Horsepower Vineyards

… This is the first edition of this wine and any lover of world-class Grenache will be very glad that this wine has been made... this wine shows quite differently than Grenache from Sur Echalas Vineyard — but is every bit as good. A rich core of red and dark fruits mingle with tobacco leaf, Umami, beef fat, and green peppercorns on this evocative nose... Bright Yakima cherry tones mingle with Satsuma orange rind, seaweed, red raspberry cordial, red rose water, and smoldering rocks on the palate… While showing a good degree of richness, this is highly elegant Grenache that is best enjoyed over the next eight years. But why wait? — Owen Bargreen, owenbargreen.com

The 2018 Sur Echalas Grenache is a blockbuster wine that shows complexity impossible to attain in North America. Undergoing nearly all whole cluster fermentation, the Grenache was then stored entirely in used demi-muids prior to bottling botting. Right away a dusting of white pepper and Umami tones deftly combine with shades of green olive tapenade, wet stones, guava puree and Linzer torte. The sense of finesse and tension in the wine is nothing short of impeccable. The wine is utterly seamless. Layers of ripe red currants and cranberries, deftly combine with suggestions of bulls blood, rose water and pomegranate seed flavors. As you dig in, more notes Nori emerge with green peppercorns, Mandarin orange zest, black truffle shavings, salted charcuterie, damp stones and wild blackberry compote. I have yet to find a wine this year that offers this degree of flavor complexity. Quite simply, the 2018 Sur Echalas Vineyard Grenache is a monumental wine from this vintage that is drinking magically now and will provide drinking enjoyment for the next decade. — Owen Bargreen, owenbargreen.com

Last of the Syrahs, the 2018 Syrah High Contrast Vineyard reveals a deep ruby/purple color as well as a wonderfully complex, classic Syrah nose of red and black fruits, cured meats, mushrooms, bacon fat, iron, and forest floor, with a touch of flowers emerging with time in the glass. With its medium to full-bodied richness, firm, focusing tannins, and great finish, it's another wine that takes savoriness to the nth degree. I love its texture, and there's almost a Burgundian style here that keeps you coming back to the glass. Hide bottles for 4-5 years and enjoy over the following two decades. – Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com

The 2018 Sur Echalas Vineyard Syrah is one of the wines of the vintage from this famed estate. Due to the shade of the vineyard, this is a later ripening vineyard for their program which allows them to utilize roughly 70-80% stem inclusion in this wine... this provides immediate appeal with its downright intoxicating bouquet, delivering loads of white pepper woven together with steak tartare, cigar ash tones as well as Hoisin sauce, Umami and menthol that all meld in the glass. The aromatic range here is extraordinary. The textural elements of the wine are just gorgeous. The 2018 edition displays more mid-palate weight than the ’17 bottling but also embodies plenty of finesse. Rich ripe dark cherry and dark raspberry tones mingle with wet stone, seaweed, green olive tapenade, and salted meats on the palate. This finish is exceedingly long. Gratifying to enjoy in its youth, this sensational wine will cellar well over the next eight to ten years. — Owen Bargreen, owenbargreen.com

...loads of savory red and black fruits, crushed violets, cured meats, and peppery herb-like aromas and flavors, with a beautiful underpinning of iron and rocking minerality. Medium to full-bodied and beautifully balanced on the palate, with present yet ripe tannins, give this singular yet also classic, meaty Syrah 2-4 years in the cellar and enjoy over the following 10-15 years. – Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com