Winemaker Notes
On the nose, aromas of blackberries, sage and cinnamon. On the palate, sweet treacle, dark cherry and black pepper and a bright front end of acidity followed closely by lush tannins.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
This extremely gamy style of Syrah comes from a vineyard on the western edge of this already coastally influenced appellation. Raw lamb and seared elderberry aromas on the nose lead into a palate of rugged asphalt and tar, with funky dark fruits and wild herbs also apparent.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
All Syrah that was destemmed and brought up mostly in concrete (25% in stainless steel), the 2020 Syrah Amor Fati Murmur Vineyard offers a dense purple hue to go with classic Syrah notes of peppery black fruits, game, leather, and violets. It's nicely textured, medium-bodied, has a focused, structured mouthfeel, and a great finish. This outstanding wine should easily have a decade of prime drinking.
Rating: 91+
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.