2018 Sine Qua Non Syrah Ziehharmonika California California

(98-100 Points)  

Issue 250 End of August 2020, The Wine Advocate

Manfred Krankl did point out that the name of this wine is not definitely but probably going to be “Squeezebox.” There are still a bunch of hoops to jump through before the label is signed, sealed and delivered. He shared the artwork for the label with me, again probably final but not yet definite, but which I think fans of are going to love. Who knew Mr. K played the squeezebox? The vineyard sources for this wine are 51% The Third Twin, 43% Eleven Confessions and 6% Cumulus—all estate-owned vineyards. The 2018 Syrah Squeezebox is composed of 82% Syrah, 6.7% Mourvèdre, 5% Petite Sirah, 2.3% Grenache, 2.7% Viognier and 1.3% Muscat. “I think Muscat is the number one white grape for me to blend with reds,” Manfred said. “It kinda triples the effect of the wine.” The wine is due to be bottled in August 2020, very soon after I tasted it, and after 23 months of aging. It was reared in 51% new French oak, 46% in used barrels and 3% in terracotta. (The terracotta is only used for whites.) Very deep garnet-purple colored, the nose kicks off with bright, vivacious scents of freshly cracked black pepper, licorice, baker’s chocolate and menthol before opening out to a core just singing of Black Forest cake, wild blueberries and ripe blackberries with wafts of smoky bacon and garrigue. Full-bodied, firm and beautifully textured with perfectly ripe, velvety tannins, it has invigorating freshness and a very long, multi-layered finish. Its rock-solid structure and intensity suggest this wine will be very long lived indeed.

Final name Ziehharmonika instead of Squeezebox