Winemaker Notes
The Originals Syrah vines are not only our “Original” planting, but they are the oldest vines in Ballard Canyon AVA. The wine made from these vines in the mid 1990’s generated the Syrah-planting fervor which eventually led to the publication of Ballard Canyon AVA. Because we withhold irrigation for months on end during our arid growing season, these vines have rooted deeply into our limestone in search of moisture. They yield small crops of tiny, concentrated grapes.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2019 Syrah Originals offers a more cool-climate vibe in its peppery herbs, gamey meat, flowers, and black olive-driven aromatics. It hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, ripe tannins, and a great overall amount of texture and richness balanced by good freshness. Made from 100% Syrah that was only 50% destemmed, aged 20 months in neutral oak, this is a classic Ballard Canyon Syrah to enjoy over the coming 7-8 years or so.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Syrah Originals Estate is scented of red and black currants with touches of cast iron, smoked meat, citrus peel and dried flowers. The palate is chalky, fresh and easy to drink, with iron and game meat accents on the long finish.
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.”
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.