Tried this one last night:
1. JCCllrs Syrah VentanaVnyd/ArroyoSeco/MonteretCnty (15%) 2007: Very dark/black color; intense chocolaty/licorice/blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah slight herbal/spicy/thyme/peppery strong toasty/charred/oak slight fumey/alcoholic some complex/interesting nose; soft rather toasty/charred/oak/pungent very strong/chocolaty/licorice/boysenberry/Syrah rather hard/tannic very slight herbal/peppery flavor; long rather hard/tannic strong toasty/burnt/oak/pungent strong licorice/chocolaty/boysenberry/Syrah slight herbal/RCCola/pungent finish; needs 3-8 yrs; a big/brawny/in-your-face Syrah. $30.00
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Generally, I've really liked Jeff's VentanaVnyd Syrahs as maybe the best & most interesting wine he makes. It usually has a strong herbal/cracked pepper character to it. This '07 version seemed much riper than previous ones and didn't have that strong herbal/cracked pepper component that it's shown in the past.
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2. DougMeador generally doesn't get the recognition he deserves for his pioneering work at VentanaVnyd. In the mid-'80's, he planted Syrah there in MontereyCnty. GoodGawd....that's absolutely nutso. Everyone knows that Syrah is a Mediterrean-climate grape and you don't plant it in such a cool climate...this is Pinot country. That very first Syrah Doug made was mightly impressive w/ its herbal/cracked pepper character. His was the first cold-climate planting of Syrah in Calif and paved the way for many of the great Syrahs that now come from such cold-climes.
Tom