2015 Rhys Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard
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Moving to the reds, the 2015 Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard reminds me of a great vintage from Jamet in Côte Rôtie with its exotic floral, peppery, sappy, and gamey aromas and flavors. Medium to full-bodied and beautifully concentrated, with building structure, it’s another brilliant Syrah from this estate. While the Pinot Noirs get all the attention here, don’t miss a chance to try their Syrah.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Jeb Dunnuck
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The 2015 Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard is quite rich, and yet it also has tremendous freshness, especially within the context of the year. Today, the Syrah is a bit more reticent than it was from barrel, but all the ingredients are present for the 2015 to blossom into a spectacular wine over time. The Syrah spends six months in French oak and a second year in cask. Time in cask seems to really bring out striking detail and structure while maintaining a good deal of freshness as well. (AG) 96+
The 2015 Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard is quite rich, and yet it also has tremendous freshness, especially within the context of the year. Today, the Syrah is a bit more reticent than it was from barrel, but all the ingredients are present for the 2016 to blossom into a spectacular wine over time. The Syrah spends six months in French oak and a second year in cask. Time in cask seems to really bring out striking detail and structure while maintaining a good deal of freshness as well.
While this site is mostly known for Pinot Noir, it makes a seriously good Syrah. The 2015 Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard is a youthful, backward, even unevolved, effort that reveals a deep purple color as well as notes of cassis, black raspberries, bay leaf, violets and a hint of mint. It reveals plenty of pepper and classic cool-climate Syrah characteristics with time in the glass, is medium to full-bodied, has terrific purity, and a great finish. Forget bottles for 2-3 years and enjoy over the following decade. This was a terrific lineup of 2015s from the team at Rhys. Across the board, these are tight and structured, with terrific concentration. Give them a few years of bottle age. Unfortunately, due to the devastating yields, there’s no Skyline Vineyard or Hillside releases in 2015s. In addition, they have a new estate vineyard in the Santa Cruz Mountains (bringing their total to seven estate vineyards) that will be coming on line over the next couple of years. Named Mount Pajaro Vineyard, the site was planted in 2010 and covers 18 acres in the southern part of the Santa Cruz Mountains, planted all with high density, 3.5 feet row spacing. Harvey commented that they’ve learned a lot over the past decade planting their other estate properties and they’re excited about the quality of this site.