Winery - Walter Dacon
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Walter Dacon’s three Syrahs are well made, but so very much alike it is hard to understand why they warrant three separate bottlings, at three different prices. The Magnifique takes us back to the French oak treatment, again pure Syrah, from a mix of Red Mountain, Horse Heaven Hills and Yakima Valley vineyards. Just 160 cases produced.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Aged in American oak, with mostly similar vineyard sources. The American oak, with more spice to the fruit, and less smoothness overall than the C’est Belle Bottling. Cherry and berry flavors abound; it’s sturdy, solid and well-made. Just 170 cases produced.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Just 370 cases produced. This pure Syrah is soaked in sweet, cedary oak. The cedar and whiskey barrel scents hit first, but the fruit is substantial and goes deep, with rich cherry, plums and spice. The tannins, smooth and soft, lead into a creamy caramel, layered finish. Balanced and big; it’s a style that many consumers will love for its rich, plush flavors.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A bit simple and grapy, with bold fruit aromas right upfront. You get the flavors of sun-warmed fruit, a squirt of lemon juice and a hint of alcoholic warmth in this medium-bodied wine.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Spicy, smoky, toasty notes, courtesy of American oak aging, accent this wine, nose to close. It’s supple and soft on the palate, with mixed berry flavors. Grows tart toward the finish, when lively acids emerge.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Spicy on the nose. The smooth, supple palate offers baked blackberry flavors that fade into a medium-long finish. One reviewer found the finish a little hard and metallic, and another lauded it for its meaty, brown-sugary flavors.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
The Beaux is Walter Dacon’s American-oaked Syrah, from a range of vineyards and AVAs. The oak is much in evidence, adding vanilla and pickle barrel flavors to the ripe, hefty (14.8% alcohol) grapes. Fruit flavors are blocky and ripe, plum and cherry bordering on raisin; and there is a lush streak of chocolate in the finish. This is a wide- open, forward and powerful style that will have great appeal to some palates. Drink up; don’t cellar.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is Walter Dacon’s best effort, a barrel selection from the French oak-aged side lots. It’s 100% Syrah with a generous (one third) portion of Boushey grapes. The three Syrahs from Walter Dacon use different barrel regimens, but blend grapes from the same vineyards, and so they tend to share a very similar set of flavors, and lose focus. In place of specificity, they offer bold, oaky, forward, ripe and immediately accessible flavors of fruit and barrel.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is a new bottling from Walter Dacon, made exclusively from the exceptional Boushey vineyard. It is always a pleasure to taste pure Syrah from Boushey, and this expresses the nuances of soil and vine that the vineyard is so capable of. The fruit is ripe but subdued, and there are interesting layers of leaf, herb, earth and smoke that add texture to the wild blackberry fruit.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
The Magnifique is a barrel selection from the French oak-aged side of the winery. It’s 100% Syrah and packed with blackberry, black cherry and streaks of citrus. It’s very well balanced, complete and firm; the wine should age nicely for another decade at least.
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