"The Grape that Doesn't Sell"

About a month ago, I received Gramercy Cellars' Fall Relase newsletter. In it, Greg Harrington wrote that "I am convinced that Syrah is Washington's best grape," comparing it to the best of the Northern Rhone Valley. He concluded by saying, "Thank you all for devouring the grape that doesn't sell." (Note: the Gramercy 2010 Syrah will be reviewed in the November issue of the Review of Washington Wines.)

Why is Syrah such a popular grape that grows well in Washington and yet "doesn't sell?" I think part of it has to do with the diversity of styles. I remember back in the 1980's that Syrah acquired a cult-like status from the "granddaddies" Mike Sauer (Red Willow) and Dick Boushey who were the first to plant the variety. Since then, there has been such a proliferation of Syrahs around the state to the point where many consumers have trouble differentiating them. I can categorize them into four main groups.

The Generics - This is what the bulk of Washington's Syrah production goes into: wines costing $20 or less. These can offer solid, well-fruited wines with some varietal character, but without much complexity or site-specific terroir.

The Cultists - These are the high-end Syrah producers, highly sought-after and often unavailable outside of winery mailing lists, such as those of Cayuse and Charles Smith's Royal City bottlings. They are highly distinctive wines, earth and mineral laden, and sometimes meaty and leathery. They have a loyal following.

The Purists - These are the wineries that strive for varietal purity, modeled after the wines of the North Rhone such as Hermitage (100% Syrah) and Cote Rotie (co-fermented with 2 to 8% Viognier). The wines are noted for their bold, distinct Syrah character. Noteworthy practicioners of this style are Gramercy Cellars (see above), Kerloo Cellars (Ryan Crane), Rotie Cellars (Sean Boyd), and Long Shadows' Sequel (John Duval).

The Terroirists - These are the producers that focus on the distinctive soils in which their Syrahs are grown. There are those from "the Rocks" in the Walla Walla River's cobblestone laden riverbed left after the river changed to it's present course, such as the Cayuse, SJR and Funk vineyards and other newer plantings. The Les Collines Vineyard in the foothills of the Blue Mountains has a distinctive loess soil terroir. Dick Boushey's vineyards and Mike Sauer's Red Willow (both with Missoula Flood alluvial soils) also have distinctive terroirs. Some wineries make site specific Syrahs from single vineyard blocks such as Rasa's "Occam's Razor" from Block 10 of the Seven Hills Vineyard.

These are just generalizations. There are overlappings. Cayuse is both a cult winery and terroir-driven. Reynvaan, whose wines I greatly admire, is a terroir-focused emerging cult winery (there is now a waiting list) whose wines come from the "Rocks" and the estate vineyard in the foothills of the Blue Mountains.

All this is just to say that there is Syrah, and then there is Syrah with distinctive characteristics. When people ask me what my favorite varietal is, I say Syrah (but I also add that I like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc). I agree with Greg Harrington that Syrah is Washington's best grape.