Cracked this last night w/ Susan's friends:
1. RockBlock by DomaineSerene SoNo Syrah Oregon (14.9%; www.DomaineSerene.com) Dayton 2007: Very dark near black color; very strong blackberry/Syrah/licorice/pungent/mocha slight spicy/peppery rather toasty/charred/oak nose; soft rather hard/tannic/edgy quite toasty/oak blackberry/Syrah/licorice/pungent somewhat coarse/clunky flavor; long quite hard/tannic blackberry/Syrah/licorice/mocha quite toasty/oak finish; a rather attractive/interesting nose but pretty brutal/hard tannins on the palate; needs age but not at all sure it will age into something pleasurable on the palate; a rough/coarse/clunky type of Syrah. $36.00 (SFW&S)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. This comes from two vnyds in the WallaWalla AVA of NE Oregon. Presume the SoNo stands for South/North to connect the vnyds. I seldom buy any of the DomaineSerene wines as I find them on the pricey side (a White PinotNoir at $65??), but this seemed a bit more reasonable. Like all of the RockBlock Syrahs I've tried thus far; this seemed on the oafish side as well, maybe more so.
Tom