Rhone Report Raves

Saturday, December 31, 2011

2010 Margerum Grenache Blanc Camp Four Vineyard White 89
2008 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County Red 91
2009 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County Alamo Creek Red 91
2009 Margerum M5 Red 90
2008 Margerum Syrah Alondra de los Prados Vineyard Red 93
2008 Margerum Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard Red 91
2008 Margerum Syrah Black Oak Vineyard Red 92+
2008 Margerum Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard Red 91+
2008 Margerum Syrah Uber Red 94

Margerum
Doug Margerum produces these elegant, silky wines that show distinctive, individual characters.
balance and incredibly polished tannin. These also all benefited from a decant and held up admirably over the 3 days I had the bottles open.

2010 Margerum Grenache Blanc Camp Four Vineyard (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley) $24
The 2010 Margerum Grenache Blanc shows the fresh, lively side of the variety with juicy citrus, under-ripe peaches, wild herbs, and wet slate minerality on the nose. Medium-bodied and racy on the palate, with loads of lively acidity cutting through sweet fruit and a rich texture, this delicious white will be incredibly versatile on the dinner table and begs to be drunk over the coming 2-3 years. (89 pts.)

2008 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County) $38
Subtle and suave, with loads of kirsch, spice, white pepper, dried flowers, and licorice, the 2008 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County is medium- bodied and seamless on the palate, with an outstanding, polished texture, notable balance, and a clean, focused finish. Almost pinot like in its texture and perfume, this should drink beautifully for 4-6 years. (91 pts.)

2009 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County Alamo Creek (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County) $38
More youthful and fresh, with a touch more vibrancy and edge than the ’08 Santa Barbara County, the 2009 Margerum Grenache Santa Barbara County Alamo Creek has beautiful aromatics of fresh flowers, underbrush, bing cherries, and hints of pepper on the nose. This leads to a medium-bodied, pure wine that has vibrant acidity, an energetic texture, and solid tannic structure that shows on the finish. It should be even better in a year or two, and drink well for 5-8 years, if not longer. At the moment, I like the suppleness and approachable nature of the ’08 more, but we’ll see how this evolves over the next handful of years. (91 pts.)

2009 Margerum M5 (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County) $25
A fantastic value and smelling like a top Côtes du Rhône, the 2009 Margerum M5, a blend of 47% Syrah, 27% Grenache, 14% Mourvedre, 6% Counoise, and the rest a mix of co-fermented varieties, delivers a perfumed array of spice-laced red fruits, licorice, underbrush, bouquet garni, and green peppercorns that leads into a medium to full-bodied, seamless palate that has no hard edges, beautiful freshness, and a classically styled, long finish. This fleshes out in the glass, has beautiful fruit, and an overall gulpable, delicious feel. It should be purchased by the case and consumed over the coming 4-6 years. (90 pts.)

2008 Margerum Syrah Alondra de los Prados Vineyard (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley) $75
A finesse driven Syrah, the 2008 Margerum Syrah Alondra de los Prados Vineyard delivers suave and nuanced aromas of creamy blackberry, cracked
 pepper, California bay leaf, and hints of game to go with a medium to full-bodied, silky and incredibly polished palate. This has no hard edges, fantastic freshness, solid tannins, and a clean, lengthy finish; it is superb now with some air, yet drank beautifully over multiple days, and should age effortlessly for upwards of a decade. (93 pts.)

2008 Margerum Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley) $36
More dark fruited and rich, with an opaque ruby/purple color, the 2008 Margerum Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard is 100% Syrah that was aged for 20 months in 25% new French oak. Showing crunchy black fruits, smoked earth, pepper, vanilla, and spice on the nose, this solid Syrah is impressively textured and seamless on the palate, delivering pure fruit, notable balance, and a fresh, lively finish. The texture and polish here are something, yet I was craving more depth and substance on the mid-palate and finish. Nevertheless, this outstanding Syrah should age beautifully for 6-8 years. (91 pts.)

2008 Margerum Syrah Black Oak Vineyard (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley) $36
Along the same lines, with hints of chocolate, roasted meats, pepper, black olive, and game, with a black fruit driven core, the 2008 Margerum Syrah Black Oak Vineyard is medium to full-bodied, beautifully polished, structured, and shows fantastic freshness and lift on the finish. As with this estate’s other releases, the polish here is truly something and this is oh so drinkable. Nevertheless, I would give bottles 2-3 years in the cellar, and then drink over the following 10-12 years. (92+ pts.)

2008 Margerum Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley) $36
Aged 20 months in French oak, the 2008 Margerum Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard is a classy, supple, and polished Syrah that delivers a smoky, mostly black fruited profile, with complexity adding notes of pepper, mineral, bright floral, and a subtle meatiness and char character emerging with air. This full-bodied, very well balanced Syrah has a seamless texture, good acidity, and beautiful purity of fruit. While certainly approachable now, I think this will be even better with a handful of years in bottle, and given the balance, it should evolve gracefully as well. (91+ pts.)

2008 Margerum Syrah Uber (USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County) $50
The estate’s top Syrah and a co-fermentation of the single vineyard Syrah, the 2008 Margerum Syrah Uber, aged for 20 months in French oak, is a beautifully complete wine that yields complex, layered aromatics of black currant, blackberry, classy oak, pepper, smoke, and tobacco. This leads to a full-bodied, impeccably built Syrah that is seamless, pure, and incredibly polished and supple. Don’t let the polish and upfront presentation fool you though, as this has loads of back end tannin and structure, and holds up remarkably well to air, drinking well on the second and third day after opening. As with Doug’s other wines, this will aged gracefully for a decade or longer. (94 pts.)