Winemaker Notes
The Syrah grapes are sourced from two amazing vineyards in the Napa Valley – Hudson in Los Carneros and Stagecoach on Atlas Peak. These unique AVAs lend this wine its signature characteristics. The cool, foggy Hudson vineyard imparts this wine with a smoky, gamey nose layered with white and black pepper, while the sunny and rocky Stagecoach vineyard is responsible for the concentrated blueberry and raspberry aromatics. The Hudson vineyard also brings beautiful, bright raspberries, black pepper, smoke, finesse and a lively acid to the palate, whereas the Stagecoach vineyard adds dark fruit, great concentration, and structure.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Well-built and richly structured, with bold aromas of blackberry, mocha and licorice, showing layered flavors of smoky raspberry, grilled herb and pepper. The tannins are big, but ripe and balanced. Drink now through 2028.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
PlumpJack's delicious 2013 Syrah, which is 100% Syrah aged in 65% new French oak, tips the scales at 15% alcohol. It offers a dense purple color, a big, sweet kiss of blackberry and cassis liqueur, and touches of licorice and underbrush. It is full-bodied, opulent, and best drunk over the next decade or more.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.