American Syrah: 30 top buys
There’s a common perception of Syrah produced in the US – too much oak, too much alcohol – that is increasingly outdated as a dedicated band of winemakers put their faith in the Rhône variety and work to bring it out of the shadows.
Syrah in the US remains an enigma. Cult brands that emerged during the 1990s – Sine Qua Non on the Central Coast or Cayuse Vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley – are among the country’s iconic and most expensive wines.
But by and large, Syrah is still the perennial underdog of American wine. ‘There’s this assumption that Syrah [in America] is just this goopy, overly alcoholic, overoaked and overextracted wine,’ explains Jeff Lindsay-Thorsen, the winemaker-sommelier who produces WT Vintners’ Syrah from vineyards in Washington and Oregon.
The benchmark for Syrah is still encapsulated in the northern Rhône ideal. But to critics who claim that Syrah’s otherworldliness, its haunting florality and sanguine, sauvage complexities, can’t be found outside France, America’s Syrah growers have a firm response…
Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 30 of the best Syrahs from across the US
‘Sorry, that’s just ignorance,’ says Christopher Bates MS, the winemaker and owner of Element Winery in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. The greatness that we tend to associate with the northern Rhône, that perfume, that spice, that earthiness, ‘isn’t necessarily derived from just one specific place’, he explains. ‘It’s linked to a style and mentality of wine-growing and winemaking, too.’
While pioneering Americans have been championing Syrah since the 1980s, in the broader scheme of history Syrah is barely nascent here, suggests Nikolas Krankl, whose parents Elaine and Manfred established Sine Qua Non in 1994. Today, Nikolas and his wife Julia, founders of Fingers Crossed Wine in Santa Barbara County, are among America’s next generation of Syrah champions. ‘The gift and the curse is that we don’t have that history,’ says Julia. ‘But that also means we can be as creative as we want.’
The most provocative Syrahs grown in America are still a testament to that pioneering spirit – explorations of untried sites, blending from different climates and terroir, experiments in whole-cluster ferments and earlier picking.
Across the spectrum
From Washington and Oregon to California and New York, the kaleidoscope of American Syrah is vast and wildly unsung. California is where you’ll find the greatest spectrum of diversity. In the chilly, windswept pockets of Sonoma or the Central Coast – San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara or sub-regions such as the Santa Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley – you’ll find Syrah that’s often shockingly spry, laser-etched and perfumed. And, unlike in the northern Rhône these days, there’s an abundance of exceptional Syrah at a compact 12% alcohol.
Those seeking wines with more muscularity are directed further inland to warmer areas of Santa Barbara, such as the corridors of the Ballard and Happy canyons, or Paso Robles, where Syrah is intense and ripe but moored to that resinous, smoky allure of chaparral.
Further north, Syrah also flourishes in the Columbia Valley – particularly in areas such as the Yakima and Walla Walla valleys – which straddles the border between Washington and Oregon. Syrah here ‘is never short on fruit but can go into this feral, spicy place that’s an interesting bridge between the Old World and the New World’, says Lindsay-Thorsen.
Click here to see tasting notes and scores of 16 additional top Syrahs from across the US
The alluvial plain of the Oregon side of the AVA, littered with cobblestones reminiscent of the galets roulés of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, is an epicentre of Syrah in the Walla Walla Valley. Made famous by Cayuse and designated with its own sub-region, the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA, which is home to a roll call of standout producers and winemakers, including Sean Boyd, founder of Rotie Cellars and Proper Wines.
‘There’s this fingerprint here [in the Rocks District],’ Boyd asserts, ‘this Rocks-funk that’s deeply savoury – like earth and olive tapenade – that can be so polarising and visceral.’ And yet so distinctly American, too.
See notes and scores for 30 of the best American Syrahs
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Alban, Reva Syrah, Central Coast, Edna Valley, California, USA, 2019
Unabashedly powerful yet visceral and alluring, John Alban's Syrah is a benchmark expression of the sun-drenched intensity of the maritime Edna Valley in San Luis...
2019
AlbanCentral Coast
Arnot-Roberts, Que Syrah, Sonoma Coast, California, USA, 2021
Planted in 1994, the high-elevation coastal ridge of Que Syrah Vineyards is home to the oldest Syrah vines on the Sonoma Coast. This single-vineyard bottling...
