83.6% Syrah, 6.2% Grenache, 5.2% Petite Sirah, 3.0% Mourvedre and 2.0% Whites (Petite Manseng & Muscat)
This Syrah is an otherworldly and terrifically woven composition...it was fermented with 33% whole clusters. That's a mildly high quantity for our typical Syrah regime. 43% of the barrels used to raise this treasure were NEW and all of them French. The rest were USED, but none older than 3 years... Quite terrific. Very, very dark color...almost shockingly so. Super lush and creamy and caressing and silky/velvety to the extreme. And very SYRAH-like. Nothing should change in this cuvee. It is in a fantastic place. Maybe the best non-Eleven Confessions Syrah we have ever made. I absolutely love it!!!!The last two sentences count the most. First off, I can't stand braggarts and secondly I think - I hope anyway, that I am my own toughest critic. And if I were to slip, E would be there to get me in line. No questions about it. | Manfred Krankl for Sine Qua NonA full-bodied, seductive, incredibly sexy wine that's just about overflowing with fruit, its deep purple color is followed by beautiful cassis and darker berry fruits as well as notes of smoked game, pepper, and spring flowers. The tannins are polished, and it has a great mid-palate as well as one heck of a great finish. Due to the difficulty in trademarking names today, the estate has settled on using the name Distenta for their normal Syrah going forward. Luckily though, the incredible artwork on the labels will continue. | 98-100 points, Jeb Dunnuck for jebdunnuck.com