Whitehall Lane Winery has a focus on red wines, more Cabernet driven wines. This 2019 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Zinfandel offers notes of blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, boysenberry, and huckleberry. The fruit is fully structured by moderate to mature tannins, the use of judicious oak, and a mild acidity. There are back notes of vanilla, sandalwood, and light campfire. This is definitely a food friendly red wine to pair with a various dishes, but it’s also a wine that makes you remember how good Napa wines can be when they’re treated with restraint.
This is 95% Syrah and 5% Petite Sirah from Israel. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, gravel, roasted meats, and minerality. Full bodied. Light tannins. Good balance. On the palate, this is varietally correct. Black raspberry fruit with gravelly minerality and slight char. Nice finish. This is nice on its own and would be welcome with a brisket at a Passover Seder. Drink over the next five to seven years.
This Syrah was co-fermented with 2% Viognier. Inky purple in color, opaque and shimmering bright. The nose is expressive with black raspberries, roasted meats, black pepper, and slight floral notes. Full bodied. Medium tannins. Great energy. On the palate, this is still primary. Big black raspberry fruit. With air some black pepper and meaty notes come out. Also a touch of char. Good finish. This needs a few more years and could handle much more. It should drink well for another 15 years. Very nice on its own, this will need big meaty/roasted flavors for now. Plenty of upside
The wines of SQN are so good, it can be hard to wait on them so it was a real treat to find this in my cellar. At age 17, it is still youthful but showing development. It is outstanding. It is 93% Syrah, 4.5% Grenache and 2.5% Viognier. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, roasted meats and dried herbs, and spice. Full bodied. Medium tannins. Great energy. On the palate, this is complex and deep. Flavors of black raspberries with black pepper and a nice earthiness. Great texture. Long finish. Delicious. This is great on its own
This is a Syrah from the Sonoma Coast made in Helen Keplinger's home winery. It drinks with a cooler climate profile and comes across beautifully. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with boysenberries, dark chocolate, slight bacon fat and violets. Medium to full bodied. Medium tannins. On the palate, this is the elegant side of California Syrah. Boysenberries, white pepper and roasted herbs. Deep. Still young but starting to show some maturity. Drink over the next ten to fifteen years. This is great on its own but better with food. Grilled Lamb Chops would work
This is a new winery for me and the first Syrah I have had from this AVA. This Syrah is quite good and well priced for the quality. I was expecting more of a cool climate profile but this is sort of middle of the road in California Syrah. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, floral (purple?) notes, grilled meats, wild herbs and slight bacon fat. Full bodied. Medium tannins. Moderate acidity. On the palate, there is juicy black raspberry fruit with some herbal notes and slight char. This has depth. Long finish. Very tasty. It drinks well on its own
These usually take a decade or so to round out into form so it was interesting to try this one a bit earlier. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is great with black raspberries, black pepper, slight bacon fat, and roasted herbs. Medium to full bodied. Medium tannins. Good acidity. On the palate, this is still a bit tight but opens nicely in the glass. Flavors of black raspberries with some char and a nice mineral streak. Good finish. No harm opening this now but it may still improve. Drink over the next eight to twelve years. Great on its own, but better with food. Thi
This is 100% Syrah. Torrin wines are big, bold wines that really need at least a decade in most vintages to really come around for my tastes. That said, at age 9, this was singing. Inky purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, smoked meats, slight bacon fat, black pepper and violets. Full bodied. Medium tannins. Great energy. On the palate, black raspberries, char, some blueberries and some minerality. Long finish. This is great on its own, but even at age 9 will be a difficult food pairing. A nice BBQ Brisket would work. Drink over the next ten to fif
This is a blend of 89% Syrah and 11% Graciano from the Central Coast of California. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose has black raspberries, black pepper and roasted meats and herbs. Full bodied. Medium tannins. On the palate, this is drinking well. Flavors of black raspberries with some pepper. Good finish. This is riper in style but not to an extreme. It should drink well for another ten years. Nice on its own, this will work well with hearty foods such as Roasted Acorn Squash.
