2021 Russian River Valley "Papa's Block" Syrah
100% Syrah
Very dark black-purple. Verging on opaque. Iris, blackberry, charcuterie, and fresh cream spill from the glass. Mouthwatering! On the palate, medium-full bodied with typical Syrah flavors of blackberry, game, white pepper, and violets. Oh so good. Tannins build to a crescendo in the lip-smacking finish. Papa’s is often quite precocious in its youth but this version, perhaps my favorite to date, is definitely built for aging. Hands off until 2026 and then enjoy the show to 2038, perhaps even longer!
Tasting Note:
Similar to many of our other vineyards in this vintage, yields were right around the 2.5 ton/acre mark. Although that’s about 20% below average, the fruit looked stunning going over the sorting line. Nothing to discard! Since stem maturity was quite high in the vintage, we increased the whole cluster percentage from the usual 20% to 30%. Twenty-four days on the skins. Aged in all French oak, 20% new, and bottled unfined and unfiltered. (MRO - 01/17/23)