100% Syrah – Page 2 – Cristaldi & Co

2024

Kobler Estate Winery

Kobler Family Vineyards, Rose of Syrah

This rosé comes from the coldest spot on the property, between Forestville and Graton along Highway 116 in West Sonoma County—about ten miles west of Santa Rosa, perched on the ridge of the Green Valley. An old Victorian farmhouse sits on the site. The fruit is direct-pressed and fermented in stainless steel, and Mike Kobler took over winemaking in 2022. It’s a robust, full-throttle rosé—not for the faint of heart—with rich aromas of apricot and tangerine peel and a faint hint of bacon fat. The palate is fragrant and mid-weight, offering red-berry fruit layered with savory nuances. There’s good tension and energy, along with a long, deeply fruited finish. Mike’s grandfather retired to Dry Creek Valley in the early 1980s. An engineer by trade, he spent weekends putting young Mike to work in the vineyard whenever he came to visit. Mike went on to study economics and graduated in 2007—just in time for the 2008 market crash—so he pivoted into wine. Despite swearing he’d never enter the industry, he realized he liked the lifestyle, and his network of growers and winemakers proved invaluable. With help from his father, he built a business plan, and they dove in. They launched with a négociant model, and in 2011 produced their first wine from the family property. As Mike began asking around for grape contracts, the business grew steadily. His older brother, Brian Kobler, who had been a winemaker for 20 years, eventually came on board as well.

Rosé

2024

Ravissant Cellars

Carpenter Hill Vineyard, Rosé of Syrah

A true crowd-pleaser, this rosé offers ripe apricot, white peach, nectarine, and jasmine floral notes, all building into a wave of passion fruit character. The palate is silky and satiny, finishing with grippy mineral tension that adds structure and lift.

Rosé

2024

Stolpman Vineyards

BLRDCYN Syrah

Flat-out stunning. The wine boasts beautifully silky textures balanced by brisk acidity. Vibrant black fruit builds alongside crunchy red plums, candied violets, rich earth, and rose dusted with white pepper, nuanced by pastille candies. Medium- to full-bodied, it’s gracious yet structured, with palate-etching tannins that are nicely integrated even at this young stage. Youthfully exuberant and impeccably built.

Red

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2022

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Year to year, this wine goes in and out of the most vivid floral intensity imagineable and in 2022 it is back in spades, boasting darkly seductive voilets and rose petals notes, dark blood orange acidity, darker cranberry and black cherry notes, alluring incense and a deep woodsy underbrush character, liek the backside of a fallen bark on the forest floor, detail-driven into the tannins, which are supple and salty, giving length, tension, and energy to this entry level Syrah from Dragonette. What a killer wine.

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2022

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Syrah fruit for this wine comes from both the East Side and West Side estate properties. It was fermented with 65% whole cluster in 1.5-ton open-top stainless steel bins, then pressed to barrel and aged for 11 months prior to bottling. This is a far more approachable Syrah than Donna’s Block—juicier and more supple, with blackberry, black cherry, and blueberry fruit leading the way. The tannins are gentler, yet still carry a crisp, crunchy edge, balanced by expressive, juicy acidity with a blood orange character. Aromatically complex, the wine offers layers of perfumed rose petals, clove, and incense, with dried sage and spearmint adding nuance. Super fresh, inviting, and wonderfully complete.

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2022

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Donna’s Block is located on the east side of the estate, surrounding the winery. Fermented with 100% whole cluster in 1.5-ton open-top stainless steel bins, this wine requires foot-stomping in the early days to break things up enough for punchdowns. “The stems are perfectly ripe,” says assistant winegrower Garrett Adelman. After fermentation, the wine is pressed to all neutral oak and aged for 18 months. Typically picked in November, the grapes never become overripe—pH remains low, preserving freshness and balance. Let me tell you: this is one of the most expressive Syrahs you’ll taste from the Sta. Rita Hills. It’s a complex enigma of a wine—medium- to full-bodied, with firm, taut, mineral-laced tannins that carry a subtle meaty quality, reminiscent of the best black truffle charcuterie you’ve ever had. That profound structure frames juicy black cherry, early-season blueberry, and blackberry seed, layered with clove, allspice, incense, rose stem, perfumed violets, both fresh and dried. The finish? So very long. Just—wow.

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2022

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This Syrah hails from John Sebastiano Vineyard—one of the crown jewels of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. Windswept and wild, it’s an exceptional site for Syrah, and this 2022 rendition from Samsara is a case in point. High-toned and aromatic, it opens with violet, rose petal, dried lavender, bay laurel and black truffle charcuterie, all laced with a dusting of sweetly smoked paprika. The palate is beautifully supple, medium to full-bodied, with silky tannins that carry an intriguing mineral edge—think crushed red rock or iron. It finishes with slate-like texture and tension, leaving a vivid, dynamic impression. A knockout effort from winemaker Matt Brady and the cellar team. Joan and Dave Szkutak, owners of Samsara, continue to assemble an impressive portfolio of utterly riveting wines.

Red

2023

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Sourced from Crater View Vineyard, just across the street from DANCIN, this Syrah was native fermented in 1.5-ton macro bins and aged for 17 months in 40% new French oak. It’s a beautifully multidimensional wine, showcasing pure blackberry and blue fruit nuances, candied violets, and white pepper. Medium-bodied on the palate with building tannins, exceptional length, and velvet-textured structure, it’s framed by Indian spices and layered with floral intensity on the long, energetic finish. An excellent wine.

