| Producer | Sine Qua Non |
| Country | United States |
| Region | California |
| Varietal | Grenache, Syrah |
| Vintage | 2017 |
| Sku | 61774 |
| Size | 750ml |
2017 Syrah: The 2017 Syrah Eleven Confessions Vineyard is the wine of the vintage, and Syrah simply doesn’t get any better. Even in these more difficult vintages, I’m always amazed at what this estate is able to achieve. Dense purple-hued, with an incredible bouquet of sandalwood, dried flowers, incense, saddle leather, and assorted red and blue fruits, it hits the palate with flawless balance, a deep, full-bodied, concentrated mouthfeel, and a heavenly finish. It shows a more up-front, exuberant, sexy style, yet there’s still ample underlying structure and depth. Reminding me of Guigal’s Côte Rôtie La Mouline (maybe amped up just slightly), drink it over the coming 15-20 years. It’s worth pointing out that due to the difficulty in trademarking names today, the longer aged, 100% Eleven Confessions Vineyard Syrah and Grenache will simply bear the name “Eleven Confessions Vineyard” going forward.
2017 Grenache: The 2017 Grenache Eleven Confessions Vineyard, which will be the name going forward for this wine sourced exclusively from the Eleven Confessions Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills, reveals a gorgeous perfume of assorted red and blue fruits as well as iron, ground pepper, Asian spices, and herbes de Provence. Based on 88.7% Grenache, 10.6% Syrah, and the rest Viognier, this full-bodied, ultra-fine, deep, layered Grenache is just about as good as it gets. Drink it any time over the coming 10-15 years. It’s worth pointing out that due to the difficulty in trademarking names today, the longer aged, 100% Eleven Confessions Vineyard Syrah and Grenache will simply bear the name “Eleven Confessions Vineyard” going forward.
2017 Syrah: The blend is 88% Syrah, 3% Petite Syrah, 7.6% Grenache and 1.4% Viognier. Twenty-nine percent was fermented using whole clusters. It was aged for around 38 months in 38% new French oak, 11% used barrels and 30% concrete. Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2017 Syrah Eleven Confessions bursts with notions of baked plums, stewed blackberries and black cherry preserves, with an undercurrent of Sichuan pepper, violets, chocolate mint and charcuterie, plus a lifted suggestion of black raspberries. Rich, full-bodied and decadently opulent, the palate explodes with pepper-spiked black and red berry preserves, framed by fine-grained tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing epically long and spicy. Very impressive.
2017 Grenache: The 2017 Grenache Eleven Confessions Vineyard is composed of 88.7% Grenache, 10.6% Syrah and 0.7% Viognier. The winemaking includes 47% whole cluster, and it was aged for 38 months in 62% new French oak (83% were large demi-muids) and 38% in used vessels of various ages and sizes (two to five years old). Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, the nose starts off a little closed, offering glimpses at stewed plums, blackberry preserves, and chocolate-covered cherries, giving way to fragrant notions of licorice, violets and cinnamon stick. While there’s no question that this is a big, concentrated, full-bodied wine, it is also incredibly elegant, well-poised and nuanced, featuring many floral and baking spice layers within the decadent black fruits and sporting firm, very finely grained tannins, finishing with incredible length and depth. I would recommend a good 3-5 years of cellaring, then drink it over the next 20 years+.
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