2007 Jus Soli Syrah, Romano Vineyard, Sonoma Valley

Jus Soli is a latin phrase that means “law of the soil”. The four acre Syrah vineyard where these grapes have their home lies in the shadows of Hood Mountain in Kenwood. This is a single-vineyard Syrah from the base of Hood Mountain (aka Mt. Hood), which is north of Kenwood in Sonoma Valley.

Winemaker Tom Garrett started his career in the wine industry at Wine Spectator magazine where he spent five years as the West Coast Tasting Coordinator. Aside from writing about the California wine industry and managing the tasting department, he also had the opportunity to taste nearly every wine being made in California. Deciding that he would rather make wine than write about wine he jumped in feet first, learning the ropes at Turley, Phelps and Mondavi.

So when he made this wine, he knew what to do: identify blocks within the four-acre Romano Vineyard where the grapes share flavor and maturity characteristics, vinify those blocks separately, and then blend the blocks back together in the most harmonious proportions.

… Flavors in the finish include vanilla bean and blueberry notes. The oak knits into the fruit, especially past the mid-palate, and the tannins are neither overabundant nor overactive.
Reviewed by Thom Elkjer www.appellationamerica.com)

Jus Soli wines are currently produced at Copain Custom Crush in Santa Rosa, California. The vineyard manager is respected viticulturist, Arturo Robledo.
(photo of Arturo borrowed from Radio Coteau website)

Case production: 400
Ageing: 25% new French oak

Body: full
Color: dense purple
Aromas: violets, black pepper, blackberry, sweet tobacco, black cherry, plum, bacon fat, and hints of mocha

Gold Medal Winner at the 2007 Sonoma County Harvest Fair

Eat with: braised lamb shoulder, black kale,
cipollini onions, deep fried chickpea panisse & syrah lamb jus




Website: http://jussoli.com
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2005 Buena Vista, Syrah, Carneros

From their website: Just outside the town of Sonoma, the original Buena Vista winery is now a California Historic Landmark. Founded in 1857, Buena Vista Carneros is California’s oldest premium winery. Set along the along the south-facing hillside overlooking San Pablo Bay, Buena Vista Carneros's breathtaking property is one of the most significant in Carneros. Straddling the southern-most tips of Sonoma and Napa Counties, wind and fog sweep in daily from the bay to cool the vines and extend the growing season. Nearly 500 acres in this most spectacularly situated region of Carneros, Buena Vista Carneros' Ramal Vineyard boasts a remarkable number and range of sites with more than 100 separate vineyard blocks based on topography, geology and microclimates.

The syrah is sourced from the estate vineyards in Carneros, the Carneros Syrah is an approachable expression of cool climate Syrah – where the gamey side of Syrah is balanced by the elegance and finesse of the cool climate fruit, cherries and floral notes.

The aromas are a combination of blueberry and kirsch, roasted meat, violets and black licorice. The flavors are cherry, spice and currant, with a medium to long finish of plum and toast. This is a very food friendly wine due to its natural acidity and a restrained winemaking approach.

Body: medium to full
Color: garnet red
Aromas: blueberry, boysenberry, smoke, hint of game, black licorice, nutmeg

Ageing: 14 months in 33% new French oak

Jeff Stewart: In France, wine is food. I was fascinated with the lifestyle and the importance of wine in that culture,” says Buena Vista’s winemaker, Jeff Stewart. “I knew I wanted to pursue a career in Science and after several conversations with my high school chemistry teacher, I was soon enrolled in the Viticulture and Enology program at U.C. Davis. The idea of combining agriculture, science and esthetics to create wine, a beverage revered in many cultures for thousands of years, was mesmerizing.”

Eat with: grilled butcher's steak, roasted potatoes, salsa verde

Website: http://buenavistacarneros.com

2005 Nicholson Ranch, Syrah, Las Madres, Carneros

From their website: Nicholson Ranch has a commitment to maintain the health and fertility of the land by using sustainable farming practices. To this end, predominantly natural and organic methods of vineyard management are employed. Rather than spraying insecticides, Ramona Nicholson prefers to work with Nature—the natural rhythms of the Earth—by encouraging raptors, snakes, owls and beneficial insects to thrive.

Body: medium to full
Color: violet red
Aromas: blackberries, lavender, sage, rosemary, mint, provencal herbs

Winemaker, Jacqueline Yoakum uses a minimal intervention approach to all her wines, which means that no sulfur is added at the time of crushing, the wine is not inoculated, only indigenous yeasts are used, and malolactic is allowed to occur naturally.

Case production: 623
Ageing: 18 months in French Oak, 25% new

The 2005 cool growing season allowed us to hang the fruit in the upper part of the vineyard until October 18th and in the lower vineyard until October 25th. The greater stem maturity created an opportunity to do more whole cluster experiments, ranging in whole cluster percentages from 0 to 100. With a little less ripeness than years past, this benefited the six different lots from the 12 tons we brought in. All the complexities of fruit and stem are showcased in this wine. The nose begins with blackberries and lavender and ends with sage, rosemary and mint. The palate picks up with a range of dark fruit flavors that are buffered by the stem influence of ripe tannin, Provençal herbs and black olives.

The lightest of the three Syrah bottlings, in color, body and flavor profile, is Las Madres (in Los Carneros sub-AVA), from a vineyard only two miles from Nicholson Ranch. Carneros has become the North Coast’s best kept secret for producing elegant, balanced Syrahs due to the cooler climate and longer hangtime for the grapes.

Eat with: grilled pork tenderloin, roasted root vegetables, applewood bacon, collard greens & pork jus.

Website: http://www.nicholsonranch.com/