Copain "Madder Lake" Lake County Syrah 2004

Deep purple/red.

Menthol, licorice and Gouda nose.

Plush entry immediately tempered by gripping stem tannin. Intense, but quite bound up. There's black fruit underneath the structure, but seen intermittently, in and out of the fog.

Again, this is an interesting style. This is full of aromatic and (potential) flavor life, but has almost no acidity (so I read - pHs in the 4.0 range). Stem inclusion adds a lift to the aromatics and an impression of acidity that isn't there (or is the TA high too).

A whopping 14.2% alcohol.

Lake County itself is an interesting place. A CA region with altitude and tannic density.

$25