Scribe winery Syrah Napa Valley (Atlas Peak) 2004
Andrew Mariani and his partners, wine-industry veterans Kristof Nils Anderson and Andrew Avellar (Mariani's uncle), are growing 35 acres of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Reisling and Sylvaner.
The vines are still too young to harvest fruit, so for now, the trio buys grapes from Carneros and leases vineyard property in Napa on Atlas Peak, which they call Scribe Outpost East.
Scribe's 2004 Syrah from the Outpost East vineyard has rich, dark fruit and a lovely earthiness.
The aromas of this fine Syrah are slow to emerge, but when they do, they deliver the goods: layering scents of sweet dark cherry syrup, violet, dried orange, date sugar and dry-cured beef in a plush and sophisticated melange. Things are much more forthcoming on the palate, where bright notes of Santa Rosa plum contrast darker, deeper flavors of cherry syrup, sweet tobacco, earth and forest-floor spice.
The finish is lingering, palate-coating and beautifully balanced and its richness pushes the wines unresolved tannins almost entirely rearward. This one will be tremendous with braised beef short ribs or flashy lamb roasts right now, and may yet improve for another few years.
119 cases produced.
"Scribe Winery is exquisitely imperfect. This is where the sheen of Wine Country ends and its patchwork, outlaw lore bubbles to the surface. It’s where the dust billows over an irregular dirt road, escorted by a long row of palm trees that beckon you back toward the coarse hillsides and corrupt histories and overgrown, feral sweetness to a turn-of-the-century hacienda wiling away its hours in a state of gauzy, dilapidated bohemian grace.
It’s where Andrew Mariani, his brother Adam, their uncle Andrew Avellar and Napa-based winemaker Kristof Anderson spend their hours making a neglected property whole again, and almost coincidentally, crafting. To read the rest of this article in Sonoma Magazine: www.sonomamag.net and search Scribe
