WESTERLY VINEYARDS
2003 SYRAH
Santa Ynez Valley
Tasting Notes
The 2003 marks our first harvest of syrah from the new plantings on the western slopes of the property. Although from young vines, this wine shows off the unique terroir that makes Westerly so special. The nose shows pepper, black licorice and dark fruits, and the palate more of the same, with a very rich mouthfeel and nice balance of fruit, spice and tannins. The wine is big without being clumsy or out of balance.
Winemaking
After hand-harvesting, the grapes were lightly crushed and destemmed into small open-top fermenters. During fermentation, the must was punched down manually three times each day to ensure balanced extraction of flavor and color, and to round out the mouthfeel and tannin profile. At dryness the wine was pressed and settled, then racked to French oak barrels for aging. New oak was limited to 30 percent of the barrels to ensure retention of delicate fruit components.
Varietal Composition
Syrah 100%
Vineyard
Westerly Estate
Brix at Harvest
25.2
Aging Method
20 months
French oak barrels (30% new)
Final Analysis
pH 3.75
TA .57
Alc. 14.5%
Cases Produced
285
Suggested Retail
$22/bottle
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