2008 Syrah

It's another world on top of Spring Mountain, and I'm always surprised by how late the harvest can take place here. According to winemaker Sally Johnson, "2009 was a great growing season, but then it rained. Our whites were in but not the reds. We picked our sangiovese quickly, but except for some of these grapes we didn't have rot. Some of the merlot was diluted by the rain, but the cabernet was picked a good month later." My visit focused on the showy, aromatically perfumed 2008s, which have turned out well. According to Johnson, these wines have "an easy softness. They're a bit less grippy than the 2007s and 2006s but will give early pleasure."

Two thousand eight was a very stressful vintage at this estate on top of Spring Mountain, said winemaker Sally Johnson. First, Pride lost nearly 30% of its fruit to frost. Heat during bloom resulted in irregular ripening. And then the estate ran out of water by the end of the summer. The team picked in a series of passes in order to lessen the effect of the heterogeneous ripening. In the end, says Johnson, "the 2008s are showy wines with fairly low acid levels and expressive fruit. They will be relatively soft, fleshy fruit bombs, but will they age?" In comparison, the 2007s are restrained, elegant wines with considerable aging potential. This was the biggest crop to date for this property, due in large part to the fact that there was no excessively hot weather during the ripening period and thus little in the way of dehydration and loss of volume. Incidentally, Johnson noted that the Vintner Select wines are intended to be "rounder, sweeter, more feminine" than the winery's reserves. The latter wines are the ultimate expression of mountain terroir and are meant to be aged. Also recommended: 2008 Chardonnay Napa Valley (85).