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750ml
Bottle:
$48.89
$49.60
12 bottles:
$47.91
Black cherry, mixed berry pie, cocoa, vanilla, white flowers, honey.
750ml
Bottle:
$16.50
$18.33
It is simultaneously Bold and Balanced, Rich and Smooth, Fruit Forward and Earthy. It is impossibly dark and...
750ml
Bottle:
$31.94
$33.60
12 bottles:
$31.92
The 2020 Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard is a powerful, dense wine. Blueberry, blackberry, lavender, melted road tar...
750ml
Bottle:
$51.94
The 2020 Syrah Estate was made with a touch of whole cluster and matured in neutral oak. Medium ruby-purple in color,...
750ml
Bottle:
$234.94
The 2021 Syrah Unanswered Prayers appears to be ever so slightly more successful than the Grenache (which, given the...
750ml
Bottle:
$40.88
Medium ruby-purple, the 2019 Syrah Sta. Rita Hills explodes with blackcurrant, blueberry, mint chocolate, violet and...
750ml
Bottle:
$424.94
$499.94
Named after Manfred’s grandfather, the 2017 Syrah The Hated Hunter is 82.4% Syrah, 7.8% Petite Sirah, 5.2%...
750ml
Bottle:
$20.95
$22.80
A popping, lively, super-fresh nose and palate combines red fruits and firm boysenberry with a thick coat of riper...
750ml
Bottle:
$26.94
$27.60
12 bottles:
$26.40
In the glass, the 2022 Estate Grown Syrah possesses a deep black center with a bright red rim. On the nose,...
750ml
Bottle:
$49.94
12 bottles:
$41.94
(96-98) The 2022 Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard ratchets up the intensity and has a saturated purple hue as well as a...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$139.19
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$145.49
Pre-Arrival
Sine Qua Non Ratsel 16 2016
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$378.02
Made exclusively from estate-grown fruit, the 2016 Syrah Ratsel 16 is composed of 81% Syrah, 7% Mourvèdre, 5% Petite...
Pre-Arrival
Tensley Syrah Santa Barbara County 2016
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$70.59
Vibrant and zesty, with huckleberry and spiced cinnamon aromas and well-built blueberry, smoky meat and licorice...
Mavrodaphne Syrah Xinomavro United States California Santa Barbara
In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.
Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.
Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?
Known as Syrah in most countries around the world, and Shiraz in Australia and certain other regions of the New World, this grape varietal has proven over the centuries to be one of the most powerful and flavorful red wine grapes there is. It is now one of the planet's most widely grown grapes, and is a favorite with wineries as a result of its robustness and versatility. It isn't easy to identify many characteristics of this particular varietal, due to the fact that it is highly versatile and shows significant differences in flavor and character depending on the terroir it is grown in, and the climatic conditions of the region. However, Syrah is most widely associated with full bodied, strong and loud red wines, packed full of fruity and spicy flavors, held in a beautifully deep red liquid.
Xinomavro is the predominant grape varietal of Macedonia, although it is also grown in many parts of Greece where the climatic conditions are suitable for this particular fruit. The names translates as 'acid black', which gives some clue as to the nature of this varietal. The grapes are renowned for their high tannin content, which is a result of the thick and blue-black skins found on the fruit. This particular characteristic results in a superb aging potential in wines made from the Xinomavro varietal, as time spent in barrels softens these strong, astringent tannins and allows the full range of their flavors to come through in the wine. Most commonly, Xinomavro grapes are associated with aromas of red gooseberry, spices, olives and dried fruit, such as dried tomato.
Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.
California as a wine producing region has grown in size and importance considerably over the past couple of centuries, and today is the proud producer of more than ninety percent of the United States' wines. Indeed, if California was a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of wine in the world, with a vast range of vineyards covering almost half a million acres. The secret to California's success as a wine region has a lot to do with the high quality of its soils, and the fact that it has an extensive Pacific coastline which perfectly tempers the blazing sunshine it experiences all year round. The winds coming off the ocean cool the vines, and the natural valleys and mountainsides which make up most of the state's wine regions make for ideal areas in which to cultivate a variety of high quality grapes.
Santa Barbara is home to many of California's most sought after wines, with a powerful reputation for superbly crafted, old world style big, flavorful and complex red wines. The white wine industry in the region is growing, too, with many wineries within Santa Barbara successfully experimenting with several classic white wine grape varietals. As in much of California, Santa Barbara benefits from the blazing west coast sunshine, coupled with cooling Pacific Ocean breezes and fogs, which help to temper the grapes and slow the ripening process, thus ensuring more flavor and aroma in the resulting wines. Although Santa Barbara is a relatively young wine region, it is home to many wineries who are extremely dedicated when it comes to demonstrating just how good their terroir is, and how characterful their region's wines can be.