Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
The 2018 Clary Ranch Syrah was harvested on 9 November and has just 11% alcohol! This is perhaps the most extreme Syrah site in California, and the resulting wine a world-class one. Its nose is extremely savoury and definitive of the variety, with notes of beef jerky, mesquite and cardamom that continue on the palate, which simultaneously has the weight of a feather but lasting substance and structure. This wine perpetually evolved and unfolded over 72 hours, and is a great example of what is now being achieved with Syrah in California. Drinking Window 2020 - 2035
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 vast appellation covering Sonoma County’s Pacific coastline, the Sonoma Coast AVA runs all the way from the Mendocino County border, south to the San Pablo Bay. The region can actually be divided into two sections—the actual coastal vineyards, marked by marine soils, cool temperatures and saline ocean breezes—and the warmer, drier vineyards further inland, which are still heavily influenced by the Pacific but not quite with same intensity.
Contained within the appellation are the much smaller Fort Ross-Seaview and Petaluma Gap AVAs.
The Sonoma Coast is highly regarded for elegant Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and, increasingly, cool-climate Syrah. The wines have high acidity, moderate alcohol, firm tannin, and balanced ripeness.