Last night a group of wine lovers from Cleveland and as far away as Columbus, met at the Annatolia Café in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. There were 19 of us (after some last minute cancellations) who enjoyed some (well probably way too much) Turkish food. Since I was the one planning and arranging, I took the opportunity to use the group as kind of a focus group on Syrah. As we will be making our first Syrah this year, I wanted to find out what people liked (and didn’t) about Syrah wines. The evening was filled with lots of fun and conversation. The food was great as was the service. Diners had a choice of omnivore or vegetarian dishes.
While waiting for everyone to arrive, we started with:
2007 Kavaklidere Narince Tokat (Turkey)
It seemed appropriate to have a Turkish wine. Narince is the name of the grape. Silvery gold in color, clear and bright. The nose was quiet with peach pits, minerals and some vanilla. Light bodied. On the palate, this has citrus and turns a bitter almond note on the finish. A nice wine that is certainly respectable. It had a nice acidity that went well when save for the first course. 50+3+11+17+6=87
With Stuffed Grape Leaves, Humus, Shepherd Salad:
2000 Hirsch Riesling Gaiberg Zobinger Alte Reben (Austria)
From Magnum. Yellow/gold in color. The nose has a lot of petrol. Also some lemon/lime. Nice texture. Showing some age on the palate, there is not a lot of fruit left. Still it has nice balance and good acidity. Perhaps, slightly oxidized. 50+3+11+16+6=85
1986 R. Renaudin L’Espiegle Champagne Brut Rose
From Magnum. Salmon/deep orange in color. A good amount of small bubbles. The nose is musty with a fair amount of oxidation. Also some strawberries and mandarin oranges. On the palate, this is past its prime. Slightly bitter watermelon rind fruit and a bit burnt tasting. It was fun, but I am sure was better ten years ago. 50+3+11+15+5=84
With Arnavaut Cioeri (Sauteed Liver Cubes) or Sigara Borek (Pastry dough with Feta). This was supposed to be an older Syrah flight, but after some cancellations, this was the “other” Syrah flight.
2004 JM Stephan Cote Rotie Vielle Vigne en Coteaux
2 750’s. Ruby in color, slighty cloudy, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is dusty with raspberries, bacon fat, violets and with air, some nice earthy funk. Medium bodied. On the palate, this is slightly tart with some red and black raspberries. It has an earthy complexity that is nice. On the whole, it seems likely closed down a bit at this time as it did keep developing with air. Everyone seemed to like this but few loved it. 50+4+12+17+7=90
2006 Oivonieio Blaoion Shiraz (Cypress)
2 750’s. I have misspelled the name of this wine as my keyboard does not have the characters. Ruby in color, mostly clear and bright, turning purple in the core. The nose is complex, with black raspberries and floral notes. Medium bodied. On the palate, black raspberries with a nice acidity. Jane noted a bit of a liqueur aspect on the nose which I agreed with. I liked this wine and it far exceeded my expectations. It is certainly respectable and deserved a place in this lineup. 40+4+12+16+6=88
1994 Sean Thackrey Orion
From Mag. A field blend which I believe we now know has more than Syrah but some petite too. Inky purple in color with a slight ruby at the rim. The nose is great with complex blackberry notes, bacon fat, iodine and eucalyptus/menthol. Full bodied. On the palate, this is complex but not showing old at all. Lots of black raspberries, plums, some earthiness. Long finish. Some said that by the end of the night, the wine was falling off a bit. Perhaps, but this was a great wine. It was the crowds WOTN. 13.3% Alc. 50+4+13+19+9=95
The 2005 California Syrah Flight:
With: Shish Kabob, Karny Yarykl (stuffed eggplant), Chicken Kabob or Vegetarian Stew & Felafel
2005 Tensley Syrah OGT Santa Barbara County
From Mag. Purple/ruby, mostly opaque and bright. This started slowly and took some time open up. Once it did, the nose has black raspberries, grilled meats and some white pepper. Also some coffee grounds. Full bodied. On the palate, this was disjointed until 30 minutes in the glass. Then it came together with nice black raspberry fruit, thick rich texture and some complexity. Still young, this was very nice. 50+4+13+18+8=93
