TN: 2007 Cayuse Syrah Cailloux Vineyard

[Tom_Lee]

@Doug Schulman

@Tom Lee

Doug, I have had several examples of Cayuse at 10 years of age and without exception they have aged beautifully. What bothered you about the 03 En Chamberlin?

Sorry, Tom, I missed this question before. Kirk’s response sums it up well. To rephrase a bit, in my own words, the wine was as overblown as they come, tasting more like blueberry/blackberry liqueur than like wine. I mean that literally. I smelled the wine again in the morning and my first thought was “liqueur”. It was hot, extremely jammy, and the alcohol was more than a little bit evident. The power of the fruit was so extreme as to mask the earthy, funky elements that I loved in this '07 almost to the point that they were imperceptible. They were not, but they were a faint note way in the background amidst a clamor of overripe fruit. I was shocked and dismayed. We dumped most of the bottle down the drain, even after giving it a shot on day 2.

Thanks. Opening an 03 En Cerise tonight. Will update this thread tomorrow.

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
www.zinfandelchronicles.com

[DougS]

@Tom Lee

Opening an 03 En Cerise tonight. Will update this thread tomorrow.

I’ll be interested to see what you think.

[Kirk.Grant]

@Chuck Miller

@Kirk.Grant

I opened it and drank it strait from the bottle…

I find that I can smell the aromas better when I use a glass.

Ha ha ha…yes, sorry, Riedel Syrah glasses were used.

[Kirk.Grant]

@Tom Lee

@Brian G r a f s t r o m

@Tom Lee

Brian, I think recent vintages 08-10 are much more fruit driven and exhibit less of the funkiness associated with older vintages 04-06.

Doug, I have had several examples of Cayuse at 10 years of age and without exception they have aged beautifully. What bothered you about the 03 En Chamberlin?

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
http://www.zinfandelchronicles.com

that is really funny how '07 is excluded from your stated dichotomy, esp. because the wine that is the topic of this thread is an '07

Transition year…

That aside I think the 07 Cayuse Syrahs are flat out stellar across the whole line up.

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
http://www.zinfandelchronicles.com

What was the transition?

[Tom_Lee]

The 03 En Cerise last night was stellar. Cayuse evokes more descriptors than most wines I drink. Cherries, meat, iodine, rocks, game, mineral. This was in no way overblown like the 03 En Chamberlin commented on earlier in this thread. The wine has aged beautifully and is ready to drink.

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
www.zinfandelchronicles.com

[DougS]

I’m glad you liked it, Tom. Seeing the name of your blog and having a quick look at its content, I suspect we might have differing opinions of a lot of wines. Do you find a lot of domestic Syrah to be overblown? I’m trying to give your impression a little context. I’ll go ahead and say that for me, the vast majority of domestic Syrah I’ve had has been too ripe. The exceptions are often wines that I really love.

[Tom_Lee]

@Doug Schulman

I’m glad you liked it, Tom. Seeing the name of your blog and having a quick look at its content, I suspect we might have differing opinions of a lot of wines. Do you find a lot of domestic Syrah to be overblown? I’m trying to give your impression a little context. I’ll go ahead and say that for me, the vast majority of domestic Syrah I’ve had has been too ripe. The exceptions are often wines that I really love.

Thanks for visiting the blog. I just launched it a few weeks ago. “Do you find a lot of domestic Syrah to be overblown?” Just going off cellar content my syrah favorites lean towards Saxum, Lillian, Cayuse, Carlisle, Betz, etc. It was not my perception that the 03 En Cerise tasted like the 03 En Chamberlin you tried. However, like you are surmizing that could be just a predispostion for different types of syrah. I have an 03 En Chamberlin I will revist sometime soon. Cheers!

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
www.zinfandelchronicles.com

[Kirk.Grant]

@Tom Lee

@Doug Schulman

I’m glad you liked it, Tom. Seeing the name of your blog and having a quick look at its content, I suspect we might have differing opinions of a lot of wines. Do you find a lot of domestic Syrah to be overblown? I’m trying to give your impression a little context. I’ll go ahead and say that for me, the vast majority of domestic Syrah I’ve had has been too ripe. The exceptions are often wines that I really love.

Thanks for visiting the blog. I just launched it a few weeks ago. “Do you find a lot of domestic Syrah to be overblown?” Just going off cellar content my syrah favorites lean towards Saxum, Lillian, Cayuse, Carlisle, Betz, etc. It was not my perception that the 03 En Cerise tasted like the 03 En Chamberlin you tried. However, like you are surmizing that could be just a predispostion for different types of syrah. I have an 03 En Chamberlin I will revist sometime soon. Cheers!

