2013 Lawer Family Wines Syrah Estates 750 ml

“Like a Chapoutier Single-Vineyard Hermitage” — Robert Parker

In the late spring of 2014, we traveled to Napa Valley. Our packed schedule included private tastings of the spectacular 2013 vintage with Paul Roberts at Colgin and Phil Titus at Chappellet.

To be perfectly truthful, we had no intention of visiting Lawer Estates in Calistoga, or tasting what we and Robert Parker have come to believe is the most extraordinary under-$30 red of The Wine Advocate’s “greatest vintage in 37 years.” We knew nothing about the vineyard from which that wine was drawn. Still more embarrassing in retrospect, despite being blown away by the depth, intensity, and utter flamboyance of the 2013 Lawer Estates Syrah, we missed out on an opportunity to purchase the entire 6-barrel production. Here’s why.

For reasons that continue to befuddle us, despite a piping hot high-end wine market, Syrah sales remain sluggish. As middling Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons fetch $50/bottle, the most inspired growers on Sonoma Coast struggle to sell their top-notch Syrahs for $35. As a result, despite our unbridled enthusiasm for winemaker Larry Levin and Kelly Delanni’s 2013 Lawer Estates Syrah, at the $35/bottle release price — and without a rating from Parker or Wine Spectator — we passed.

Simply put, we screwed up.

A few weeks ago, Robert Parker published the third part of his exhaustive Northern California 2013 vintage report. The Wine Advocate raved about the “excellent” 2013s in Sonoma, especially the richly textured, chiseled powerhouses from the Mayacamas mountains. Among the most startling reviews published in Issue #223 was Parker’s take on the 2013 Lawer Estate Syrah, a wine he compared to 100-point Hermitage of Michel Chapoutier!!!

2013 was the second consecutive drought year in Northern California. But despite the arid conditions, there were no significant heat spikes. Harvest on this small parcel in Knights Valley took place somewhat early, under ideal circumstances, in the early morning hours of October 3rd. Just 3 tons of Syrah were picked at 24 Brix (much like Chapoutier’s Hermitages). Acids were firm, and finished pH came in at a vibrant 3.6.

The 2013 Lawer Family Estates Syrah from Betsy’s Vineyard is a MAGNIFICENT bottle of wine. Brilliant opaque-purple in color — as Parker wrote, “like a Chapoutier single-vineyard Hermitage” — infused with dense, high-toned aromas of blackberry, violets, and classic graphite. Rich, dense, and voluptuous on the attack, silken in texture, finishing with excellent Northern Rhône cut and persistence. Parker suggests laying this one down for “a decade or more.” We have no reason to doubt The Wine Advocate.

93 points. $35 on release. $27/bottle for a couple hours this morning on WineAccess. That’s the good news. The bad? Just 50 cases remain. Yes, we screwed up. Don’t rub it in.