Winemaker Notes
The 2019 jumps from the glass offering loads of rich ripe blackberries, violets, charcuterie, pepper, and olive notes, possessing a rich full texture, super fine tannins, and a finish that goes on and on. This wine begs to be enjoyed now, but will certainly reward those who wait, as this beauty has just begun to show her true potential.
Blend: 61% Syrah, 24% Mourvedre, 13% Grenache, 2% Viognier
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2019 EABA shows the cooler, elegant style of the vintage yet still has classic Jim Binns texture and opulence. Black cherries, kirsch liqueur, roasted herbs, sandalwood, and hints of white pepper define the bouquet, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a pure, elegant mouthfeel and a gorgeous finish. This cooler-climate, perfumed, complex, satisfying Syrah blend will evolve for 15-20 years if well stored. The blend is 61% Syrah, 24% Mourvèdre, 13% Grenache, and the rest Viognier that saw 65% stems and 22 months in 55% new barrels.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 EABA ("end all be all") is a blend of 61% Syrah, 24% Mourvèdre, 13% Grenache and 2% Viognier and was made with 65% whole clusters. Fruit comes from several vineyards in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, including Bien Nacido, White Hawk, Larner, Harrison-Clarke, G2 and Alta Mesa. It was matured for about 22 months in 55% new French barriques and 600-liter demi-muids and 45% used French barriques, and it was bottled on August 21, 2021. Opaque ruby-purple in color, it offers beautiful, pure scents of licorice, tar, blueberry and black cherry jam, charcuterie, pepper, olive and fried savory herbs, offering up more nuances as it spends time in the glass. Medium-bodied, it has abundant, super-fine tannins, seamless acidity and slowly expanding, spicy flavor layers, finishing very long and alluringly floral. Its notable length, detail and latency suggest this will continue to improve in bottle over the next 5-7 years and will be long lived in the cellar.
Rating: 97+
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
With a dry and mild climate cooled significantly by moist ocean fog and breezes, Santa Barbara County is a grape-grower’s dream. Part of the larger Central Coast appellation, Santa Barbara is home to Santa Maria Valley and Santa Ynez Valley. The conditions here provide an opportunity for nearly effortless production of high-quality cool-climate Central Coast wines. This is also the site of the 2004 film Sideways, which caused Pinot Noir’s popularity to skyrocket and brought new acclaim to the region.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the stars of Santa Barbara, producing wines marked by racy acidity. Crisp Sauvignon Blanc and savory Syrah are also important. The region is home to many young and enthusiastic winemakers eager to experiment with less common varieties including Chenin Blanc, Grüner Veltliner, Trousseau Gris, Gamay and Cabernet Franc, making it an exciting area to watch.