2021
Arnot-RobertsSonoma Coast
Fingers Crossed, Syrah, Santa Barbara County, California, USA, 2021
Sublime, subtle, earthy notes of wild game and truffles that open into milk chocolate and black figs. It's an imposing, formidable Syrah (83%, with 4.7%...
2021
Fingers CrossedSanta Barbara County
Force Majeure, SJR Vineyard Syrah, Columbia Valley, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Washington, USA, 2021
Profoundly ferrous yet gleaming with juicy black cherry and cassis, this salt-etched, supple wine is sourced entirely from purchased fruit from the SJR vineyard. A...
2021
Force MajeureColumbia Valley
Reynvaan, Stonessence Estate In the Rocks Vineyard Syrah, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley, Washington, USA, 2021
Sourced from the estate's In the Rocks vineyard, this penetrating Syrah displays the haunting perfume of the Rocks District (which lies in Oregon), while the...
2021
ReynvaanColumbia Valley
Saxum Vineyards, Bone Rock James Berry Vineyard Syrah, Paso Robles, Willow Creek, California, USA, 2020
Iodine and violets lend a lifted, airy perfume to this intensely concentrated yet superbly balanced, almost laser-etched wine. It's powerful and unctuous certainly, but its...
2020
Saxum VineyardsPaso Robles
Andremily, Syrah, Santa Barbara County, California, USA, 2020
Veins of char and singed vanilla beans lend sweet, spicy streaks here. While predominantly Syrah, small proportions of Mourvèdre and Viognier lend angularity and lift...
2020
AndremilySanta Barbara County
Element Winery, Syrah, Finger Lakes, New York State, USA, 2014
Winter damage in 2014 reduced yields significantly, but the focus and purity of this vintage shines in this rare library release. A profoundly herbal, fragrant...
2014
Element WineryFinger Lakes
Force Majeure, Estate Syrah, Red Mountain, Washington, USA, 2021
This bright, mouthfilling wine opens with pristine blackberry and plum flavours filigreed with eucalyptus and flint. It's pure-fruited but peppery, with a lifted, salty perfume...
2021
Force MajeureRed Mountain
Jonata, La Sangre de Jonata, Santa Barbara County, Ballard Canyon, California, USA, 2020
A profoundly concentrated yet finely contoured wine. Roasted plum flavours are ample and weighty, accented with orange peel, anise and a profoundly earthy undertow. It's...
2020
JonataSanta Barbara County
Piedrasassi, Bien Nacido Vineyard Syrah, Santa Maria Valley, California, USA, 2020
Hints of green leaf and rosemary lend verve to ripe, concentrated black cherry and cassis flavours. A touch richer and darker in fruit profile than...
2020
PiedrasassiSanta Maria Valley
Piedrasassi, Rim Rock Vineyard Syrah, San Luis Obispo County, Arroyo Grande Valley, California, USA, 2020
Sourced from the cool, distinctly maritime Arroyo Grande Valley in San Luis Obispo, this taut, thrilling wine beams with blackberry and cherry flavours that are...
2020
PiedrasassiSan Luis Obispo County
Saxum Vineyards, Broken Stones, Paso Robles, California, USA, 2021
This is a potent powerhouse of wine that quakes with sun-drenched flavours of roasted plums and black cherry preserve. Despite its hulking footprint, it maintains...
2021
Saxum VineyardsPaso Robles
Scar of the Sea, Bassi Vineyard, San Luis Obispo County, Arroyo Grande Valley, California, USA, 2022
Spellbinding whiffs of ripe black plums and lilacs introduce this cheeky, visceral Syrah sourced from organically farmed vines in the cool San Luis Obispo Coast...
2022
Scar of the SeaSan Luis Obispo County
Sandhi, Anika Bien Nacido Vineyard Syrah, Santa Maria Valley, California, USA, 2021
Syrah's ethereally floral, ferrous perfume is on full display in this fine-footed yet concentrated Syrah. Blackberry and cherry flavours are penetrating and crisp, plumed with...
2021
SandhiSanta Maria Valley
Bedrock Wine Co, Ángeles de Arena Syrah, Santa Barbara County, California, USA, 2022
While potent and brawny with bruising black plum and blackberry flavours, this full-bodied, ample Syrah possesses a salty mineral intensity that lends freshness. Sourced from...
