Winemaker Notes
#29 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2008
"A dense, racy red, with a terrific beam of raspberry and red currant fruit laced with a taut, chalky spine. Tightly drawn for now, with the structure dominant, but the core and balance are evident. A great tug of war between the minerality and the racy fruit plays out on the super lengthy finish. Best from 2012 through 2028. 1,330 cases made."
Wine Spectator 96 Points
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2005 Cornas reveals fabulous aromas of acacia flowers, scorched earth, blackberries, dense cherries, and damp forest floor. Full-bodied with high tannin, but equally high extraction and richness, patience will be required for purchasers of this superb Cornas. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2020+.
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.”
Distinguished as a fine Syrah producing zone since the 18th century, Cornas, like Cote Rotie, is made up of vineyards covering steep and hard-to-work, granite terraces. As a result the region’s wines fell out of favor during the mid 20th century when the global market was more focused on bulk wines and vineyards that yielded high quantities. It wasn’t until the 1980s when a group of energetic young winemakers reestablished the integrity of these precipitous terraces and also began making an ultra-modern style of Syrah. The new style didn’t need a decade before it was drinkable and could reach the consumer faster than the region’s traditional wines. Given the new quality coming out of the zone, its popularity once again soared and today a good Cornas can easily challenge many of those from Hermitage. Characteristics of Syrah from Cornas include teeth-staining flavors of blackberry jam, plum, pepper, violets, smoked game, charcoal, chalk dust and smoke.