2012 La Côte Patriarche

This old block of Syrah at Red Willow Vineyard (Washington State’s oldest) provides amazing “dark” consistency regardless of the year’s growing conditions. We always net a black/purple wine, rich texture and subtle power, but the brooding profile in 2012 is another step up. It’s the darkest color of our three syrahs (no small feat), its darkness all-encompassing: aroma, flavor and texture are consistently “black”. Sweet blackberry, plum, spicy pepper and smoke lead the aromatics, with a bit of wild roasted meat. Despite the sheer volume of fruit, there’s a charming presence of subtle blueberry, crushed dried herbs, roasted grain. The palate is huge, concentrated yet with fine grain tannins. This seeming dichotomy of size and yet delicacy must be soil driven: the ancient, pre-Missoula Flood soils provide a challenging, low fertility medium for the vines and, to this observer, deliver finesse and elegance to the wine. Hard to resist now, tuck this away as well; long cellaring will reward with increased complexity.