2011 Cayuse Syrah En Cerise Vineyard
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Tasting notes
(picked after the Cailloux): Bright medium ruby-red. Dark raspberry, smoke, brown spices and crushed herbs on the nose; distinctly darker than the Cailloux, the way the Cote Brune is darker than the Cote Blonde in Cote-Rotie. Boasts outstanding thickness and spiciness on the palate; wonderfully sweet, lush and saline, with its pepper and spice elements gaining strength in the glass. Ultimately less expressive in the early going than the Cailloux but finishes with outstanding peppery persistence.
Critic scores
Jeb Dunnuck
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Made from 100% Syrah, the 2011 Syrah En Cerise is similarly styled, with perfumed black cherry, plum, violets, spring flowers and salty minerality giving way to a seamless, thrillingly pure Syrah that has full-bodied richness, no hard edges and fine tannin. It too will be better in another couple of years and evolve for 15 years or more. Enough can’t be said about the quality coming from this estate, and Christophe Baron, who’s assisted by Elizabeth Bourcier, produces, in this reviewer’s opinion, some of the most distinctive and exciting wines on the planet. As I said last year, there’s no secret here, and Christophe simply has fantastic terroir, works his ass off in the vineyard (everything is farmed biodynamically), and then gets out of the way in the cellar. Looking at the vintages reviewed here, his 2011s (which come from the lowest yields ever at this estate) check in at the top of the vintage and have uncommon richness and depth. Stating that it was the coolest vintage of his career, Christophe loves the European style of the wines and feels they’ll reward 5-7 years of cellaring. As a group, they show superb aromatics, medium to full-bodied richness and fresh, lively characters. In contrast, the 2012s are flamboyant and decadent, with awesome textures, beautiful purity of fruit and brilliant underlying structure. To my palate, 2012 is up there with finest vintage from this team to date. 2012 is possibly the best vintage I’ve ever tasted from Christophe. Across the board, the wines shows incredible aromatics, awesome purity and full-bodied richness and concentration. Tel. (509) 526-0686; www.cayusevineyards.com
Made from 100% Syrah, the 2011 Syrah En Cerise is similarly styled, with perfumed black cherry, plum, violets, spring flowers and salty minerality giving way to a seamless, thrillingly pure Syrah that has full-bodied richness, no hard edges and fine tannin. It too will be better in another couple of years and evolve for 15 years or more. Jun 2014, www.robertparker.com