In his January 30th, 2014 New York Times column, “California Syrahs, on Such a Winter’s Day,” Eric Asimov discusses the mixed fortunes Syrah has had in California. In the 1990’s there was a huge expansion of Syrah planted in California, yet both from a quality and sales perspective there has been little success. Most of the wine could be described as being generic, oaky and fruity. However, things have improved and Asimov declares of the 2010 vintage “Wow!” The quality of winemaking was high and their identities were clear.”

Read the full article here.

Some selections from the column are below.