For our first wine comparative tasting we decided to start with six very nice Syrahs representing five very different California AVAs. Although these were all good examples of the varietal, there were some distinct differences in fruit versus earthiness and acid versus tannin levels. We picked two wines from the El Dorado AVA, one from the Napa Valley, one from the Napa side of the Los Carneros AVA, one from the Sonoma Coast, and one from the North Yuba AVA. The two wines from El Dorado County had the most similar flavor profiles, both showing great fruit and spice with the only hints of earthiness. Surprisingly, the two Napa wines demonstrated the most significant earthy, almost rustic qualities and the North Yuba wine had the most significant, but nicely developed, tannins. The Sonoma Coast wine from Macrostie had the tartest fruit and most resembled a cooler climate wine than the others. These were all fairly big wines on the palate, but none of the tannins were harsh or green.

Its always hard to pick favorite when you have six such well balanced, well made wines. The main differences ended up being personal preference for an old world earthiness or a new world fruit forward style. None of the wines were light on the palate, they were all big and luscious, with considerable alcohol and tannins. However, there was not one that had out of balance heat or dryness on the palate, but all had great aging potential. We paired them all with a dinner of barbequed ribs. They all worked beautifully with the barbeque sauce and heavy body of the meat. Several of the bigger versions would be heaven with blue cheese or a old world cheddar. If you get an invitation to a summer dinner party with a big beef main dish, any of these wines would work perfectly with the grilled flavors, red barbeque sauces and big body of the meat.

Other than the Clos Saron, which is a very small, boutique winery, these wines should be easy enough to come across, including buying them from the wineries' web sites. The following grid is the composite results of the input of all of the tasters. These are all fairly easy wines to find for sale, Click Here!