Wine Review - 2006 Gordon Brothers Columbia Valley Syrah: This Is On The Cusp Of Too Expensive For Us....But WOW!
So, we picked this little number up from our local NSLC store on the clearance table. It was on sale for $27 down from $37 and we decided to pick it up. It looks as though the wine retails for about $20 in the US and we were interested to give it a try. Gordon Brothers in Washington makes a variety of wines from Ice Wines to big reds like this one. For a description of the wine from the winery's website click here. In essence, this wine at full retail is too rich for our blood at $37 but with $10 off it was right in our wheelhouse. That said, if you call shenanigans on us for choosing this wine, we get it. We stilled paid under $30 for it sooooo, we say we win. Though once you hear what we have to say, you might want to splurge.
This wine is super dark with a LOT of purple going on in the glass. It is thick, dense, and viscous. You can tell the bottle aging has added some density but we would bet that this was a syrupy wine to begin with. As an aged wine, it has those representative mahogany edges around the rim that shows it is an older vintage. It is an interesting coloured wine and it is nice to see an older wine stand up to the aging.
When you stick your nose in the glass there is a huge, rich smell that is almost overpowering. The wine has been opened for over an hour and it is still very bold when you swirl it. It is an absolutely mocha smell, with double espresso and dark chocolate hitting you all at once. After that passes, you get a poof of vanilla, nutmeg, black cherry compote, and burnt rubber. So big and bold. In fact, it might almost snap you back to consciousness after a stiff blow to the head, if that ever happens to you (which we hope you never need).
Once you put this in your mouth, you immediately get a tannic acid burn with an abundance of tartness and acidity. However, it is all wrapped up in a chocolate, coffee, and cherry fruit power pack. It is very smooth wine but not as round as we would have thought. The acid that starts definitely falls off at the end (and thank goodness for that) and transitions to a nice finish that sticks around for a while. It really does taste like it smells. It is very enjoyable and certainly makes for a great tasting experience. We really like this wine. It is a big and bold flavour profile that pulls no punches. Better with food than without but no complaints at all on this one. Though this is Syrah, with a slightest touch of residual sugar, it a closer tasting experience to South African Pinotage then say to Aussie Shiraz.
This wine is super dark with a LOT of purple going on in the glass. It is thick, dense, and viscous. You can tell the bottle aging has added some density but we would bet that this was a syrupy wine to begin with. As an aged wine, it has those representative mahogany edges around the rim that shows it is an older vintage. It is an interesting coloured wine and it is nice to see an older wine stand up to the aging.
When you stick your nose in the glass there is a huge, rich smell that is almost overpowering. The wine has been opened for over an hour and it is still very bold when you swirl it. It is an absolutely mocha smell, with double espresso and dark chocolate hitting you all at once. After that passes, you get a poof of vanilla, nutmeg, black cherry compote, and burnt rubber. So big and bold. In fact, it might almost snap you back to consciousness after a stiff blow to the head, if that ever happens to you (which we hope you never need).
Once you put this in your mouth, you immediately get a tannic acid burn with an abundance of tartness and acidity. However, it is all wrapped up in a chocolate, coffee, and cherry fruit power pack. It is very smooth wine but not as round as we would have thought. The acid that starts definitely falls off at the end (and thank goodness for that) and transitions to a nice finish that sticks around for a while. It really does taste like it smells. It is very enjoyable and certainly makes for a great tasting experience. We really like this wine. It is a big and bold flavour profile that pulls no punches. Better with food than without but no complaints at all on this one. Though this is Syrah, with a slightest touch of residual sugar, it a closer tasting experience to South African Pinotage then say to Aussie Shiraz.
| Tasting Notes: | Score: | |
| Sight (0-5) | Super dark, purple wine with mahogany edges and a viscous swirl in the glass. | 4.25 |
| Smell (0-5) | Huge nose with a lot of chocolate and espresso notes, augmented with vanilla, nutmeg, black cherries, and burnt rubber. | 4.25 |
| Taste (0-10) | Acidic start with a smooth finish that has a lot of the same cherry, chocolate, and coffee notes. Taste like it smells. Great wine! | 8.5 |
| Total: | 17.0 / 20 (85.0%) |
This is an awesome wine and we are glad we spent $27 for it. At that price it is a no brainer to purchase whereas at $37, as far as our normal buying pattern is concerned, it is on the outside looking in. It would be what we would expect to get at $37 but the extra $10 pushes it into a new stratosphere.
Keep on tasting!
Chris & Shannon
Comments
Post a Comment