Winemaker Notes
At Boushey vineyard, we farm 2 separate blocks of Syrah, each parcel being 1 acre in size. Both blocks were planted in 1996 to the Phelps clone of Syrah. This clone of Syrah is well suited to “cooler” vineyard sites, as its resistance to cold is strong. Despite only several hundred feet separating these two blocks, the character of each block can be markedly different. This unique difference in character lends complexity to the final blend.
This year, the character of our Upper block syrah was one of great ripeness, bringing black olive, lavender, and cardamom spice to a silky texture. The Lower block’s character was one of restraint, bringing plum and cherry tones onto a taut structure. The final blend is a combines a nearly 50/50 blend from each site, and reflects the wild side of Syrah.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This has terrific plum and boysenberry aromas with attractive wet earth and deep plums, violets, hard brown spices and dark stones. The palate has bright yet precise dark-plum and blackberry fruits, spiced dark chocolate, stony elements and a long, succulent finish. Brilliant wine in a very early stage of its life. Drink 2020 through a decade or more.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Syrah la Serenne hails from two acres within the Boushey Vineyard and was fermented with between 66% and 100% whole clusters. The wine is already very complex, wafting from the glass with notes of grilled meat, dried lavender, pepper and candied peel. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and lavish, with a layered mid-palate, fine-grained structuring tannins, sappy acids and a sapid, saline finish.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming from the Boushey Vineyard in the Yakima Valley, the 2015 Syrah La Serenne is full-bodied, fresh and elegant, with classic cooler climate Syrah notes of peppery herbs, darker berry fruits, lavender, spring flowers, and smoked earth. It has terrific complexity and glides over the palate, making for a sensational Syrah from Washington State. Drink it anytime over the coming decade.
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Wine & Spirits
A dramatically savory Washington wine, there’s a distinctly flinty, smoky scent to this dark red; notes of tar and olive are close behind. The fruit flavors, along the lines of cassis and fig, are fully grounded by these savory elements, with dense, oily tannins that will cut against something charry, like aged ribeye
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.