2017 De Lille Cellars Signature Syrah
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Tasting notes
Bright, saturated medium ruby. Inky blackberry, cassis, violet and black olive on the nose. Wonderfully smooth and mouthfilling, with black fruit, violet and bitter chocolate flavors offering superb concentration and sexy sweetness. Here, too, the tannins are serious but utterly suave, and the finishing flavors of dark berries and violet build inexorably. This savory, brisk, clearly delineated Syrah should evolve gracefully in the cellar. Not a gamey style but primary, dense and built to age, finishing with palate-saturating tannins. Plusher in its youth than the more tightly wound 2016, this will give more early pleasure. (aged for 20 months in 35% new oak)
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
A blend of 98% Syrah and 2% Viognier, the 2017 Syrah Signature displays a dark ruby core with a purple rim and offers aromas of blackberry jus with hints of smoke and black pepper, followed by baked earth and dried violets. Medium to full-bodied, the wine unfolds across the mid-palate to reveal flavors of black raspberry, black tea and bitter dark chocolate and shows youthful tannins that will lend longevity. It ends with a sensation of black cherry skin on the lingering finish. The wine was fermented in stainless steel and aged for 20 months in French oak, one-third of which was first fill. It certainly checks all the boxes. Nice wine. 8,900 bottles made.
A 60/40 split of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2017 Doyenne is modeled after the reds from Provence (think Trevallon) and offers outstanding notes of ripe black fruits, Asian spices, leafy herbs, and a hint of herbes de Provence. Playing in the medium-bodied end of the spectrum, it’s balanced, has ripe, polished tannins, and is already hard to resist. Enjoy bottles any time over the coming decade. What I would consider a Washington State First Growth, Delille Cellars produces both incredible quality as well as quantity, pulling from vineyards throughout the state of Washington. This is always one of my favorite tastings in Washington, and given that they pull from sites throughout the state, it’s a great way to learn about a given vintage. The winemaking team has been headed up by Jason Gorski for a number of years now and they continue to fashion a classic, balanced style of wine that has plenty of fruit as well as balanced, age-worthy profiles. They excel with both their Bordeaux varieties and their Rhones. Looking at the 2017s reviewed here, these show the more elegant, streamlined style of the vintage nicely and have plenty of site-specific characters. I think these check in behind the 2016s, but they are certainly terrific wines. The 2018, most of which were tasted from barrel, also have plenty of elegance and purity, and I think will be in the same ballpark, if not a step up over the 2017s. Either way, these are terrific wines across the board, and you can’t go wrong here. In addition to the reds, which get all the attention, don’t miss the whites from this estate. They’re unquestionably up with the best of the state.