2011-2012 Cayuse "Bionic Frog" Walla Walla Valley Syrah Vertical

“The 2011 Syrah Bionic Frog is another rocking Syrah from Christophe that does everything right. Creme de cassis, blackberry, smoked earth, toasted spice and violets emerge from the glass, and it flows onto the palate with full-bodied richness, beautiful purity of fruit and brilliant length. Gaining more minerality with time in the glass, it will continue to flesh out nicely with another handful of years in the cellar, and have two decades of ultimate longevity. (JD)” (06/2014)

“Bright, dark red with ruby tones. High-pitched notes of spices, herbs and African violet lift the perfumed aromas of blackberry, boysenberry and huckleberry. Initially surprisingly creamy in the mouth for a wine from such a cool year, combining a sexy sweetness with lovely pepper and lavender lift. This wonderfully perfumed, precise wine is neither hard nor green. Most impressive today on the perfumed, rising, very long finish, which offers superb saline complexity, a subtle note of purple sage and outstanding peppery lift, with the tannins firm but not hard. A wonderfully scented wine from a very cool, late season; Baron told me that there were only three afternoons during the summer with temperatures above 90 degrees. (ST)” (10/2017)

“Long-time admirers of this wine may find the 2011 version a bit thin. It's a more subtle wine than is customary, the expressive funk subsumed below lighter layers of peat moss, sea salt and white chocolate. With decanting, scents of shittake mushroom, duck sauce and even chicken broth swirl up from the glass, with black tea flavors running through the tannins. (PG)” (02/2015)

“A vaguely gamy character informs the blackberry and licorice flavors in this spicy red, hinting at tomato leaf and dried tomato notes as the finish lingers. This has depth and presence. (HS)” (08/2014)

“While a lot of the 2012s came in near the bottom of the barrel score, that wasn't the case with the 2012 Syrah Bionic Frog and this beauty flirts with perfection. Inky colored and purple to the rim, it offers extraordinary notes of black fruits, wild mushrooms, smoked earth and salty minerality. These all flow to a full-bodied, thrillingly concentrated, focused, structured and lengthy 2012 that needs 4-5 years of cellaring, and will knock your socks off over the following 15 years or more. (JD)” (06/2015)

“Aromas of dried herbs, green olive, grilled asparagus and smoke lead to intensely concentrated savory flavors with a flat-out dazzling mouthfeel. It's a knockout that overloads the senses. (SS)” (09/2015)

“Dark, deep red. A tight core of raspberry on the nose, lifted by wild, high-toned notes of pepper, sassafras, herbs and ponzu sauce. Wonderfully sweet, intense and penetrating, conveying a complex balsamic quality and a meaty nuance to its intense raspberry and spice flavors. Superrich and utterly seamless Syrah, more red than black fruit in character. Finishes aromatic, salty and very long, with fine-grained tannins and superb lift. The fruit was harvested on October 2, but winemaker and owner Christophe Baron noted that the sugars were ahead of phenolic ripeness. (ST)” (10/2017)

“Lithe, focused, cohesive and distinctive, with licorice overtones around a core of plum and spice, finishing gracefully and with excellent persistence. (HS)” (06/2015)