Winemaker Notes
Boushey Vineyard, which has been the source of La Serenne since 2000, is one of the stars of the mid-Yakima Valley. Farmed by Dick Boushey, a proponent of Washington Syrah since the 1980’s, this site has gained notoriety for its unique varietal expression and supple texture. The word Serenne is an affectionate name for Syrah in the local dialect of Ampuis, a town in the heart France’s northern Rhône valley. We find this to be a fitting name for our Syrah from Boushey, as it reminds us of the wild (or as the French say “Sauvage”), Rhône-esque character of the wine.
The fruit reflects the sum total of conditions here: location in the mid-Yakima Valley, higher elevation, cooler climate, soils undisturbed by the Missoula Floods and Dick’s exemplary farming practices. Harvest is typically 2-3 weeks later than our Syrah vines planted elsewhere, indicating the uniqueness of its position.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Coming all from Boushey Vineyard, the 2016 Syrah La Serenne saw plenty of whole clusters as well as 11 months in French oak, 40% new. It’s deep inky colored with a smoking bouquet of blueberries, spring flowers, gunpowder like minerality, and liquid violets. With classic gamey Syrah character, plenty of pepper, medium to full-bodied richness, and a heavenly, silky texture, this might just be the finest vintage of this cuvée to date.
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James Suckling
Dark, brooding and modern, this has pepper, cherry liqueur and chocolate plus exotic spicy flavors that extend through to the palate. Assertive, forthright finish. Needs three to four years to open.
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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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Wine Enthusiast
The aromas start out brooding, opening up to reveal notes of fresh and dried herb, smoke, dark coffee bean, iron and smoked meat, focusing mostly on the savory. The flavors are light, deft, and elegant, displaying enough structure to reward a bit of time in the cellar. Those looking for a big, bold expression of this variety and vineyard should look elsewhere. This one is all about finesse.
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Wine Spectator
Refined and delicately expressive, with blueberry and smoked spice flavors that linger elegantly toward sleek tannins. Drink now through 2023.
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.