2022
Bedrock Wine CoSanta Barbara County
Epoch Estate, Syrah, York Mountain, California, USA, 2019
A cooler, rainier microclimate lends a vitality of red cherry and raspberry flavours to this AVA just outside Paso Robles. From sand and sandstone soils,...
2019
Epoch EstateYork Mountain
Kobayashi Winery, White Label WeatherEye Vineyard Syrah, Washington State, Washington, USA, 2022
There's a thrilling bite to this piercing yet spry, fresh-fruited 'white label' bottling known as the Sans Soufre Syrah. 100% whole clusters were pressed individually...
2022
Kobayashi WineryWashington State
Martin Woods, Syrah, Columbia Valley, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, USA, 2018
This robust, sensual Syrah opens with heady plumes of violet and rose-petal perfume tipped with fur and earth. Black cherry and blueberry flavours are vibrant...
2018
Martin WoodsColumbia Valley
Rotie Cellars, Northern Blend, Columbia Valley, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, USA, 2021
The addition of 5% Viognier lends a haunting breath of lilac and violet petals to this powerful, penetrating Syrah. Black cherry and blueberry flavours are...
2021
Rotie CellarsColumbia Valley
Bedrock Wine Co, Bien Nacido Vineyard Syrah, Santa Maria Valley, California, USA, 2022
This fragrant Syrah is sourced from two sites in the chilly coastal pocket of the Bien Nacido vineyard in the Santa Maria valley: the X...
2022
Bedrock Wine CoSanta Maria Valley
WT Vintners, Les Collines Syrah, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley, Washington, USA, 2019
A hauntingly perfumed wine, speckled with lilacs and the pungent smoke of struck flint and matches. Blackberry and black plum flavours are luscious yet pristine,...
2019
WT VintnersColumbia Valley
Avennia, Arnaut Boushey Vineyard Syrah, Yakima Valley, Washington, USA, 2021
Whiffs of spiced plums and candied cherries introduce this buoyantly fresh-fruited yet dashingly mineral Syrah. It's sun-kissed and opulent yet delicate, its finish edged with...
2021
AvenniaYakima Valley
Liminal, Block 16 WeatherEye Vineyard Syrah, Red Mountain, Washington, USA, 2021
Whiffs of dried mint and wild thyme lend savoury appeal to this piercing Syrah sourced from the highest block in the WeatherEye vineyard. While fresh...
2021
LiminalRed Mountain
Proper Wines, Estate Reserve Syrah, Columbia Valley, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, USA, 2020
Intensely ripe aromas of candied blackberry and sun-scorched bramble introduce this truffled, subtly meaty wine. Lavish and muscular yet elegant, too, it finishes on a...
2020
Proper WinesColumbia Valley
Tensley, Syrah, Santa Barbara County, California, USA, 2022
Sourced from five vineyard sites, Tensley's basic Syrah contrasts the sun-drenched richness of black fruit against a savoury backdrop of crushed black pepper, olives and...
2022
TensleySanta Barbara County
The Hilt, Estate Syrah, Santa Barbara County, Santa Rita Hills, California, USA, 2021
Veins of green sage and thyme accent cutting cranberry and raspberry flavours in this first bottling of the Hilt's estate-grown Syrah. Sourced from the cool,...
2021
The HiltSanta Barbara County
Waypoint, Bien Nacido Vineyard Syrah, Santa Maria Valley, California, USA, 2021
Dark fruited and velveteen yet held upright by a taut mineral spray and tangy acidity, this full-bodied yet freshly balanced Syrah shows a riper, richer...
2021
WaypointSanta Maria Valley
WeatherEye, Estate Syrah, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley, Washington, USA, 2021
The WeatherEye Vineyard is perched at the crest of Red Mountain, but its wines aren't included in the Red Mountain AVA as some parts are...
2021
WeatherEyeColumbia Valley
White Rose Estate, The Convival Feast Syrah, Columbia Valley, The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, USA, 2022
This is the debut bottling of Syrah from this Willamette Valley estate known for Pinot Noir. Sourced from the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, it balances...
2022
White Rose EstateColumbia Valley
