Roark Wine Co. Syrah 2013
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Ryan started his journey with a fascination for farming; he studied plant pathology and microbiology at Texas A&M where he was able to take part in an agricultural exchange program that placed him with a small family-owned winery located in the Loire Valley. There he worked the land and learned the skills that he would take with him throughout France, New Zealand, and California .
What began as a 100 case Chenin Blanc project has evolved into a small grape growing and winemaking operation. Ryan and his small team farm a handful of vineyards throughout Santa Barbara County while also sourcing grapes from trusted growers to produce about 1,500 cases of wine per year.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Accounting for only ten percent of the greater Santa Ynez AVA, Ballard Canyon’s north-south orientation provides an ideal pattern of sunshine and martime fog for producing excellent Syrah. While Syrah is planted to half of the total AVA acreage, an additional third is dedicated to other Rhône varieties, red and white.