Winemaker Notes
This wine makes me happy. It’s so pure, so restrained, yet soon... it explodes with black plum, black olive, black pepper and licorice. It doesn’t stop there... it explodes Asian floral prettiness that moves into forest floor, cured meat, charred herbs and clove. The texture is warm and inviting and just feels... like a celebration.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Syrah comes from a site in the Yakima Valley that was planted by Leighton. Its deep ruby/purple color is followed by classic Syrah notes of dark berry fruits, smoke tobacco, olive tapenade, and ground pepper. Medium to full-bodied, with both freshness and richness, it’s impeccably balanced, with beautiful fruit and a great finish. It’s another seriously good wine from Brennon that delivers the goods.
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James Suckling
Super fragrant and attractive aromas of wild berries, spices and pepper, as well as dark stones and orange-zest nuances. This has exceptionally defined fruit and length. Really superior definition and concentration are what sets this apart. Tastes of dark cherries, blood plums and dark chocolate with a weave of fine spice and pepper. Plenty here already, but much more to come. Try from 2024.
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Wine Enthusiast
Mourvèdre makes up 70% of this wine, with the rest Grenache and Syrah. The aromas aren’t ready to reveal themselves on first pour, with aromas of raspberry, orange peel, smoked meat and herb emerging over time. The palate shows a lovely sense of purity and detail. Yum.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Syrah Olsen Brothers Vineyard has an expressive nose of black pepper and roasted herbs with dark, dusty black fruit. Full-bodied, the wine tastes of black peppercorn and blackberry with hints of bacon fat that frame the subtle yet elegant notes of French oak and baking spices. It has a firm tannic edge that leads to a long, savory finish. This will last for more than a decade. Only 290 cases made.
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.”
As the first recognized wine-growing region in the Pacific Northwest, Yakima Valley is centrally located within Washington’s vast Columbia Valley. The region also includes Washington’s oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines, Otis Vineyard, planted in 1957, and Harrison Hill Vineyard, planted in 1963. Yakima Valley contains three smaller sub-regions: Rattlesnake Hills, Red Mountain, and Snipes Mountain and is ideal for both red and white wine production. In fact, Yakima Valley is Washington’s most diverse region, boasting more than 40 different grape varieties over about one hundred miles.
The cooler parts of the valley are home to almost half of the Chardonnay and Riesling produced in the state! Both are made in a wide range of styles depending on the conditions of the vineyard site.
But its warmer locations yield a large proportion of Washington’s best Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. The finest Yakima Valley reds are jam-packed full of red cherry, currant, raspberry or blackberry fruit, as well as cocoa, herb, spice and savory notes, and exhibit a supple texture, great body, focus and length.