2009 Gramercy Cellars Syrah John Lewis
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A step up and a classic Syrah that will have 15-20 years of ultimate longevity, the 2009 Syrah John Lewis is 100% Syrah, all from the Les Collines vineyard, that was fermented with 95% whole clusters. Exhibiting plenty of black currant, ground pepper, smoked bacon and lavender, it has superb precision and purity on the palate, with a seamless texture, full-bodied richness and brilliant length. Count me a fan and while a fun drink now, it will be better in another 2-3 years. Drink 2015-2024. These top-notch efforts are made by Greg Harrington, with help from assistant winemaker Brandon Moss, and always show the fresher, more edgy and lean side to the region. Normally fermented with varying degrees of whole cluster and aged in neutral oak, they have Old World, classical profiles and will benefit from short-term cellaring. While I’ve been drinking the Rhone blends from this estate for years, this was the first time I’ve been able to taste Greg’s Bordeaux releases. The house style certainly persists and the wines all show firm, concentrated and age-worthy profiles. From a much warmer vintage, Harrington’s 2009s are more voluptuous and textured than the 2010s, yet still play in the same classically styled ball park of the estate. While more approachable today, I think they will have a similar, if not broader, drink window than the 2010s. Time will tell but at the moment, I generally like the 2009s more due to their fruit, yet I still think the tannin quality in the 2010s is better. Tel. (509) 876-2427; www.gramercycellars.com
Critic scores
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
No doubt the class of the lineup, the Gramercy Cellars Syrah John Lewis Reserve might end up being the wine of the vintage and shows a brilliant blend of aromatic complexity and texture on the palate. A blend of 100% Les Collines Syrah that was fermented with 95% whole cluster, it exhibits rock star aromatics of black cherry and crème de cassis styled fruit that’s supported by notions of smoked bacon, ground black and white pepper, lavender, and meat juice. Full-bodied and voluptuous, yet with the same elegance and class shown by all of Greg’s wines, this is pure, seamless, and silky on the palate, with no hard edges, perfect balance, and brilliant length. As with the other wines, this improves beautifully with air and held up perfectly over the multiple days I had the bottle open. It will shine for 15-20 years.
Good full red. Plum, raspberry, cherry, smoked meat, black olive and sexy oak spices on the nose, plus an exotic suggestion of peach. Dense, sweet and full but youthful, with pepper and spice notes energizing the middle palate. Savory blue fruits cling to the palate on the very long, rising finish. This smooth midweight delivers the complexity promised by the nose, but there's more to come with some bottle aging.
Not yet bottled but tasted as a final blend (scheduled to be bottled in August,) the 2009 Gramercy Cellars Syrah John Lewis Reserve is a barrel selection of 100% Les Collines Syrah that was fermented with 95% whole cluster. Sporting a deep, layered, and classic Syrah personality, with loads of pepper, meat, earth, and black cherry like characteristics, the wine is tight and reserved on the palate, showing firm, dense structure, gorgeous fruit, and loads of potential. It will be interesting to see how this shows after bottling, but it will mostly like demand 3-5 years in the cellar and have a very long drink window.