Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Connoisseurs' Guide
The remarkable 2013 Domaine des Chirats is a collaborative effort between Jeff and Rhône vigneron, Yves Cuilleron, and it quite simply ranks with the best Syrahs to have come our way. It shows the ripeness, richness and size that we have come to expect from Mr. Cohn, yet it is uncommonly well-structured and tempers its strength with real refinement. While already a Syrah of evident layering and show-stopping depth, it is not nearly the wine that it will be with age, and those who are incapable of letting it quietly sit for another six to ten years and insist on drinking it up in its youth, will be missing out on a memorable vinous experience.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
One special cuvée that Jeff Cohn does with the famous Northern Rhône winemaker Yves Cuilleron, called Domaine Des Chirats, is Syrah from the Rockpile Vineyard. The 2013 Syrah Domaine Des Chirats Rockpile Vineyard, which apparently they have made together, is a sensational effort. This is stunning stuff. Black/purple in color, its gorgeous blackberry fruit, floral notes, super-supple tannins, multi-layered texture, and an opulent, full-bodied finish make for a profound glass of Syrah from this special AVA in Sonoma. Drink it over the next decade or more.
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.”
High elevation vineyards—800 to 2,100 feet—on well-drained soils of red and brown clay loam, gravel and large rock outcroppings produce low yields of intense, high-quality fruit. Surrounded by Northern Sonoma County and overlapping Dry Creek Valley in its northwest corner, the Rockpile AVA produces some of California most powerful Zinfandel, Petit Sirah, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon based wines.