The Deal

Ahh, another night, another wine. I came together with one a few of my good friends and fellow wine nerds to imbibe and compare notes on the wines we are having. Tonight, we had several wines, but the clear standout was the 2006 K Vintners The Deal Syrah.

For those who don't know, K Vintners is the brainchild of Charles Smith, the owner and creator of Magnificent Wine Company and Charles Smith Wines. Charles has a certain way with Syrahs, making them more in the Old World Northern Rhone style rather than the jampot fruit forward style typically found in domestic Syrahs. The majority of his wines are very viscous, chewy, meat, and vegetal driven wines, more in the mold of a Rhone than the US.

We decanted the wine for about an hour before drinking it, as it is a complete beast and is quite high on the alcohol at 15.5%. It rolls in for about $40 at most places, and we picked up this bottle for that from the Cheese Shop in Williamsburg, VA. Well lets get to the wine.

Initial Impressions: If you ever want to see a concentrated, viscous wine , you need to view this wine in the class. It is black, completely opaque, with a small tinge of dark plum surrounding the outside. It nearly sticks completely to the glass when you swirl it, with a lot of it just coating the glass. It has a very apparent initial nose of dark dark meaty chocolate with a little spices.

Nose: An amazingly dense nose, with huge amounts of gamey, vinison types of flavors on the nose. There is a nice amount of dark and bitter chocolate, along with a great amount of dusty plum and dark black and mulberry flavors on the nose. There is also a little alcoholy, mediciney smell to it, kind of like a minty Vicks Vaporub. Overall a very nice nose.

Taste: This wine is so viscous and big I want to chew on it. This could definitely divide a room, but it just fills the mouth with this huge, bombastic, meaty, and vegetal bomb. It is more of a meal than a wine, with a beautiful amount of beef jerky, venison, red cabbage, dark fruit, and a great amount of asian spices. The tannins are apparent in the wine, along with a small tinge of alcohol, showing a bit of its youth. Overall this feels like a brighter, more lively version of a Northern Rhone.

Overall Impressions: In terms of what I love about Syrah, this is it. While Aussie and most New World versions of the grape can be interesting and great, this effort really speaks to me on how this varietal should really be expressed. This is a truly special wine for the new world and should be sought out. I would personally put the bottles down for a couple of years to find their footing, but they are special now and can easily be drunk. 96 Points