2008 Betz Family Syrah La Côte Patriarche
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Tasting notes
(from Red Willow Vineyard) Deep, full bright ruby. Very primary aromas of blackberry and cocoa powder. Dense, thick and very intense, with wonderfully pure fruit-driven flavors of blackberry and loganberry. Offers a superb balance of fruit, acids and tannins. Finishes very long and pure, with lovely aromatic lift and nuance. An outstanding wine in the making. These 2008 syrahs aged in 50% new oak, but Betz noted he's now using a higher percentage of slightly larger 300-liter barrels, and more Burgundy barrels.
Critic scores
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2008 Syrah La Cote Patriarche was sourced from the Red Willow Vineyard in Yakima Valley, site of the oldest Syrah planting in Washington dating from 1986. It, too, was aged for 12 months in 50% new French oak. Dense purple in color (like the La Serenne), it sports a nose of brooding black fruits, lavender, Asian spices, smoked meat, blue berry, and plum. This leads to a plush, full-figured Syrah with well-concealed tannins, excellent depth of flavor, and a lengthy, fruit-filled finish. Bob Betz, MW, and his family continue to make some of Washington’s finest wine. Betz’s attention to detail is legendary; everything is done for a reason. He sources great fruit, oversees the farming, and his fine-tuned palate ensures the correct call on all the blends. Tel. (425) 861-9823; www.betzfamilywinery.com
The most structured of Bob’s ‘08s, the 2008 Betz Family Syrah La Côte Patriarche is one of the top ‘08s I was able to taste. The wine offers dense, smoky aromatics of spiced cassis and blackberry fruit, pepper, violets and meat that are wrapped around a deep, mineral driven core. These lead into a medium to full bodied wine that shows stunning fruit, fantastic balance, serious, age worthy structure and a long finish. Like the ’08 Rousse, give bottles a handful of years and then drink over the following 10 to 15.