2017 PharaohMoans Syrah Westside
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Tasting notes
Inky violet. Deep-pitched black and blue fruit aromas pick up suggestions of olive, dark chocolate and exotic spices with air. Broad, densely packed and youthfully chewy, offering palate-staining cassis, bitter cherry, licorice and fruitcake flavors that are extremely slow to unfold. Solid tannins add framework to a very long, smoke-tinged finish that emphatically echoes the dark fruit and olive notes. Show this one some patience.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Josh Raynolds
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The 2017 Westside, made of 100% Syrah aged in about 70% new oak, has a medium to deep ruby-purple color and is scented of grilled lamb, olives, bacon fat, cracked peppercorn, violet, espresso, tar and turned earth with a core of ripe blackcurrants and blackberries plus red berry sparks. It's medium to full-bodied, silky and slow to unfurl in the mouth, demonstrating great restraint. It has a grainy frame, good freshness and a long finish. Lovely!
All Syrah brought up in 60% new barrels, the 2017 Syrah Westside offers a thrilling bouquet of black (and some blue) fruits, bay leaf, bacon fat, chocolate, and spring flowers. With a Côte-Rôtie like meatiness and gamey, floral character, medium to full body, no hard edges, and fine tannins, it's another remarkable effort from this estate. Drink it any time over the coming decade or more.