2008 Novy Family Winery Syrah (Rosella's Vineyard) (91 Points)

Date Consumed
Sunday, December 30, 2012

Vintage
2008

Winery/Producer
Novy Family Winery

Composition
100% Syrah

Vineyard Designation
Rosella's Vineyard

Region/A.V.A. (American Viticultural Area)
Santa Lucia Highlands, California

Alcohol Content
14.2%

Price Paid
$23

Where/When Bought and/or How Procured
We visited the Russian River Valley in October 2011 and after having read many good things about Novy and Siduri wines and never having visited them before, we decided that they would be on our short list of wineries that we had to try.

Bouquet
This Syrah's nose exhibits suggestions that this will be a very Rhone-styled red, with dark fruits, stones and minerals, earth, and hints of oak and spices.  The wine's bouquet foreshadows a Syrah that will not be a typically overripe, jammy, high-alcohol California Syrah but one that will be well balanced.  Let's see..........

Tasting Notes
Sure enough, the bouquet was an excellent precursor to how the wine would taste.  This is a rich, creamy, spicy Rhone-ish Syrah with dark fruit (plums, blackberries, and black cherries), sweet, creamy oak and tannins, fantastic minerality, barrels of spices (black pepper, thyme, Herbs de Provence, and rosemary), all supported with truck loads of earthy deliciousness that allows Rosella's Vineyard's terrior to shine brightly.  The Santa Lucia Highlands is part of the Monterey AVA, which is much cooler than Napa and some of California's warmer AVAs (think of the east side of Paso Robles), which partly explains why this isn't an overripe California Fruit Bomb (CFB).

This is a full-bodied, rich, creamy, deliciously well-balanced Syrah with a deep flavor profile and a long, lingering finish.  As I've alluded to several times already, this is not your typical CFB; this is a beautifully well-crafted, sublime, minerally, rich, delicious cool weather Syrah.  It's not too sweet, it has wonderful spicy and mineral elements that gorgeously complement the dark fruit profile, and it's smooth and well-balanced.  And at only $23, it's one of California's best bargains.  If we had the room and the money, I would have loved to bring home 10 to 20 cases of this lovely beauty!

Pairing Suggestions
We paired this wine with lamb chops topped with a roasted garlic and parsley pesto (one of my favorite lamb dishes EVER).  Needless to say, the Syrah went beautifully with the lamb, as most Rhone varietals do. This wine would also go well with a grilled rib eye smothered in Kosher salt, black pepper, and Herbs de Provence, as well as braised lamb shanks and just about any other red meat (prime rib, beef tenderloin and/or short ribs, etc.).

Aging Potential
This wine is drinking gorgeously right now and will probably continue to age, mature, and develop well for another ten to fifteen years.

Score (on a 100-point scale)
91

Q.P.R. (Quality-to-Price-Ratio) (Poor, Fair, Good, Excellent)
EXCELLENT

Winery Website
http://www.novyfamilywines.com/