2018 Colgin Cellars IX Estate Syrah, Napa Valley, USA (750ml) VERITAS

WINEMAKER NOTES:

The 2018 “IX Estate” Syrah attracts with alluring notes of violets, plum, and licorice. Warmed spice notes of toasted coriander seed, white pepper, and salt brine entice a sip and are complemented by salivating notes of smoked bacon. Deep, yet elegantly textured tannins frame the palate with a voluminous and juicy finish.he palate finishing with super fine tannins and a burst of salivating flavors.

TASTING NOTES:

Amazing aromas of graphite, blackcurrant, black pepper, and blue fruit. Slate, too. Full-bodied, yet so agile and light, in a way that makes it irresistible to taste and drink. The palate is full of flavor with extraordinary mushroom, dried-meat., chocolate and black-fruit character. So long, with a creamy texture from the intense yet fine tannins. Great finish. Hard not to drink now, but will be better in 2025.

– James Suckling, 99 pts.

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 IX Syrah Estate comes galloping out of the glass with energetic scents of black cherries, mulberries, warm plums and boysenberries plus hints of chocolate box, garrigue, bacon and violets and just a touch of cracked black pepper. Medium-bodied, delicately styled and refreshing, it whispers rather than shouts of fragrant black fruits with soft, rounded tannins coating the long, spicy and floral-perfumed finish. This makes such a great complement to the Cabernet from IX Estate this vintage, it’s almost a shame to split them up!

– Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, 97 pts.

Potent yet polished, this broad-shouldered red offers deep blueberry, bitter chocolate, smoky meat and licorice flavors that build richness and tension toward medium-grained tannins. Drink now.

– Wine Spectator, 94 pts.