2021 Stolpman Syrah The Great Places August James Stolpman
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The 2021 Syrah Great Places August James Stolpman comes from a brilliant site in the Ballard Canyon region of Santa Barbara County. As with the other Great Places releases, this cuvée is inspired by Domaine Clape’s famous Cornas. It shows the classic – and classy – style of the vintage beautifully and has Hermitage-like notes of red and black fruits, leather, ground pepper, and smoky, meaty nuances. This carries to a medium to full-bodied Syrah with a pure, layered, seamless mouthfeel, building, polished tannins, and a great finish. It's brilliant stuff, yet there's enough tannins here to warrant 2-3 years of bottle age, and it will see its 20th birthday in fine form.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Syrah August James Stolpman is a compelling wine. Dark blue fruit, spice and lavender open first. The 2021 is super-expressive and full of nuance, even if it doesn't quite have the energy or dimension of the very finest wines in this series.
The 2021 Syrah Great Places August James comes from own-rooted Syrah vines on the Stolpman estate. It's bursting with gregarious aromas of boysenberry, blackberry candy, grilled beef, milk chocolate and violet. The full-bodied palate has a surprisingly understated core of perfumed fruit framed by finely chalky tannins and fresh acidity, and it has a long finish with a flourish of spicy accents. 160 cases were made.
The 2021 Syrah August James Stolpman is a dense, powerful wine. Black cherry, plum, gravel, incense, tobacco and dried herbs infuse the 2021 with tons of depth. Huge swaths of tannin wrap it all together. The 2021 is not as immediately charming as past vintages, but then again, this is a barrel sample. I can't wait to taste this after bottling.