Our Wines  :  2005 Napa Valley Syrah

The Napa Valley Syrah has become a standard at the winery as a wine known for both its quality and its value. At 18 barrels, the 2005 Napa Syrah was a bit larger than last year’s release but the quality level has improved. A stricter selection on the single-vineyard Page-Nord Syrah led to an influx of high quality barrels into this blend. Of course, the wine was also aided by the cool 2005 growing season. Syrah in California can easily become a goopy mess in warmer vintages. But cooler years like 2005 lead to more structured, tighter, and overall better balanced wines. This was certainly the case with the 2005 Napa Syrah as the wine is significantly lower in alcohol and higher in natural acidity than in either 2004 or 2003. We believe that the 2005 Napa Syrah is an Appellation Series blend that truly needs some age. At this early stage, the wine shows concentrated blackberry and loganberry flavors along with hints of tar, sage, and other herbal notes. The finish shows some minerality and, due to the wine’s acidity, clamps down a touch. Opening the wine and letting it breathe for several hours certainly leads to a more open, rich wine but giving it several years in a cool cellar should yield even greater rewards.