Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Mostly from Bien Nacido Vineyard, this is solidly in the winery's style, which is huge, fruit-forward, full-bodied wines of vast concentration and deliciousness. There is nothing at all subtle about this Syrah. It overwhelms with blackberry pie, cassis and chocolate-coated cherry candy flavors, with licorice and white pepper overtones, and is also big in tannins, although they're ripe and sweet. Racy acidity saves the day, and keeps it from being a fruit bomb.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From a relatively new producer who has already done some impressive work with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Ambullneo’s 2004 Syrah Howling displays an elegant style along with sweet blackberry and cherry fruit intermixed with a subtle touch of oak, medium to full body, and a fine finish.
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.”
A lesser-known but elite AVA within the larger Santa Barbara district, the Santa Maria Valley AVA runs precisely west to east starting near the coast. The valley funnels cool, Pacific Ocean air to the vineyards more inland, allowing grapes a longer hang time to ripen evenly and achieve their full potential by harvest time. Combined with minimal rainfall, consistent warm sunshine, and well-drained soils, it is an ideal environment for grape growing.
Many of the wineries here are small and highly respected, having established a reputation in the 1970s and 80s for producing excellent Central Coast wines like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. More recently, Syrah has also proven quite successful in the region. Many vineyards are owned by growers who sell their grapes to other wineries, so it is common to see the same vineyard name on bottlings from different wineries. Bien Nacido Vineyard is perhaps the best-known and most prestigious.