Cayuse Bionic Frog Syrah 2020
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Winemaker Notes
Produced from the Coccinelle Vineyard. Coccinelle is the French word for "ladybug," and this 4.5-acre was first planted in 1998.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is dark and earthy with blackberry bush, black raspberries, baking spices and black soil. Full-bodied with depth and finesse. So wide and plush, with tight but refined, silky tannins that show some creaminess. Seamless and long, with an array of floral and spicy flavors to the dark fruit. From biodynamically grown grapes.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Another brilliant Syrah from this team, the 2020 Syrah Bionic Frog reveals a translucent ruby hue to go with a rocking bouquet of ripe framboise and mulberry-like fruits as well as notions of smoked earth, spring flowers, rose petals, ground pepper, graphite, and crushed stone. (It has more than a passing resemblance to a great vintage of Jamet's Côte Rôtie Côte Brune.) Incredibly complex, medium to full-bodied, and elegant on the palate, it has ripe, integrated tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. It's a stunning Syrah that deserves 3-5 years of bottle age and will evolve for two decades in cold cellars.
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Wine Enthusiast
The iconic frog, with its aromas and flavors of blackberries, black tea, beeswax, grilled meat and leather, once again hops into one’s heart. Its thick and pleasing texture coats the palate, while citrus-like acidity lights the path. Cue Iggy Pop’s “Lust for Life” on the turntable and dig in.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Dark-fruited, bold and juicy aromas waft from the glass of the 2020 Syrah Bionic Frog with hints of black raspberries, soy, olive and crème de violette. The nose is fresh, floral and packed with notions of roasted herbs and succulent spiced cherries. Medium to full-bodied, the wine is balanced on the palate with savory flavors, an umami essence and a lingering, firm tannic edge that will remain food friendly for over a decade. The wine rested for a year and a half in about 20% new French oak barrels.
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Wine
An adventure in the new world
Christophe Baron grew up among the vineyards and cellars of his family's centuries-old Champagne house, Baron Albert. His sense of adventure, however, led him to become the first Frenchman to establish a winery in Washington State.
While visiting the Walla Walla Valley in 1996, Christophe spotted a plot of land that had been plowed up to reveal acres of softball-sized stones. This stony soil, this terroir, was just like that of some of the most prestigious French appellations. The difficult ground would stress the grapevines, making them produce more mature, concentrated fruit.
He named his vineyard after the Cayuse, a Native American tribe whose name was taken from the French cailloux--which means, rocks. Hours of back-breaking work later, Cayuse Vineyards has become five vineyards encompassing 41 acres.
The majority is planted with Syrah, and the rest dedicated to Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, Merlot, Mourvèdre, Roussanne, Tempranillo and Viognier. All of the vineyards are planted in rocky earth within the Walla Walla Valley appellation. Cayuse was the first winery in Washington State to use biodynamic farming methods.
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.