Que? Syrahs

1) Esca Syrah Napa Valley 2003
As pleasant as any suprise I've had recently is the spicy and intense Esca Syrah. 100% Syrah from Napa, with 21 months in french oak, the Esca displays classic dark berry and cherry flavors, a subtle hint of smoked bacon and spicy pepper and cocoa tones on the nose. On the palate, the texture is plush and dense with loads of ripe black cherry fruit and an intense gripping finish that lasts. This is a relatively new project for Anna (Bryant Family) and Mario (Quixote) Monticelli and it looks like they are off to a great start. Retails just north of $20
91 points

2) Rosenblum Syrah "Base Camp Vineyard" Santa Barbara County 2003
Rosenblum has a tendency of late to make wines that are just a bit too homogeneous for my palate, but that being said, they are hardly ever BAD, so I gave this one a whirl on a whim. While I found it a bit unexciting for its $25 price tag, it was juicy and satisfying in a straightforward manor. All splash with a hefty dose of slick new oak and jammy fruit, it had just the faintest hint of smoked ham on the nose, with a more dominant blast of cola spice and caramel. On the palate this is juicy and ripe, flirting with over ripe. This will be very pleasing to loads of warm climate syrah lovers.
87 points

3) John Anthony Syrah Napa Valley 2004
A darker and more brooding option, this syrah is made by Alison Doran, the former oenologist at Lewis Cellars and she shows some real talent for the varietal. Very spicy with loads of black pepper, cola and darker bacon notes. Very rich and intense on the palate with a mountain of plum, black berry and raspberry fruit. Firmly structured, this warrants some time in a decanter before consumption, or better yet a few years in the cellar...Best from 2008-2012 Retails around $50 and very worth the effort of hunting it down.
93 points

4)Pure Love Wines "Layer Cake" Shiraz Barossa 2005
This is the first vintage for Jason Woodbridge(owner of Napa cult cab producer Hundred Acre)'s new Pure Love Aussie project. These wines (there are a few including the "Layer Cake", as well as "Maverick", Barossa Jack" and "Desert Eagle") are all fantastic. The "Layer Cake" is inky black with a tremendous intensity of dark dark cherry fruit as well as plum and blueberry on the nose. Dense and broad across the palate with subtle hints of eucalyptus and spice, this is a classic Barossa shiraz and is an absolute steal at $17-20 if you like intensely flavored, high alcohol aussie shiraz (you know you do, stop lying...)
92 points