2002 Behrens Family Syrah Alder Springs Vineyard Homage to Ed Oliveira

Medium ruby. Knockout nose combines blackberry, minerals, violet, graphite and licorice, along with a distinctly rocky quality. Rich and quite purple in flavor, hinting at blackberry and violet pastille; very backward and evolving slowly. Extremely tactile, even saline, and not at all an overly sweet style of syrah. Finishes with powerful tannins and sneaky length. Still an infant, but a fascinating sample. Behrens uses mostly 350- and 500-liter barrels to age this wine.