Happy Wine Wednesday! So you might recall that last year Sean Sullivan of the Washington Wine Report issued the Washington Merlot Challenge, which required those accepting the challenge to drink at least one Washington Merlot each month for the year. This year the chosen varietal for the challenge is Syrah! So much to enjoy with Washington Syrah, so naturally I accepted the challenge and tonight I am fulfilling my obligation for January and enjoying a 2012 L'Ecole No. 41 Walla Walla Syrah from the Seven Hills Vineyard. So let's see what this wine has to offer!
The wine is a deep garnet hue in the glass with nice clarity, classic color for a syrah. Lift the glass and aromas of leather, caramel, blackberry and plum swirl around earthy notes of olive tapenade, peat and smoke. On the first sip you're greeted with a rush of black fruit, blackberry, cherry and currant that eases into tawny notes of vanilla and caramel midpalate. The tannins are still fairly sturdy, providing for a wonderfully long, dry finish that lingers into a reprise of olive tapenade at the end.
Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's a great example of a high-quality Walla Walla Syrah that's held up well over the past eight years. This wine would pair well with lamb, roast pork tenderloin or mushroom risotto, but tonight I am enjoying this with some stir fried teriyaki steak with udon noodles for a simple midweek dinner. Cheers!
No comments:
Post a Comment