| Producer | Jaffurs |
| Country | United States |
| Region | Santa Barbara County |
| Varietal | Syrah |
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Sku | 14476 |
| Size | 750ml |
One of the most exciting tasks each year is tasting through all of the reserve red wine barrels and creating Upslope, the best Syrah from the vintage. We look for intensity, balance, aging potential and that mysterious “wow” factor. Licorice, game and black currant aromatics jump out in this highly perfumed wine. Balanced and complex on the palate, showing more dark fruits, white pepper and umami. Inky and textured, with building tannins throughout. This powerful wine should be cellared 5-7 years past the vintage before hitting its stride, and can easily be kept for another 10-15.
The flagship 2018 Syrah Upslope checks in as 97% Syrah and 3% co-fermented Viognier from a mix of the Larner and Bien Nacido vineyards. It was only one-third destemmed and brought up in 40% new French oak. A dense, backward, inward, yet potential-loaded beauty, its deep purple hue is followed by powerful notes of blackberries, liquid violets, ground pepper, and crushed stone. More brine and olive notes emerge with some coaxing, and it's full-bodied, with a rich, layered, concentrated mid-palate, lots of structure, and a great finish. It's going to play with the top wines in the vintage yet needs at least 2-3 years of bottle age. Maturity after 2023.
The 2018 Syrah Upslope is a gorgeous wine. Bright and also very deep, the Upslope offers quite a bit of depth. All the elements come together so well in the 2018. The blend of fruit from Larner and Bien Nacido works so well here. Drinking window 2023-2033.
Loads of lilac and white pepper waft across the nose of this bottling, giving depth and life to the acai and other dark-purple-fruit aromas. There's extreme complexity to the lavender and rosemary blossoms elements of the palate, where a rich boysenberry-sorbet and crushed herb core is framed by sticky tannins. Much more to come here. Drink 2024-2033.
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