Review: Cline Family Cellars, Sonoma Coast – Estate Grown Syrah

Admittedly, I haven’t been writing about a lot of red wines lately. But I know many of you are red wine fans. You like those rich, bold, dark, spicy red wines. Well, this one is for you.

Sometimes it seems impossible to find a great deal on a big, bold California red wine. And by great deal I mean one that’s under $15 and still delivers the richness, structure and deliciousness you want. It seems I have found such a deal.

Now when I say “California red wine” many people would think of a cabernet sauvignon or a merlot. Those are certainly prolific varieties in California. But this big, bold red is a syrah.

For me, syrah conjures thoughts of the Rhone region in France. Although syrah is grown in wine regions around the world, that’s my personal reference point. Coincidentally, Cline Cellars does have some history with the Rhone Rangers, a group of wine producers in California focused on Rhone varieties. Perhaps that’s what led them to produce a syrah.

Syrah from the Rhone region would typically be blended with grenache and mourvedre. But this one, from the Sonoma region in California, is pure syrah. It does have some spicy characteristics that come from ageing in oak — French oak, with a medium toast, 40% of which was new oak.

Black cherry, dark chocolate, cured meat, and black pepper aromas make for a really complex and diverse nose. Wowie, this wine is juicy on the palate! It’s bursting with ripe black cherry, raspberry, blueberry and chocolate flavors. The mouthfeel is nice. The acidity is good. It has a really long finish with cherry and black pepper flavors. This is a very nice syrah.

Wine: Cline Family Cellars, Sonoma Coast – Estate Grown Syrah
Varieties: Syrah
Vintage: 2017
Alcohol: 14.5%
Rating: 90
Average price: $14.00
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.