Round two of the San Diego Wine Mafia’s ( #SDWM on Twitter) tasting events definitely stepped it up a notch. It was lovingly dubbed the “Syrah Smackdown” and though I’m not sure who was more smacked down (me or the wines), it certainly was fun and another learning experience for me, the novice of the group. We celebrated at Brain Wines house, which luckily is near mine.
Anyway, we tasted 5 Red Mountain Syrahs (paper bags) and 5 Paso Robles Syrahs (red bags) blind. And we made a lot of funny (to us) wine jokes such as “It’s like Puerto Vallarta in my mouth” – Wine Harlots. Or “If you want a Pinot that’s fruity, go with Grenache” – either Cuvee Corner or Beau’s Barrel Room, I can’t remember.
Where is Red Mountain: I’m sure you’ve all heard of the Columbia Valley (Chateau Ste Michelle ring a bell?) region of Washington state. Red Mountain is a part of that, but the smallest wine growing region in the state at about 4000 acres. It’s gets a little more sunlight than the rest of Columbia Valley. Red Mountain is known for their powerful, balanced red wines with awesome reputations.
My favorite Red Mountain Wine: I happened to taste it along side Cuvee Corner’s awesome chocolate chorizo baguette. The pairing of these two was memorable. It’s the 2004 Winemaker’s Barrel Select Syrah from Terra Blanca (4th from the right). A few others in the room favored the Skylight Cellars 2005 Syrah(5th from the right), which got much better as it opened up. Delicious.
Where to buy Red Mountain Syrahs in San Diego: This is tough. Most of our wines were media samples. A list of Red Mountain wineries shows that there really aren’t that many to begin with. So I’d recommend ordering online. The shipping will be worth it. But DO look out for Red Mountain wines in your travels.
Paso Robles Syrahs: It’s easy to go to any store around town and find a Paso wine. It’s in the Central Coast of California, between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and the largest wine region in the state at currently 26,000 acres. The color of the wines are deep due to the intensity of the sun and the cool nights keeps acidity in balance. Paso Robles produces a wide array of wines, many of which are SIP Certified, or sustainably grown.
My favorite Paso Robles wine: This was not staged because I hadn’t had the wine yet, and also because it was truly a blind tasting. You’ve heard me talk about Herman Story wines before. I brought the 2007 Herman Story Nuts and Bolts Syrah(5th from the right). The only place I’ve seen Herman Story sold around San Diego is at Bristol Farms in the UTC area. Otherwise, you’ll have to order it online.
What to eat with Syrah: I should mention the food! Aside from the chocolate chorizo baguette, we sampled cheeses from Trader Joe’s (Australian Parmesan, Spanish Manchego and Honey Goat Cheese). Beau’s Barrel Room suggests hard cheeses when going with Syrah, though the blue cheese he also brought was excellent as well. And we raved about the Honey Goat Cheese at our last San Diego Wine Mafia tasting. Wine Harlots brought the “fig and pig”. Whole figs and sliced prosciutto, eaten together. More meats and a bruschetta tray that I picked up from Whole Foods La Jolla. I could eat like this everyday.
The bottom line is that I love Syrah. I happily tasted a bit from all 10 bottles. Fabulous. The Pinot Pistolera is happening next month. Stay tuned and follow #SDWM for more. We also use #SDTTL (San Diego Twitter Taste Live) because our intention is to tweet while we drink wines. We do, but sometimes we get caught up enjoying each other’s company and at least I don’t tweet as much as I would like to. I’ll work on it.
*I talk about wine every Wednesday from the perspective of a busy mom. What kind, a little background, where to get it around town, how much it costs and/or what to serve it with.
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