Red

2023

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The wine offers dark berry fruit, woodsy aromatics, dark loamy earth, and espresso bean, with the Viognier adding a touch of floral lift. On the medium-bodied palate, more Syrah character comes through as blackberry, black cherry, and subtle charcuterie notes that intermingle with the woodsy tones on the finish. Roughly 4–5% Viognier is blended back before bottling.

Red

2023

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A very small and special bottling of Hinnrichs Vineyard Syrah from Ballard Canyon. The fruit was 100% destemmed, aged 18 months in barrel, and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Mixed berry fruit and woodsy spices build in the glass, joined by clove and earthy mineral notes. This is a medium-bodied Syrah framed by firm tannins that resolve gracefully, with mid-weight cherry and spiced plum adding intrigue. Notes of vanilla and wet slate carry the finish. Koehler Winery is a 60-acre wine estate in the Santa Ynez Valley, owned by the Koehler family since 1991.

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2023

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Sourced entirely from Peter William Vineyard in the Rogue Valley, fermented in one-ton open-top bins, then aged 20 months in neutral French oak. This is a spicy, cha-cha Syrah with pure dark-berry fruit, white pepper, earthy brightness, and dried florals. Silky, juicy, and persistent on the medium-bodied finish—exactly the kind of thirst-quenching wine you need after a night of salsa dancing.

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2023

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Sourced from the own-rooted Syrah blocks surrounding the estate house—named Villa Angeli, after relatives on Pete Stolpman’s mother’s side—this wine is fermented with two-thirds whole cluster in concrete and aged for 15 months in neutral 500-liter puncheons. The aromatics are initially subtle, needing a bit of swirling to unlock layers of brambly blackberry and red cherry fruit, along with high-toned violets and rose petals. On the palate, the wine delivers super powerful, robust tannins with a muscularity that builds and builds—soaring skyward before resolving into juicy blue fruit and intense graphite on the finish. A brooding, structured Syrah with incredible lift and presence.

Red

2023

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About 50% whole cluster, this Syrah is native fermented in concrete and aged for 11 months in neutral 500-liter puncheons. It’s sourced entirely from the winery’s own-rooted Syrah blocks. This is one of the finest California Syrahs under $40 you’re likely to encounter. It brims with coiled energy and delivers super expressive red and blackberry fruit, with blue fruit nuances woven into a tapestry of brown baking spices, clove, incense, violets, and crushed stone. Medium-bodied with powerful, expressive tannins that resolve into a powdery texture, the wine finishes with fragrant wild herbs. Gorgeous and layered from start to finish.

Red

2023

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These are the Clape Reynard plantings from 1903. In 2013, 50 cuttings were brought over—49 were planted individually, while the 50th became the mother vine, planted at the highest elevation in the northeast corner of a 10-acre block with a planting density of 6,000 vines per acre. This wine includes fruit from within the interior of that mother vine. The first vintage was 2017, with 2018 marking the first commercial release. It was native fermented in stainless steel with two-thirds whole clusters, then pressed to barrel—mostly free-run juice—aged for 18 months in neutral 500-liter puncheons. This is a bold, powerful wine, yet it carries an elegant intensity. The complexity begins in the perfume: rose petals, violets, and white pepper rise from the glass, building into a full-bodied palate framed by mineral-laced, meaty tannins with a fine granularity. Blue fruits and blood orange acidity carry through the core, while more floral perfume unfurls on the long, layered finish.

Red

2023

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Named after Pete Stolpman’s wife, Jessica, this wine is sourced from Les Grandes Places Serine, with the inaugural vintage in 2022. It was native fermented in stainless steel with two-thirds whole cluster, and aged for 18 months in two neutral 500-liter puncheons—mostly from free-run juice. This is an intensely concentrated wine, bursting with pure dark berry fruit and layered spice. The tannins are powerful and robust yet beautifully integrated, with a velvety quality. High-toned violets, mulberry, and mouth-gripping acidity give the wine remarkable freshness and drive. Exceptionally expressive and focused, with excellent depth of fruit and a precise, laser-like finish.

Red

2023

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The Great Places Ruben Solorzano Syrah comes from a one-acre block planted to Sérine cuttings from Rostain’s Côte Blonde, propagated in 2006. Fermentation is done with native yeasts in stainless steel, using two-thirds whole cluster. The wine is focused on free-run juice and aged for 18 months in neutral 500-liter puncheons. I tasted this with Ruben Solorzano and asked him what he thinks of the wine. He smiled and said he loves the name—and the mid-palate. And it’s true: the mid-palate is wonderfully expressive, bursting with juicy, plump fruit, layered spice, and gorgeously powdery tannins that carry a cocoa powder texture. Rich blue fruit and violets are backed by volcanic crushed rock minerality. The finish goes on and on. It’s a wine with great density, yet it floats—light on its feet.

Red

2023

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This is a north-facing site—and you simply won’t believe the aromas. This Syrah is truly special, with notes of tar and roses, high-toned candied violet pastilles, and a wild, sauvage edge. On the palate, it’s an anomaly in the best sense: intensely floral with layers of rose petals and stems, violets, and a core of blueberry and blood orange. The tannins are beautifully chalky, long, and multidimensional—mouthcoating yet refined. They resolve into an extraordinary purity of crunchy black raspberry fruit and spice. It’s stunningly complex and hauntingly expressive.

Cristaldi Scores

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Kobler Estate Winery

Kobler Family Vineyards, Rose of Syrah

Ravissant Cellars

Carpenter Hill Vineyard, Rosé of Syrah

Stolpman Vineyards

BLRDCYN Syrah

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