2006 Sanguis As The Crow Flies

(syrah with 2% viognier) Deep ruby. Classic syrah aromas of dark berries, smoke, cured meat, olive and violet. Deep, succulent blackberry and blueberry flavors are complemented by candied violet and tobacco qualities, with supple tannins gaining strength with air. Finishes with good grip and a whiplash of sweet berry fruit. This should age slowly.

Another sexy wine from Sanguis is the 2006 As The Crow Flies. This wine is behaving pretty much the same as it did from barrel last year. Mostly Syrah with about 3% Viognier, the wine has a floral, sexy bouquet, with plenty of sweet cassis, smoked meats, and a little bit of kirsch as well. Lots of baby fat, full body, an expansive, almost decadent mouthfeel, and tremendous persistence characterize this wine. It should drink nicely for a decade or more. Readers who compare last year’s barrel tasting notes with those for the finished wines will notice that these 2006s are dramatically superior to how they showed last year, which is the way it should be. This is an impressive group of wines that, from an appearance standpoint, are clones of Manfred Krankl’s Sine Qua Non, especially the distinctive artistic labels done by the proprietor, much like Krankl does, and the back-breaking heavy bottles. Tel. (805) 640-9432