2021 Torrin Akasha
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Sourced from the Fulldraw, Paderewski and Bien Nacido Vineyards, the 2021 Akasha includes 5% Grenache and spent 22 months in 70% new 300-liter French oak. It opens with a nose of opaque fruits, toasted cedar, exotic spices, burning incense, white pepper and some noticeable alcoholic burn. The palate is rich and extracted, with a fleshy, glossy texture that awkwardly transitions to a grainy astringent finish of oak-derived tannins and overly firm acidity. While I may have caught this in an awkward phase, the alcohol perception is hard to avoid and forces me to question if this will ever fully resolve into a balanced wine.
Critic scores
Average Score
Eric Guido, Vinous
Matthew Luczy, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Earthy and animalistic to the core, the 2021 Akasha invokes the Northern Rhône with a beguiling bouquet of crushed ashen stones, black olives, white pepper, smoke, rum cake and sage. This is sleek and racy, washing across the palate with ripe wild berry fruits. The 95% Syrah/5% Grenache blend quickly gains in spicy tension as clove and cedar saturate, while a core of zesty acidity maintains balance. Impossibly long, this leaves the senses drenched in primary fruit flavors with edgy tannins that create a crunchy sensation.