Gramercy Cellars John Lewis Syrah 2016 (750ml) For Cheap

Description

Gramercy Cellars John Lewis Syrah 2016 (750ml)

A Manhattan-based Master Sommelier tastes some Washington State wines and is so inspired, he sells everything to move across the country to make his own. That’s the start of the story of Gramercy Cellars, where a close eye on the grapes (picked for almost-peak ripeness, mostly organic), matched with minimalist wine making techniques (no or little new oak, no additives) and a lot of time (extended aging) has created wine that’s considered some of the best that Washington offers.

Sommelier for leading restauranteurs and the near perfect growing conditions near Walla Walla to create some of the best-reviewed wines from the region. The results are intense, yet restrained; elegant, yet earthy.

This kind of balance starts with the vineyards. The Walla Walla and surrounding AVAs offer the perfect climate and soil conditions for the kind of wines Greg wanted to make. Gramercy farms its grapes from old vines, carefully tended. It owns three estate vineyards, and controls several others, to ensure the grapes are grown and picked for the specific profile Gramercy is trying to achieve. Many of its wines—particularly its Rhônes—are single-vineyard estate wines.

At the winery, Greg and partner/co-winemaker Brandon Moss carefully design fermentation per the effect they are trying to achieve; sometimes in concrete, sometimes in oak, always with patience and minimalism. The result is honest and complex wines that pair well with food and age well. And get reviewed well!

This wine is all about florals – lavender, rose petal, and potpourri. Asian spice, smoked meat, provence herb. Strong mineral and gravel on the palate, fresh and energetic, with red fruits – cranberry, strawberry, with a hint of blue fruit. Strong tannins with high acidity. Classic cool region focused Syrah. A stunning version of John Lewis Syrah.

Critical Acclaim

RP95
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Wow, from the first sniff of the 2016 Syrah John Lewis you know this is something special. Aromas of blackberry, black raspberry and dusty cherry skin burst from the glass with black peppercorn and red spice notes. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, structured and lifted, with a touch of sweet red fruit, presumably from a semi-carbonic maceration, showing elegance and ease on the mid-palate that is firm and focused, with a mineral tension of wet rock. A long and thoughtful expression on the finish continues to evolve on the aftertaste well after the wine has left the palate. It’s an impressive wine, and with only 322 cases made, this is a safe bet for any Syrah lover. It’s devastatingly beautiful.
W&S94
Wine & Spirits
Composed of fruit from Les Collines, Forgotten Hills and Red Willow vineyards, this wine marks the first time Greg Harrington harvested a wine under 13 percent alcohol (It came in at 12.8 percent.) It takes days to evolve, moving from lightly floral scents of rosemary blossoms to a deeper and more concentrated plumminess. The wine unfurls with a kind of disciplined elegance, the grape-skin tannins formidable but supple, the savory finish limned with whole-cluster spice and dry extract. This is years from peak expression; cellar.
JD92
Jeb Dunnuck
The 2016 Syrah John Lewis comes from the Les Collins, Forgotten Hills, SJR, and Red Willow vineyards and saw 86% whole clusters and 19 months in 11% new French oak. Reminding me of a Saint Joseph with its stemmy black fruits, peppery herbs, and subtle minerality, it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, firm tannins, good acidity, and a clean, lengthy finish. It’s a good, even outstanding Syrah, yet is a shadow of what this estate has produced in the past.