which syrahs are retirement worthy?

[James_Billy]

And while the good folks on this board tend to stick with CA and France, you don’t need to do that. There’s really good Syrah made all over the world these days - South Africa, Chile, Australia, Spain, Hungary, Austria, also Washington State as you know since you’re buying Cayuse.

That’s not been my personal experience. At least for me, syrah is best from France, and secondarily, from some California winemakers and vineyards. The rest are few and far between for me.

Lol. You haven’t tried South African Syrah or from other New World countries (that doesn’t just mean the States, you know?!)

Edit: I missed Marcus’ post above when I wrote this.

[Robert.A.Jr]

I have tried many of the years, none that made me a repeat buyer. That does not mean I did not enjoy some.

I have found this with Cab Franc as well. I love Cab Franc, but rarely buy any outside of Bordeaux and Loire. And yes, I have tried many from all over. Raats from South Africa is an exception, an excellent Cab Franc expressing solid typicity. Interestingly, their so-called luxury cuvee (Mvemve Raats de Compostella), in prior vintages I tried, is over-oaked and tastes like something Rolland might have made. Stick to their $30 base Cab Franc. They make a less expensive bottling called Jasper that is quite nice. And their sub-$15 unoaked Chenin Blanc is lovely.

[Michael_Martin]

I love Syrah and I bought many on your list, but I am also scaling back with impending retirement around the corner.

I decided the best bang for the buck for my tastes are Jaffurs and Bedrock. Their Syrahs are different from each other and I feel I get the best of southern and northern CA with their offerings.

I dropped Alban a couple years ago and just stopped buying Saxum. For more than double the price of Jaffurs or Bedrock, I just wasn’t getting double the enjoyment.

[Gabe_Berk]

Lucia -Susan’s Hill Syrah (Section of Pisoni Vineyard) is amazing stuff at $60 a bottle.