2016 Benevolent Neglect Syrah Las Madres Vineyard Carneros 750 ml

One sip at Healdsburg’s 3-Michelin Star Mecca Single Thread Farms was all it took: The 2016 Benevolent Neglect Las Madres Syrah transported us to mountainsides covered in wild blackberries, garrigue, crush herbs, and wet stone Its wild bouquet. The palate was ethereal— at once full-bodied, but graceful; remarkably savory yet ripe with blackberry fruit—and we went down a rabbit hole to secure an allocation of this dark, grand cru quality Syrah.

This 2016 was grown just a few miles away from Single Thread in the chilly Carneros’ Las Madres Vineyard. Called “the To-Kalon of Syrah vineyards,” by Thomas Rivers Brown, Las Madres fruit is renowned for its cool-climate vibrancy, silky elegance, and smokey, peppery complexity. Today is the rare chance to access a Michelin-star bottling and enjoy its silken elegance at home, without the white tablecloth mark-up. We’re stocking up.

In crafting the 2016 Las Madres, rising star winemaker Matt Nagy used the lightest possible touch (plus the experience gained under Napa legends Thomas Rivers Brown and Steve Matthiasson) to allow Las Madres Syrah to come alive in the glass.

Matt’s take on Las Madres fruit is almost an anti-take, involving as little intervention as possible in the cellar—thus the name Benevolent Neglect. Using no additives or substitutes allows the vineyard to speak for itself, showcasing its brilliant floral aromatics, deep blackberry notes, and potent layers of smoke and spice. 

Perched on rolling, east-west facing hills on the Sonoma side of Carneros, Las Madres really is a vineyard worth knowing. It benefits from the cooling influence of the Pacific and the rigorous farming practiced by owners Jean Gadiot and John Painter. Syrah from Las Madres has been sought out by heavy hitters like Myriad, Quivet, and Orin Swift “The Prisoner,” earning barrels of high scores from critics like Antonio Galloni and Robert Parker.

The result—Benevolent Neglect’s silken red—stunned us, much as it did sommeliers across the pond at iconic London eateries The Clove Club and Fat Duck—more Michelin stars. With the Michelin-starred bistros clamoring for this red like never before, you should quietly stock up on several bottles while you have the chance. You never can tell when the somms will come calling.