K Vintners The Beautiful Syrah 2017
-
Suckling
James -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Parker
Robert
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Beautiful, deep color. Aromatically mysterious like a great hand of cards played close to the vest. Black olive, cold earth, cured meat, tumbled river rock, cool camp ash, black and blue fruit live here in the dense and elegant elixir.
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
This has wonderful, leafy character with hints of chocolate, tobacco and berries. Full-bodied, but not heavy. Firm tannins and a spicy finish. Very complex. Eccentric. A touch of viognier gives it an edge.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
Blackcurrants, sliced strawberries, cured meats, and dried herb notes all emerge from the 2017 Syrah The Beautiful Powerline Vineyard, and it shows a more seamless, elegant style that still carries considerable power and richness. Polished, nicely concentrated, and long, give it another 3-4 years if you can. This comes all from clone 470 of Syrah and was co-fermented with 3% Viognier.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Dark purple to the core with a soft purple rim, the 2017 Syrah The Beautiful offers aromas of Walla Walla funk, with baked stones, stewed black fruit and lingering black spice tones with a hint of oak on the nose. Medium to full-bodied, the wine is expressive and pleasurable across the palate, showing impeccable balance and remaining slightly funky before ending with a remarkably long finish. Bravo!
Other Vintages
2020-
Suckling
James -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Parker
Robert
-
Suckling
James -
Dunnuck
Jeb
-
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Suckling
James -
Spectator
Wine -
Parker
Robert
-
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert
-
Parker
Robert -
Dunnuck
Jeb -
Spectator
Wine
-
Parker
Robert -
Suckling
James -
Spectator
Wine
-
Parker
Robert -
Spectator
Wine -
Panel
Tasting
-
Parker
Robert
-
Spectator
Wine -
Parker
Robert
Located at the base of the Blue Mountains in Walla Walla Washington, K Vintners opened its doors to the public on December 3rd, 2001. The property at 820 Mill Creek Road where the winery sits was homesteaded in 1853 with the adjacent farmhouse built in 1872. The winery grounds with Titus Creek flowing through the lawn and the old pioneer planted trees, is a little slice of heartland Americana. The Winemaker: He loves to drink wine! Charles Smith, proprietor and winemaker, comes to Walla Walla after 11 years in Scandanavia. Originally from northern California, he has been involved with wine personally and professionally his whole life. And did we forget to mention... he loves to drink wine! The Vineyards: K Vintners is producing wines from 2 distinctive viticultural zones: Wahluke Slope and Walla Walla Valley. Each of these areas are unique and awesome for Syrah and the Field Blends produced. In April '02 two seperate blocks of vineyards were planted to Syrah adjacent to the winery in the rocky dry creek beds that run through K Vintners property.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Responsible for some of Washington’s most highly acclaimed wines, the Walla Walla Valley has experienced a surge in popularity in recent years and is home to both historic wineries and younger, up-and-coming producers.
The Walla Walla Valley, a Native American name meaning “many waters,” is located in southeastern Washington; part of the appellation actually extends into Oregon. Soils here are well-drained, sandy loess over Missoula Flood deposits and fractured basalt.
It is a region perfectly suited to Rhône-inspired Syrahs, distinguished by savory notes of red berry, black olive, smoke and fresh earth. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot create a range of styles from smooth and supple to robust and well-structured. White varieties are rare but some producers blend Sauvignon Blanc with Sémillon, resulting in a rich and round style, and plantings of Viognier, while minimal, are often quite successful.
Of note within Walla Walla, is one new and very peculiar appellation, called the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater. This is the only AVA in the U.S. whose boundaries are totally defined by the soil type. Soils here look a bit like those in the acclaimed Rhône region of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, but are large, ancient, basalt cobblestones. These stones work in the same way as they do in Chateauneuf, absorbing and then radiating the sun's heat up to enhance the ripening of grape clusters. The Rocks District is within the part of Walla Walla that spills over into Oregon and naturally excels in the production of Rhône varieties like Syrah, as well as the Bordeaux varieties.