 Why We Chose It
One thing about talking to David Ramey -- it's never dull.
It's frequently said that there are red winemakers and white winemakers and rarely do the two cross. David is an exception to the rule, a guy who has produced some of California's best Chardonnays and Cabernets (from the Jericho Canyon and Pedregal vineyards) over the years. But, this time we called David to talk about the many faces of California Syrah. An hour and a half later, David had not only provided us with a special insight into his own ingenious experiment with Syrah on two Sonoma Coast spots, but had offered a few cases to WineAccess for our best customers.
In 2001, Ramey was dining at Thomas Keller's Bouchon in Yountville, when he ordered a bottle of Bruce Neyers' 1998 Hudson Vineyard Syrah. David knew Hudson well as he'd been buying Hudson Chardonnay for years. He knew of the rolling hills, the cool microclimate. When Ramey tasted Neyers' wine, he found lushness and vibrancy that he most readily associated with the Northern Rhone, the Syrah masters of Cote Rotie and Hermitage. Ramey, an international student of wine, was well-versed in the work of Chave, Rostaing and Gerin, and over a two-hour meal with the bottle of Neyers Hudson Syrah, Ramey sent himself on a search for cool climate vineyards that could reproduce Northern Rhone beauty in Sonoma. The search ended at the southern edge of the Sonoma Coast appellation.
Ramey found two spots; one western facing, the other on the eastern side of the range. They were just three miles away as the crow flies. Ramey couldn't decide between the two, so true to his inquisitive form, he took both, determined to develop both vineyards and make both wines identically -- a sort of controlled experiment in Syrah.
Ramey contracted for the land and paid each grower to plant the same clones in both locales. The western-facing Rodgers Creek Vineyard gets the full thrust of the wind from the Petaluma Gap, while the eastern-facing Sonoma Coast Vineyard is protected, and therefore warmer. At first, it wasn't clear how much the exposure would influence these identically planted vineyards, but it soon became apparent. The protected Sonoma Coast Vineyard was harvested three weeks before Rodgers, producing a terrifically opulent, intensely flavored Syrah, a decidedly New World look on the Northern Rhone. While the western facing Rodgers bottling came in much later, it was more restrained -- still opulent, terrifically concentrated, but a bit more vibrant.
David has earmarked 40 cases of each wine for our best customers. Shipped directly from the winery, free of charge, via 2-day air, this is a fabulous opportunity to enjoy the fruits of one of California's most ingenious winemaking minds.
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Tasting Notes
2005 Ramey Rodgers Creek Vineyard Syrah Sonoma Coast
"The 2005 Syrah Rodger's Creek Vineyard boasts a black/purple color as well as abundant notes of crushed pepper, incense, Chinese black tea, plums, tapenade, and blackberries. It reminds me of a 2003 Clape Cornas from the Rhone Valley. Huge, tannic, and promising, it will drink well for 8-12 years."
94 points--The Wine Advocate
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2005 Ramey Syrah Sonoma Coast
"The spectacular 2005 Syrah, like its predecessor, was co-fermented with 5% Viognier. The good news is that there are 540 cases. Ramey used around 20% whole stems in the winemaking, and aged it in one-year-old Francois Freres barrels except for a small percentage that were new. This black wine shows notes of tapenade, acacia flowers, wonderful, sweet, rich blackberry fruit, and a super finish. It is concentrated and has obvious but sweet tannins. This is a stunner that should drink well for a decade or more."
93-95 points--The Wine Advocate
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