Santa Cruz Mountains Syrah
2022, Santa Cruz Mountains, Santa Cruz , USA
Santa Cruz Mountains Syrah
Syrah/Shiraz
Matthiasson Wines
About the Wine
The vineyard sits up at 1160 feet of elevation, on sandstone, shist, and shale soils. The vines are grown organically and dry-farmed. Furthermore, the farmer, Prudy Foxx, is an old friend, who worked with Jill back when she was in grad school studying cover crops, in the late 80s. To capture the Syrah spice, we used 100% whole clusters in the fermentation. The whole clusters also gave us plenty of structure and depth. We fermented in a small open top bin, with two punch downs per day. We gently pressed just after dryness, and aged the wine in neutral puncheons for 10 months. The pH is 3.77 the TA is 6.6 g/L, and the alcohol is 12.5%. Only 201 cases produced.
Tasting Notes
The Zayante Syrah is bright and lively, packed with wild & stone fruits, blackberry, French strawberries and raspberry, along with classic black-pepper spice. The vineyard is surrounded by fir trees and redwoods, which lend a distinctive wild, earthy, forest floor character to the wine. Full tannins and chalky minerality lend ample structure while remaining balanced and light.
Pairing Notes
Wild boar sausage with lentils Roast chicken Marbella, with olives & prunes Pasta alla Norma, with tomatoes & eggplant