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
http://www.zinfandelchronicles.com

Tom, you mentioned 2007 as a transition…what was the transition? Thanks, Kirk

[Tom_Lee]

Kirk, I think from the 08 vintage on the wines have more dense, concentrated, powerful fruit than they did in earlier vintages. At the same time the funkiness that I have always associated with the En Chamberlin for instance is not as pronounced. For me 07 was the last vintage where you were able to apply descriptors like cabbage, wet dog, pickles, etc. Elements that were offputting to some tasters. Your mileage may surely vary.

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
www.zinfandelchronicles.com

[Kirk.Grant]

@Tom Lee

Kirk, I think from the 08 vintage on the wines have more dense, concentrated, powerful fruit than they did in earlier vintages. At the same time the funkiness that I have always associated with the En Chamberlin for instance is not as pronounced. For me 07 was the last vintage where you were able to apply descriptors like cabbage, wet dog, pickles, etc. Elements that were offputting to some tasters. Your mileage may surely vary.

Tom
Twitter: @NWTomLee
http://www.zinfandelchronicles.com

Wow…that’s really interesting to hear. I’ll have to see about that when Doug & I check in on some later vintages together. Thanks for the heads up…I really enjoy the funk with these wines. I wonder if anything differently was done starting in these newer vintages, if there was a change of equipment, or vineyard practices.

[DougS]

Well, Tom, you definitely mentioned at least one producer whose style I don’t think I care for, so I imagine there is some difference in preference, but, of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean I wouldn’t like the '03 En Cerise. Thanks for your take on Cayuse. I’m eager to try a more recent vintage now so that I can try to get a sense of what the current style is.

[Kirk.Grant]

@Doug Schulman

Well, Tom, you definitely mentioned at least one producer whose style I don’t think I care for, so I imagine there is some difference in preference, but, of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean I wouldn’t like the '03 En Cerise. Thanks for your take on Cayuse. I’m eager to try a more recent vintage now so that I can try to get a sense of what the current style is.

If you have 08’s we could do a side-by-side against the No Girls when I get them later this fall…

[Brian_G_r_a_f_s_t_r_o_m]

2007 Cayuse Syrah Cailloux Vineyard - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley (3/30/2018)
– decanted 1 hour before initial taste –
– tasted non-blind over 2 – 3 hours –

NOSE: eye-fluttering aromas of savory purple fruits, dried herbs, green peppercorns/stems, as well as an underlying “meatiness.”

BODY: medium-full bodied; violet-garnet color of great depth.

TASTE: concentrated garrigué; oak; plum; smooth; low acidity; concentrated blueberry, which doesn’t make itself obvious until well into the finish, which is very long and of medium-light to medium intensity; peppery/smoked beef; 14.6% alc. is well-hidden; no overt olive note, but there is an underlying briney aspect; nice pair with steak (the food helped the wine; the wine did not help the food); a touch ashy with food; not tertiary, but fully relaxed; Excellent, and probably in its prime drink window; I’d bet the alcohol and oak outlive the fruit (tannins gone now), and the acid seems low, so I see this as best to Drink Now and over next 2 – 3 years.

50, 5, 14, 16, 8 = (93 pts.)

[Scott_G_r_u_n_e_r]

Neat to have the many year look-back- Thanks for finding the old thread and adding on.

[Brian_G_r_a_f_s_t_r_o_m]

@Scott G r u n e r

Neat to have the many year look-back- Thanks for finding the old thread and adding on.

thanks for reading and commenting, Scott. I, too, find the multi-year, multi-TN, threads interesting and of more utility than a bunch of stand-alone threads.

[Joseph_MR]

Hi Brian- I drank my last bottle of this last winter, and the fruit was still fresh with minimal heat on the finish despite the ripeness, happy to say. It sort of reminded me of a good bottle of Mordorée Reine des Bois in that regard

[jhemming]

Not to thread drift, anyone have the ‘07 Armada recently?

[Brian_G_r_a_f_s_t_r_o_m]

Hi Joe! Nice to see you chiming in. You plan on being in MN for XMas this year?

[Joseph_MR]

Brian,

No vacation time this coming Christmas, but I may visit on a weekend: should you plan on coming back, send me a PM! I sort of regret dropping off the Cayuse list when in AFWE mode some years ago, the wines are well balanced and delicious.

[dsimmons]

@jhemming

Not to thread drift, anyone have the ‘07 Armada recently?

i had one about a year ago and it was one of the best Syrah’s I’ve ever had. Have one bottle remaining that I am holding for a few more years to follow development.

My CT note:

6/6/2017 - I LIKE THIS WINE: (Edit) 98 Points
Had this last night at a restaurant with a braised lamb shank. Absolutely outstanding. Pop and Pour. Inky garnet. Still lots of black fruit, licorice and spice with complex notes of earth and garrique. Every thing is deliciously integrated; the wine has near perfect balance and a long finish. Delicious and wish I had more than one bottle remaining. I believe that this wine is in its prime drinking window.