Winemaker Notes
Blend: 96% Grenache, 4% Syrah
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Pure and incisive, yet with a subtle fleshiness to the mid-palate, this well-structured, scrubby-herb-inflected grenache shows balance with its inlay of spiced cherries and bramble berries. Tension propels it forward with poise and energy.
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Vinous
The 2021 Grenache marries power and intensity. Red/purplish fruit, spice, rose petal, cinnamon and blood orange are all beautifully woven together. Own-rooted Grenache here is so compelling. This is a great expression of Ballard Canyon and also a terrific example of what is possible at Kimsey in a less bombastic style.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Moving to the reds, the 2021 Grenache (there’s 5% Syrah) reveals a translucent medium ruby hue as well as a beautiful perfume of tart strawberries, cherries, leafy herbs, and gravelly earth. With medium to full body, ripe, integrated tannins, and terrific purity of fruit, it has the structure to benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age and will shine over the following decade. It's a beautiful Ballard Canyon Grenache.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
Accounting for only ten percent of the greater Santa Ynez AVA, Ballard Canyon’s north-south orientation provides an ideal pattern of sunshine and martime fog for producing excellent Syrah. While Syrah is planted to half of the total AVA acreage, an additional third is dedicated to other Rhône varieties, red and white.