2006 Martinelli Syrah Chico's Hill
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Tasting notes
Inky ruby. Highly complex aromas of dark cherry, cassis, graphite and tobacco, along with a slow-building floral quality. Fleshy dark berry flavors gain ripeness and power with air, picking up sweet cola and candied licorice qualities. A strong cracked pepper note adds vibrancy to the finish, which is impressively deep and persistent. I'd give this rather brooding wine a few more years of aging.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
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The outstanding 2006 Syrah Chico’s Hill displays enormous quantities of concentrated blackberries, incense, roasted herbs, coffee bean, and meatiness. It is a huge wine to drink over the next 10 years. Martinelli’s Zinfandel portfolio continues to grow, with as many as five different offerings now available. The 2006 and 2007 Jackass Hill Vineyard cuvees were not tasted at this visit. However, the other four wines I tasted, all from steep hillside vineyard sites with the newer plantings planted from bud wood of both the Jackass Hill and Jackass vineyards, were brilliant. They are among the fullest-bodied, headiest, most distinctive Zinfandels made in California. Tel. (707) 525-0570; Fax (707) 525-9463
About the producer
Martinelli is a Sonoma benchmark for vineyard-designate bottlings—wines built to highlight how strongly a single site can shape Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah, and Zinfandel. Across the range, the focus stays consistent: small-production bottlings that feel distinctly tied to where they’re grown.