2016 Cayuse "Armada Vineyard" Walla Walla Valley Syrah

“A wine that's held back three months in barrel and then held a year in bottle (as is the GOK), the 2016 Syrah Armada Vineyard saw 70-80% stems and 15% new oak (both demi-muids and foudre). Slightly deeper ruby in color, it has a mix of both red and blue fruits, salt, violets, damp earth, and smoked earth. 98+” (04/2019)

“From the moment you stick your nose in the glass, you are immediately struck with something special. The 2016 Syrah Armada Vineyard has fantastic focus on the nose, with black fruits and a grippy core of minerality, revealing some soft truffle tones and black spices along the way. Full-bodied on the palate, the wine shows an impressive weight and continues to gain in breadth and depth, expanding and unfolding on the mid-palate. Beautifully structured flavors of cured meats and peppercorn evolve with incredible mineral tension and dusty red fruits, and the wine ends with a long, thought-provoking finish. The Armada Syrah is collector-worthy. (AM)” (12/2019)

“This has a very attractive fragrance to the dark cherries and blackberries with such pure fruit expression. There’s also a more tightly composed feel to the tannins on the palate, which Christophe Baron attributes to closer planting in this plot. The heart of the wine is as pure as it is strong. This is impressive.” (04/2019)

“Aromas of potpourri, smoked meat, earth, cracked pepper and lily lead to a dense, rich palate with intense fruit, savory and floral flavors. The palate shows more overt density than the other wines from this vintage, while remaining lively, energetic and exquisitely balanced. Potpourri and smoked meat linger on and on. *Cellar Selection* (SS)” (10/2019)

“Healthy medium red, with moderate saturation. Musky black raspberry, red cherry, game and red licorice on the nose, lifted by a floral topnote; more red fruit in character than the Bionic Frog. Intensely flavored and energetic, displaying a penetrating spicy quality to its flavors of red cherry, raspberry and wild herbs. For all its verve, this ripe but classically dry Syrah is also wonderfully silky. Large-scaled but still tightly wound, finishing with fine-grained tannins, terrific rising floral length and late notes of wet soil and bacon. The Armada vineyard is located next to La Paciencia. (from vines planted in 2001 at 6 by 4 spacing; 10% new oak) (ST)” (12/2019)

“Expressive and slightly racy, with multilayered blackberry, black olive, stony mineral and bacon fat accents that build structure toward big but fine-grained tannins. (TF)” (08/2019)