2014 En Cerise Vineyard Syrah
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Tasting notes
(13.4% alcohol; from a 1998 planting): Bright, dark red-ruby. Musky, balsamic scents of black raspberry, iron, bloody steak, salty cherries, black pepper, purple berries and flowers and subtle wild herbs; a hint of herbal rawness adds another element. Juicy, spicy, peppery and tight, displaying terrific energy but very unforthcoming today. A dark, very Old World style with a brooding brown spice character that would mostly be absent in a Syrah that included Viognier. Still a bit imploded and subdued, and salty on the very long aftertaste.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
Just slightly more ruby colored than the Cailloux Vineyard, the 2014 Syrah en Cerise offers more elegance and finesse as well as lots of black cherry, plums, Asian spice and dried lavender aromatics. Full-bodied, elegant and very fine, it's a pretty, perfumed and seamless beauty.
Soil is 'Freewater cobbly loam' over pure basalt – the bedrock stratum is apparently one of the largest areas of basalt lava on the surface of the earth. Planted at 849 ft. Parly whole bunch, fermented in Nomblot barrel-shaped concrete tanks. 2-3 weeks on skins. Aged in French oak, 20% new. TA 5.3 g/l, pH 3.85. Total 361 cases. Heavy bottle. Deepest crimson, smoky and just a little toasty. Lovely peppery Syrah purity shines through. Dry, refined texture. Elegant and ethereal and a super-fine chalky texture. Dry and mouth-watering finish. (JH)
Just slightly more ruby colored than the Cailloux Vineyard, the 2014 Syrah en Cerise offers more elegance and finesse as well as lots of black cherry, plums, Asian spice and dried lavender aromatics. Full-bodied, elegant and very fine, it's a pretty, perfumed and seamless beauty. Jun 2017, www.robertparker.com