Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2009 Syrah Williamson Dore Vineyard (includes 5% Viognier) sweeps across the palate with layers of beautifully delineated dark fruit. White flowers, licorice and blueberries come together in this graceful, restrained wine. The supple, silky finish is quite attractive, yet this comes across as needing at least another year in bottle for all of the elements to fully harmonize. The Williamson Dore spent 16 months in 500-liter Hungarian oak barrels, 50% new. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2021.
I was blown away by the wines I tasted from Foxen. Low yields, late harvests, fully destemmed fruit and bottling with no fining or filtration are some of the elements that define these exceptional, fine wines.
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Wine Enthusiast
Ripe and decadent as usual, maybe even more so in blackberry tart, melted dark chocolate and spicy plum flavors with a touch of funky bacon. You can't help but be impressed by the richness. Saved from being a mere fruit bomb by acidity and lush, smooth tannins.
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Wine Spectator
A touch of mulch and celery are evident in the aroma. Intense and vibrant, with zesty acidity and firm tannins, yet the snappy blueberry and blackberry flavors are persistent, focused and lingering. Best from 2013 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.”
Ranging from cool and foggy in the west to warm and dry in the east, the Santa Ynez Valley is a climatically diverse growing area. The most expansive AVA within the larger Santa Barbara County region, Santa Ynez is also home to a wide variety of soil types and geographical features. The appellation is further divided into four distinct sub-AVAs—Sta. Rita Hills, Ballard Canyon, Los Olivos District and Happy Canyon—each with its own defining characteristics.
A wide selection of grapes is planted here—more than sixty different varieties, and counting. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir dominate in the chilly west, while Zinfandel, Rhône blends, and Bordeaux blends rule the arid east. Syrah is successful at both ends of the valley, with a lean and peppery, Old-World sensibility closer to the coast and lush berry fruit further inland.