91 Points | International Wine Cellar , May/June 2012

(50% cabernet sauvignon, 44% syrah, 5% cabernet franc and 1% malbec; this fruit spent 60 to 70 days on its skins, with part of the fermentation taking place in barrel, and some in concrete eggs and tanks):  Slightly liqueur-like aromas of overripe raspberry, rose petal, graphite, leather and herbs.  Silky-thick in the mouth for a Viader wine, but with good lift and syrah perfume to the middle palate.  Nice rising, vinous finish shows good length and surprising lift.  This bottling is now where the estate's syrah grapes go.  Alan Viader noted that he's now using Burgundy barrels for the syrah, and has stopped using Russian oak.