Colgin, IX Estate Syrah, Napa Valley 2016

Lastly, the 2016 Syrah IX Estate reminds me of the otherworldly 2010 and is as profound as Syrah gets. Tasting like Guigal’s Côte Rôtie La Mouline (maybe on steroids) with its huge notes of bacon fat, spring flowers, blue fruits, barbecued meats, and incense, it’s full-bodied and massive yet also thrillingly pure, seamless, elegant, and weightless. It’s certainly approachable today yet is going to benefit from 2-4 years of bottle age and keep for two decades.

The 2016 IX Syrah Estate is very deep purple-black colored with gorgeous blackberry preserves, preserved plums, chargrill and licorice with tar, mandarin peel, Sichuan pepper and violets plus a compelling peach blossom note and a waft of wild sage. The palate is full-bodied with fantastic finesse, so plush and light on its feet and very spicy on the long, long finish.

The 2016 Syrah IX Estate is dense, super-powerful and concentrated. In 2016, the Syrah is first and foremost a wine of IX Estate. Dark and brooding in the glass, with tremendous fruit intensity, the 2016 is superb. Varietal aromatics carry through to the energetic, vivid finish.