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Surprising Syrahs

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Posted on June 17, 2017 at 06:58:28
triodesteve
Audiophile

Posts: 803
Location: Walla Walla Washington
Joined: September 4, 2001
 Yesterday I sat on a panel of Syrah winemakers that represented not just Walla Walla, but Syrahs made around the world.
A couple took me by surprise.
Jamsheed from the Yarra Valley in Australia. Talk about a country that I've dismissed...but this is a much cooler climate. Nice well made wine at a great price point.
Kingston Family Vineyards from the Casablanca Valley in Chile. A pinot project by design (that tells you about the climate) with some surprise Syrah plantings. Really interesting and under $20

It was Syrah so they all (Walla Walla, Napa, Chile, Cornas, Australia) were wildly different. For me the fun thing about wine is that you are always always surprised. The moral of the story is to get out of your comfort zone. To always drink the same region is boring. To always drink the same varietals is boring. Find a retailer who has the same thinking and listen to him or her. Its fun.

 

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Australia, posted on June 17, 2017 at 09:29:58
Inmate51
 They make some good wines there, and here in the U.S., they're not expensive. Price point snobs/addicts/insecure need to get out of their comfort zone.

:)

 

RE: Australia, posted on June 17, 2017 at 09:50:32
triodesteve
Audiophile

Posts: 803
Location: Walla Walla Washington
Joined: September 4, 2001
 People make good wines everywhere. But I've always disliked most of what comes out of that country. Too hot, too alcoholic. Too big to go with any kind of food. And that's what most of the wines that are found here are.

Finding wines from the area around the Yarra Valley is a bit more difficult. But rewarding. The important thing (not just in wine) is to keep an open mind.
Guilty as charged.

 

A few years ago..., posted on June 18, 2017 at 10:44:47
mkuller
Audiophile

Posts: 38130
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: April 22, 2003
 ...when we were in Australia we did a wine tasting tour of the Hunter Valley and tasted some good wines.

Then last year in New Zealand we did a wine tour in Nelson where they have some interesting pinot noirs among others.

In Queenstown there was a wine shop called The Winery where you can taste 80 different wines - they uses the Vinorium gas filled dispensers and even have a portable unit on the back of a VW pickup with 30 bottles or so for parties.

Unfortunately the ones we liked the best from both countries aren't available here.

 

RE: A few years ago..., posted on June 18, 2017 at 12:31:10
triodesteve
Audiophile

Posts: 803
Location: Walla Walla Washington
Joined: September 4, 2001
 Isn't that always the way?
And no way could you do that legally here....mobile? At least not in WA state

 

The mobile would be fun..., posted on June 18, 2017 at 20:36:38
mkuller
Audiophile

Posts: 38130
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: April 22, 2003

...when my daughter was going to Gonzaga in Spokane a buddy and I would go up to the big basketball game each year with St. Mary's (near here) and we would wine taste.

Lots of nice merlots and sangiovese from Walla Walla with a decent pinot noir from Spokane.

 

RE: The mobile would be fun..., posted on June 19, 2017 at 07:23:48
triodesteve
Audiophile

Posts: 803
Location: Walla Walla Washington
Joined: September 4, 2001
 Pinot?

 

Pinot noir..., posted on June 19, 2017 at 08:23:19
mkuller
Audiophile

Posts: 38130
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: April 22, 2003
 ...is the most common red wine grown in New Zealand.

Unlike the fruit forward pinots of CA and OR theirs tend to be more French in style with more acid and terrior.

Not my cup of tea but they go well with food.

After all the wine tasting, the pinot noir I liked best was being poured by the glass at our hotel in Auckland prior to our departure. So I bought a bottle and brought it back. It came in first my wine group's pinot noir tasting.

 

RE: Pinot noir..., posted on June 19, 2017 at 08:30:21
triodesteve
Audiophile

Posts: 803
Location: Walla Walla Washington
Joined: September 4, 2001
 I meant "Pinot in Spokane" There is very little Pinot grown anywhere in WA. I mean very little. A few people go to OR to buy fruit. Its just too damn hot here.

 

Not much..., posted on June 19, 2017 at 08:32:43
mkuller
Audiophile

Posts: 38130
Location: SF Bay Area
Joined: April 22, 2003
 ...except this one.

 

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