2005 Pax Syrah Cuvee Christine Sonoma County
2-750’s. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is very nice and stood apart in this flight. Black raspberries, black lives, scorched wood, and black pepper. Full bodied. On the palate, this is young but impeccably balanced. Lots of purple fruit, some oak showing. It kept getting better in the glass. Nice finish. This was “hurt” in this flight by its restraint perhaps, but I think it held its own quite well. BTW, with all the Mags on the table, the 750 of Pax wasn’t much smaller. 50+5+13+18+8=94
2005 Pharaoh Moans Syrah Westside Paso Robles
2-750’s. Inky purple in color. The nose has a bit of funk to it (apparently the other bottle was cleaner), but I did not mind. Also some black raspberry fruit. I had this a year ago and thought it shut down a bit, but this seems to be just a step behind the other bottles on the table. Full bodied. Nice black raspberry fruit. Charlie said it was drinkable and I agreed. Just an easy to drink wine. Yet, at I believe $100 a pop, this should provide more IMO. I won’t score it down for that, but still. 50+4+12+17+7=90
2005 Saxum Bone Rock
From Mag. With all the hubbub over Justin’s scores for 06 and 07, it was nice to have this on the menu. Inky purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright. The nose has black raspberries, smoke, plums, kirsch, white pepper and grilled meats. Maybe some black cherries too. Full bodied. Silky texture. On the palate, this is slightly sweet from ripe fruit but dry. Lots of black and red fruits. Showing some complexity. Quite intense. Some licorice on the finish. Easily the WOTF, but it was the groups #2 WOTN all though this was far more controversial than the Orion. 50+5+14+19+9-=97
2005 La Sirena Syrah Napa Valley
From Magnum. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has black raspberries, cassis (is Cab blended in?), and smoke. Full bodied. A bit more unrestrained than what I think of when I think Napa Syrah, but that is not bad. On the palate, black raspberries and a dollop of oak. A nice wine for sure, but also hurt by drinking next to some of these monsters in this flight. It got better all night long. 50+4+13+18+7=92
The Australian Shiraz Flight:
With Firinda Sutlac (Rice pudding)
Initially, I was going to go with the 05 Cal Syrah flight with dessert. Due to last minute changes, I did not. It might have made a better pairing but in retrospect, neither would have worked. I drank my wines and then ate the rice pudding which was great but on the sweet side as far as wine pairings went.
2004 Ben Glaetzer Amon Ra Shiraz
2-750’s. Inky purple, ruby at the rim. The nose shows black raspberries, charred oak and a bit of raisins. Full bodied. Nice texture. On the palate, black raspberries with some anise on the finish. Some heat but this is really a nice bottle. The groups WOTF. 50+5+13+18+8=94
1998 Cape d’Estaing Admiral’s Reserve Shiraz Kangaroo Island
From Mag. Ruby in color with some purple hues. The nose is dusty with black raspberries, white pepper and coffee. This was more restrained than I expected which I liked. On the palate, boysenberries and slightly acidic. Also a slight bitter note on the finish. This seemed un-ozlike (if that’s a word). I enjoyed the wine it certainly had some fans in this flight. 50+4+12+17+6=89
2003 Henry’s Drive Reserve Shiraz
From Magnum. Inky purple in color. The nose has black raspberries, cedar, oak, some menthol. Full bodied. More classic Aussie Shiraz. Not particularly my style of syrah, but I found it well made and about what it should be. Some heat on the finish. 50+4+13+17+7=91
After all that a couple of bottles of the 2006 Saxum Booker Vineyard were opened for fun.
2006 Saxum Booker Vineyard
100% Syrah. Ruby/purple in color, mostly clear and bright. The nose is nice with black raspberries, charred oak, and floral notes. This is surprisingly complex for a young single varietal, single vineyard wine. I am sure it improves from here. Raspberries and black raspberries. Some port like notes on the finish. Very nice. 50+5+13+18+8=94
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