I poured a couple glasses then decanted the rest. Shared with some new friends whose palates lean old world. It was well received and enjoyed. I would love to slip this blinded into a N. Rhone tasting. I suspect it would surprise some and show well in good company.
Medium purple with an expressive nose of dark fruits, violet florals, and black pepper. Bright and crunchy on the initial pour, it integrated and softened a bit in the decanter. Crisp in acidity, firm in structure, with impressive depth of fruit. This is just delicious stuff. 17 was a warm year, but you wouldn’t know it from this bottle, which shows the coolness of Petaluma. It has what I’m looking for in syrah of this style: balanced components, purity of fruit, and authenticity.
Bravo to Joanna and Sean! I should probably keep this a secret but they deserve recognition.
John, coincidentally, I opened one last night. With the low alcohol, balance and more restrained style, it was exactly what I wanted to drink last night. Have a 1/2 bottle left for tonight, will post a pic and full TN once I can assess like you did for us.
I’m a big fan of what Joanna and Sean are doing. Anyone opened a Chard recently?
John–shhhh! ![[grin.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/5/53ba06e9b6e4b370ae7e3d7b3702ad1bda0a2d8e.gif "grin")
Last taste was day after FallTacular last February
2017 Model Farm Syrah
We had rescued this bottle from FallTacular and it was absolutely rocking. Terrific presentation of red plum and crabapple fruit as the core to some minerality and very light cocoa dusting. The frame is very precise and fits the flavor profile really well. As strong as they’ve been out of the gate, this could be Sean and Joanna’s best one yet."
Russ, my last taste of the Chard was a year ago:
“Yes, the 2016 Model Farm Chard has come a nice long way since my last taste about 6 months ago. Now it shows as a very nice Santa Cruz, with just a trace of key lime pie sweetness to round out the firm minerality and crisp apple and lemon flavours. It has put on some weight as well and I’m very happy I have 4 more bottles to track.”
Don’t know if this will be at all helpful, but would also like to share my thoughts from the barrel samples back in July 2018.
"2017 Model Farm 1st pick Syrah in neutral Remond barrel
About 12% alcohol. More cured meat thing here, blackberry in the main. As cool as it gets, a little gentler than some past tastes. Early days, of course.
2017 Model Farm 2nd pick Syrah in neutral barrel
Slightly more expressive and riper bouquet, with bits of red fruit. These have 9 months to go before bottling. Definitely more grip here with a nice perfumey quality to the palate. I like the idea of blending these two."
Slainte,
Mike
Glad I bought a few of these, as this is terrific syrah. Squarely in the cooler climate, low ABV style with a good amount of whole cluster feel and very little wood that I can detect. Well done, Joanna and Sean.
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2017 Model Farm Syrah Petaluma Gap - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (11/18/2019)
Opened yesterday. Enjoying more today at room temp (72f) from the bottle that set out overnight with the cork as closure. This is a juicy wine with some imprints of whole cluster. Aromatically, some purple flower, iron, bacon fat and pine resin. The palate has a juicy, moderately fleshy quality, framed up by red and black cherry, cranberry, maybe a touch of bitter chocolate and some good cedary tannin in the finish. There is acidity here, giving the wine a tangy citrus note, too. ABV is 12.5% here, so for me it doesn’t cause me to feel weighed down by the alcohol’s impact. For syrah, this is pretty much where my palate is these days, aligned well with my own fondness for Champagne and low ABV cooler climate PN. It fits nicely into that paradigm. Given the tannin, and even with 24 hrs of air, this wine will need time so a good decant is smart or better yet, a few more years of aging to let it soften.
Posted from CellarTracker
