WBW #47: The Letter S

Jul 08, 2008 |  WineBratSF (7) |  Wine Tasting |  11 comments

S is for ... well, it could be for a lot of things, but in this case, S is for the Silly theme for this month’s WBW. Grape Juice, our illustrious hosts for this month, asked us to abandon our serious sides, if we had one, and go back to our childhood where we could color outside the lines and be creative without consequences. This vague theme caused us to have some challenges, but it was an interesting push to get us to try something new. Below you will find a variety of "S" wines, from the region to the vineyard to the varietal, to all three and beyond. Prepare to be Stupefied by the Silly Sheer number of S’s accomplished!


The most prolific S produced was Syrah, with a total of 3 to start with. Our favorite was a double S, taking home an average 90 points. The 2004 Sobon Estate Amador Syrah (Reviews, Buy) showed a bit hot at first, but after some air time, it really improved. We found raisins, rose petals and spice with dark berries followed by smoke and rich earth. This was a rich syrah that really needs to be decanted to bring out it’s best notes.

The next two are actually triple S’s, with the varital being syrah and the appellation being an S in some form. The 2005 Sierra Vista Sierra Foothills Syrah (Reviews, Buy) was a bit soft, with not a huge amount of depth but some light fruit flavors, and nice earthy characteristics in a lighter bodied syrah. We gave it an average of 87 points. Also given 87 points, we enjoyed the 2005 Santa Barbara Winery Santa Ynez Valley Syrah for its strong berry flavors with a lot of pepper. It finished a bit tart, but was concentrated and classic in a Santa Barbara kind of way.
Not to be forgotten, we also had some white S’s hanging out in the woodwork to be judged. Semillon? Sauvignon Blanc? Santa Cruz? Yes! We say yes!

St. Hallett Barossa Semillon Sauvignon Blanc Poachers Blend (Reviews, Buy) was really interesting because with only a smattering of Sauv Blanc, you would expect the Semillon to power through. The opposite was true. We found green grass, lime, tart flavors and a lot of spice coming from the Sauv Blanc with a tinge of that Semillon funkiness. We gave it a collective 86 points.

Not to be outdone, a pure Sauv Blanc got a score of 84 points. The 2005 Silver Birch World Wines Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough (Reviews, Buy) comes in an unusual bottle, that reminds one of a Vox Vodka and other alcoholic beverages. Surprisingly, for a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, there was not a lot of finish. It was pretty much middle of the road, and tasted mixed up, with the requisite mineral and citrus flavors.

Since we had a Semillon mixed in with the Sauvignon Blanc, we added a 2007 Elena Russian River Valley Semillon for comparison. It was not a good idea. RUN! Run very far away! I suspect that it was off, unless you think dirty feet, mildew and wet dog are appropriate flavor profiles in wine. I think our friend Brett is at work here.

Since we were so wrong with the Semillon, it was nice to have an unoaked fruity chardonnay enter the ring, in the form of Tower Brook Santa Barbara Chardonnay (Reviews, Buy). This basic non oaked Chardonnay was well liked at 87 points, but not very exciting. There was a lot of spice, with tropical fruit flavors.

Just to spice things up, a rose somehow ended up on the table. The Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare Santa Cruz Mountain Rose (Reviews, Buy) was tart with strawberries & citrus bright flavors. We rated it 86 points.

Finally, we had a dark and brooding Zinfandel from Sherrer. The 2005 Sherrer Alexander Valley Sherrer Vineyard Shale Terrace Zinfandel was a nice change from some overblown zins from another valley, showing light fruit like pomegranate, hibiscus and pepper. We gave it 87 points.

This was definitely a challenging taste-off. With our wines and our palates all over the place, can we really evaluate them fairly? You be the judge. What do you think?
Happy drinking!

Wine Tasting

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