Syrah is a thick skinned, beautiful dark blue, almost black grape that grows in fairly tight, large bunches. In the northern hemisphere it is more commonly called Syrah and in the southern hemisphere it is more commonly referred to as Shiraz, although winemakers in California use both names.  Wines made from this grape tend towards higher tannins, deep rich flavors and the capability to be laid down for more than just a couple of years. In fact, many of the great versions from the Northern Rhone Valley of France need as much as 10 years of aging or more to reach their full potential.

This is a grape that grows best on sunny hillsides with well drained soils.  Generally the soils it does best in are rocky, but around the world it can produce richly flavored wines in any number of soil profiles.  Syrah is a fairly disease resistant varietal that does not do well in cold, windy or damp conditions.  When it receives too much water it grows too vigorously and creates wines with less than optimal flavor intensity.  Although this is a grape capable of high volume production, the vines require a fair amount of canopy management to prosper and low production levels to produce fine wines. 

Flavor Profiles: Made into the full spectrum of wine styles from light bodied to big tannic monsters, there is also a distinct ability to reflect the place where the grapes are grown. These are often big, almost luscious wines with primary fruit flavors of black raspberry and cherry as well as blackberry, great spices and either black or white pepper.  Also common characteristics are leather, smoke and often almost a meaty or gamey scent.  The wines made from the cooler growing regions in addition tend to exhibit damp earth, green olive, and sometimes a faint floral perfume. In the European wines there is often a hint of tobacco or even tar and burnt rubber.  Wines from warmer growing regions can have an almost creamy texture with chocolate overtones and often an impression of sweetness from the intense fruit that can verge on plums and raisins.  The warmer region wines are almost never earthy but can often demonstrate significant spiciness, white pepper and that great Syrah gaminess or savory finish. Syrahs made into a Rose style often exhibit less ripe fruit profiles such as cranberry and pomegranate. These are great wines for a warm summer evening. 

Wine Pairing Considerations: Big flavored California Syrah needs food with a lot of flavor.  In fact, the really big versions can be hard to drink without food.  This is not a high acid wine, but rather one with significant tannin that is usually is aged in some form of oak.  The wine’s full body bridges well to richer, fattier foods and the smokiness from that oak often pairs extremely well with barbequed or grilled meat.  A wine that can stand up to big flavored foods, it works with strong tasting meats like game, beef, venison, and lamb as well as strong, dry cheeses like Cheddar. If you are looking for side dishes, brown rice and wild rice work well with the oak aged versions.  Lighter bodied Syrahs can go nicely with turkey and some chicken (for example barbequed or grilled) with some of the light Rose style wines pairing beautifully with crab and shrimp.

Major California Growing Regions: Paso Robles; Mendocino, San Diego, Napa, Sonoma, Lodi, Sierra Foothills, Russian River, Santa Barbara.