle #12 and fitting the occasion, this is from 3L as part of the celebration of one Mr Sean Kennedy and his wedding reception event. This is the right venue for this large monster, to celebrate 35 years of friendship with Sean. Opened this about 90 mins ago, to let it breathe for when we drink it later this afternoon. Initial impressions? Has the white flower aromatic that I sometimes find in CA syrah. And with the whole cluster still accenting the wine, there is potpourri too. Still plenty of tang in the core of the wine, along with licorice, creosote, black raspberry, rosemary and supporting acidity. Maybe a little bit of bittersweet cocoa in the finish too. With this level of aeration, and perhaps with the bottle size, there is moderate tension/grip here. I’ll add a finishing note later after the event to complete the picture…stayed consistent with air and I will say that this drinks best with a light chill, too. Well managed alcohol and really drinking in a great place right now.

Posted from CellarTracker

I’m holding my last ‘07 Copain and Carlisle JB for a side by side experience. Maybe a couple more years.

  • 2007 Copain Syrah James Berry Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (6/1/2023)
    With the series finales of my two favorite shows ending Sunday (Barry & Succession) I thought it was so appropriate to have my last bottle of Copain. What was so immediately striking was this was never in danger of fading or being over the hill. I wouldn’t go so far as youthful, but at 16 years in, I’d guess this would plateau on this plane for at least another 5 years, perhaps more. Within this maturity, the balance is in perfect, nothing poking out or out of place. The deep JB fruit is almost elegantly woven into the wines fabric, adding a little touch of sage, and then closes with a good balance of tannin and acid. Goodbye Old Friend.
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Excellent work, Dale. So, this is your last bottle of just JB, or of all Copain? If the latter, then yeah, certainly Goodbye is in order.

Did you find a lot of sediment within the bottle above? I’m happy to know it is drinking well still. I have one 750 left, plus a 750 of the 2008, and it’s probably best suited to pair them both blind and pour them for the group here to contrast them, have some fun. Still have about 3 cases of mixed Copain going back to 2007, all singles at this point, but what great wines some of them were, and still are.

Mr FM III, Thank you sir! Last Copain period and a good one to close out a fun period and great memories of past bottles, especially the Hawks Butte Syrah. Little sediment than I can recall on this one. Wow 3 cases still? time to start drinking Son!

I’ve had many of them in the past few years when I had doubles of most of them, and so having the past note helps to gauge when I start finishing these off. Given the acidity and style that Wells made, I do think longevity on many of the wines is going to be just fine, much as you found on the bottle above.

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i had the 2006 Copain James Berry last night and it was still going strong. Not too much sediment (the 2004 Copain Cailloux & Coccinelle had a ton of sediment and I dumped 3/4ths of the bottle since it had a soy/balsamic/worcestershire thing with no acid or tannins). Those were my last two bottles of Copain

Anyone know what Wells is doing these days?

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Hey Russ. He was going through some pretty major health issues and I talked to him a couple of months ago. I tried to contact him again recently but I didn’t hear back and I know there was some movement I thought going on to maybe generate some funds for him but I don’t know where that landed. He was always really good to us and he made really terrific wines that have stuck with me for almost two decades now so I just hope he’s doing well. It’s a reminder to try check in with him again too so thank you for that

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He makes DuPuis Wines, doesn’t he?

Yes, that’s his winery.

He got pretty jacked up so not sure what’s happening.