Winemaker Notes
Blend: 91% Dunnigan Hills Syrah, 5% Mendocino Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Chalk Hill Cabernet Sauvignon
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This medium-bodied wine shows an array of smoky, meaty aromas, along with ripe plum and tart blackberry flavors. Not at all overripe, but made with some restraint, it allows savory flavors like tarragon and anise to peek through. The blend includes 9% Cabernet Sauvignon.
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.”
Mitigated by mild Sacramento River Delta breezes, the Dunnigan Hills appellation is in the northwest portion of Yolo County and has a Mediterranean climate.