Syrah Obsidian Vineyard, Donelan Family Wines 2012

My two favorite wines included the 2012 Syrah Obsidian Vineyard from Knights Valley. Aged 20 months in 43% new French oak for 20 months, this is a bigger wine at 14.7% alcohol that comes from rather remarkable volcanic soils with shiny, black obsidian rock looking like marble. There is severe stress in these vineyards and the roots force deep into the volcanic soils for nourishment. This wine, from a vineyard planted in 1970s, shows notes of gunflint, camphor, scorched earth and an almost primordial, brooding richness and intensity. Blackberry and cassis are the fruit flavors, there's some smokiness and lots of thickness and richness. This is a massive, very intense, full-throttle Syrah that should age effortlessly for 20 or more years.

The 2012 Syrah Obsidian Vineyard could be thought of as a hypothetical blend of the 2014 and 2015, with a voluptuous, layered, concentrated style, as well as building tannin and no shortage of structure. Currants, peppery herbs, crushed violets, and ample meatiness define the bouquet, and it shows the class of this vineyard. This is another brilliant lineup of wines from the Donelan Family, with the wines made by Joe Nielson. While their estate Obsidian Vineyard was lost in the fires last year, they’re already in the process of planning and replanting the site, and I was thrilled to taste through a small retrospective from what’s unquestionably one of the great terroirs in California. Looking at the 2015s, which are by and large the current releases, these are structured, tannic wines that are going to benefit from short term cellaring.