2021 Caleta, Santa Cruz Mountains Syrah

How we missed this wine in 2020. The Santa Cruz Complex wildfires prevented it. We have been hoarding every last bottle of 2018 and 2019 in the tasting room. The yields out here, just a few miles from a cold, foggy coastline--have always been meagre. What's more the vineyard was originally co-planted with Petite Sirah (?). In 2019 we began rehabbing the vineyard with our local partner / star viticulturalist Prudy Foxx. The Petite Sirah came out. More Estrella Clone Syrah grafted in. Despite the drought gripping the state in 2021, we finally had good weather at flowering in Santa Cruz. Plus, more vines per acre and a long dry Autumn. Net result: we brought home our biggest take ever down here-- 2.95 tons of magic Syrah which was the star of the cellar from day one. Nothing smells like cool climate Syrah! There is probably no other wine we could get our cellar team excited about harvesting on Halloween. Explosive aromatics of blackberry liqueur, bacon fat, cracked pepper and flavors of dried fig, wild blueberry, baking spice inspire us to pull out the slow cooker and get to some deep winter Coq au Vin. Eureka!

Aroma: blackberry liquere, bacon fat, cracked pepper

Flavor: dried fig, wild blueberry, baking spice

Food: coq au vin, 'chovy-rubbed lamb chops, wild boar sausages