Recommendation: Excellent BIG and BOLD California Syrah blend at a VERY good price.
Winery/Producer: Ancient Peaks Winery, Creston, California.
Grape Variety: Syrah blend: 80% Syrah, 18% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot.
Geographic Region, Appellation: Paso Robles; Central Coast, California.
Vintage: 2014
Price: $19.95
Purchased From: Woodland Hills Wine Company; Woodland Hills, California.
Paired With: Roast pork with wine sauce, mushroom lasagne, summer & Mexican squash flavored with garlic, parmasan cheese and Italian seasoning.
Tasting:
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He said: Opened and decanted 30-minutes. Opaque, dark purple/garnet color with the same color rim. Light fruity aroma. Fairly smooth, quite acidic mouth-feel; intense flavors of cherry, plum, current and lots of licorice and spice. The finish was long, tart and ends spicy. WOW a wine that starts slowly with faint aromas, than EXPLODES into potent fruit flavors and ends with soft tannins and intense flavors. Great paired with the pork and red current sauce, but a little overwhelming drinking without food. Excellent BIG and BOLD California Syrah blend at a VERY good price.
This was quite different from the 2013 vintage of this wine, see our review of the Ancient Peaks Renegade Paso Robles Margarita Vineyard 2013.
She said: Opaque, deep dark red color with lots of thin slowly moving legs. Big and bold are the first words that come to mind. I have never had a wine bigger or bolder and it will stand out in my mind for that reason. The aroma was mild and fruity, but didn’t give a clue about the huge flavor that follows. Smooth and full-bodied, the wine had a long fruity finish with very soft tannins. It went well with the dinner, especially the pork in the red wine sauce, but was a bit overwhelming when sipping. As time went on it was so powerful I sipped it like a liqueur! I would definitely buy it again and pair it with a hardy lamb or beef dinner.
Alcohol: 14.6%
UPC Code: 8 97114 00125 8
Imported by: NA
Photo from Ancient Peaks Winery.