2013 Rhys Vineyards Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard Santa Cruz Mountains 750 ml

At this point, there’s no debate: Rhys Vineyards is one of the greatest wine producers on the planet.  

“With each passing vintage,” wrote Antonio Galloni of Vinous, “the wines continue to improve to the point where comparisons to the best estates in California are increasingly less relevant. Rhys is world class. It's as simple as that.” Wine Advocate called them “a benchmark for winemakers on both sides of the Atlantic to constantly examine and push their methods and perspectives.” 

The winery started small: In 1995, Kevin Harvey’s love for great white and red Burgundies inspired him to plant 35 heritage- and “suitcase”-clone vines behind his home in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, which stand between Silicon Valley and the Pacific. The vines grew to become a quarter acre, producing enough wine to vinify in the garage. The idea got even bigger. 

Kevin was convinced the Santa Cruz Mountains near his home—where the San Andreas Fault’s colliding tectonic plates have surfaced an incredible range of soils—held unlimited potential, so he sought out more sites. The area’s combination of well-draining shale soils, altitude, and proximity to the sea make it perfect for Pinot and Chardonnay, and for Syrah.

The small Horseshoe Vineyard sits just ten miles from the foggy, dramatic Northern California coast. Less than 20 acres are planted—and less than 2.5 are Syrah—and at 1,500 feet of elevation, cooled by the Pacific fog, the site yields exquisite Syrah with gorgeous fruit and the peppery, leathery quality that marks the best of the Northern Rhone.

Rhys’s methods are as remarkable as their sites. In their modern 30,000 foot facility dug into the hillside off of Alpine Road, the harvested fruit is unloaded into a 40-degree room. All grapes are hand-sorted and gravity-fed into small tanks in a painstaking process that ensures that only the very best fruit makes the cut, then is handled as gently as possible. This 2013 Syrah comprises Alban, Chave, and Syrah Noir clones, 100% hand-harvested and fermented whole-cluster on native yeasts. It was aged 10 months in neutral barrels, then 12 more months in 25hL casks.