2018 Domaine des Chirats Syrah
A Yves Cuilleron Collaboration
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Each year, I feel Yves and I get closer to achieving the vision we have had for this project. I have always felt that this vineyard brings a very Hermitage aspect to the table.
The 2018 is black as night to the rim of the glass and back. Aromatics of blackberry/black cherry pie filling ooze from the glass, followed by fresh pencil shavings, brioche and savory notes of wild Herbes de Provence, and a hint of cedar. Full-bodied, but not heavy on the palate, the Rockpile minerality carries this wine from the incredibly rich and giving front palate to the exotic mid-palate that showcases black fruits, black licorice and touch of charcuterie. So rich, so intense, so elegant, and in the end, so magical.
185 cases produced. Will age effortlessly in the Cohn Zone: drink now - 2040.
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This is the oldest block of Syrah at Rockpile Vineyard. The original budwood came directly from Hermitage and was planted soon after.
After making this Syrah for many years and using it in the 'Haley' bottling, I decided to try a new project. This time, I wanted to work with another of my winemaking heroes, Yves Cuilleron of Côte-Rôtie. Yves and I wanted to take this wine in a different direction then what I had been making.
To really appreciate how different this wine is from the other Rockpile Syrahs I make, one needs to taste them side by side. I also recommend tasting it along side a bottle of Yves' Côte-Rôtie, helps to see and taste how the two styles come together.
I started Jeff Cohn Cellars with the help of my mother, Iris. One adorns the label as a tribute to her.
Appellation: Rockpile
Vineyard: Rockpile, sustainably farmed, vines planted in 1998
Planted at 2010-ft. elevation of granite, loam, clay, quartz, it's the heaviest, rockiest, and steepest vineyard at Rockpile. This elevation puts more stress on the vines producing thick-skinned and small berries. The granite adds a mineral backbone to the weight that the clay creates in the wine.
Learn More About Rockpile Vineyard
Vinification: 100% Syrah
The fruit is hand-picked then cold-soaked. I gently foot-stomp the fruit of which 30% is whole cluster, the rest is whole berry and de-stemmed. None is crushed. The wine goes through open-top, then 100% Malolactic fermentation and aged 18 months in large-format 30% new French oak and 70% neutral French oak barrels.
FedEx Ground:
$.01 12+ 750 mL bottles
$15 1 - 11 750 mL bottles
$15 per magnum
📦 Shipping Alert: We're watching the weather. If below 30° or above 70°, we won't ground ship your wine. We recommend FedEx Priority Overnight® to protect it from extreme temperatures.
97+ Jeb Dunnuck — Coming from a collaboration between Jeff Cohn and Yves Cuilleron, the 2018 Syrah Domaine des Chirats is another dense, rich, super-intense Syrah in the lineup that has incredible complexity in its bright blueberry and cherry fruits as well as notes of violets, white pepper, sandalwood, and bouquet garni-like aromas and flavors. This full-bodied, tannic, powerhouse of a wine develops smokier, Côte Rôtie-like bacon fat as well as more and more structure as it sits in the glass. Do your best to hide bottles for 3-4 years. and it should have two decades of overall longevity.
95 The Wine Advocate, Erin Brooks — The 2018 Syrah Domaine des Chirats is a collaboration between Jeff Cohn and Yves Cuilleron. It comes from 25-year-old vines in the Rockpile vineyard and was made with 30% whole cluster and aged 18 months in 30% new French oak. Deep ruby, it takes time to blossom from iron and charcuterie to currant and violet, gaining nuance with time in the glass. The palate is mineral driven and fresher than expected, with restrained fruits and a touch of rusticity to the texture that gives it a more cool-climate feel than is typical from this site. It should develop beautifully over the next 3-5 years in bottle.
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