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Writer's Block
WRITER'S BLOCK SYRAH
LAKE COUNTY
Literature has certainly paid many tributes to wine: Falstaff
and his sack, and Hemingway’s movable feasts always
included wine in beautiful Paris. We believe this wine
is as well constructed as some of the best prose of the
past. The Writer’s Block Syrah begins with soft
aromas of coffee, black berry and tobacco. Flavors of fresh
plum, currents and smoke are framed within soft tannins
that hint of cocoa. The medium finish shows a touch of
anise, leaving a bit of spice upon its departure.
We source grapes for the Writer’s Block Syrah from
a number of Lake County vineyards that were planted in
the early 1990s, before Syrah was as well recognized and
as widely planted as it is now, seen in nearly every wine-growing
region of California. Five growers planted these initial
vineyards: Dorn, Silva, Fiora, Lyon, and Hansmith. These
vineyards along with the Cana Springs Vineyard provide
the fruit for both our Steele, Shooting Star, and Writers
Block bottlings of Lake County Syrah.
All of the fruit is hand harvested and quickly delivered
to the winery. The grapes are de-stemmed and gently crushed
to tanks for fermentation. We ferment our Syrahs, keeping
each vineyard lot separated, not exceeding 90 degrees F.
Following fermentation, we kept the wine on the skins for
an additional 10 days. These wines are usually kept in
barrel for approximately nine months. Barrel aging is in
Oak from Oregon and the Eastern United States, Hungarian,
and France. The Syrah was aged in about 30% new oak, 70% neutral, a greater percentage
of which was American.
Try it with a plate of pasta, winter stew, or your favorite
game. Writer’s Block Syrah is also a no-brainer with
barbecues and picnics. |
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