2015 The Brawler | Wine Notes
Dark and dense purple, Blackberries are framed in gamey notes of smoked meat , tobacco and toasted herbs. The rich flavors are big and fat as they coat the pallet front to back with sauce like reduction of blackberries, licorice, orange peel and herbs that finishes with firm tannins and structure, A truly massive but elegant wine that will pair nicely with a fine marbled steak.
2014 The Brawler | Wine Notes
Dark ruby garnet with a purple edges. Aromas of roasted espresso and dark black berries fills your senses, followed by sweet notes of fig and black licorice in the background. While subtle Christmas spices linger, the flavor of blackberry jam coat the palate with bold oak flavors, and a smooth chocolate finish. Brawler fans will definitely be pleased.
92 points - Wine Enthusiast
2013 The Brawler | Wine Notes
Deep dark garnet with a purple tinge in color. Very pretty with smoky toasty upfront notes of graphite, earthy spices and toast in the background. Flavors are big blackberry jam and sun ripened sweet cherries, with smoke bacon flavors that follow with a rich long finish with mouth watering acid that calls you back. Brawler lovers will fall in love all over again with this wine.
94 points - Connoisseurs' Guide to Wine
93 points - Wine Spectator
93 points - Wine Enthusiast “Cellar Selection”
2012 The Brawler | Wine Notes
Deep fuchsia hues give way to rich currant, molasses, and herbal aromas. Luscious flavors of blueberry drenched pie crust and black cherry, with savory notes of tea and sage. Concentrated, ripe, and integrated tannins finish with pride. This is a true Brawler lover’s Brawler!
90 points - Wine Enthusiast/Top 2015 Wines of the Year
93 points - Wine Spectator
2011 The Brawler | Wine Notes
This wine is inspired by the blends of Cote Rotie in the Rhone Valley of France. Deep fuchsia hues give way to burnt sugar and pretty cigar box scented oak. Rich and plush, with a wide range of black cherry, ripe strawberry and vanilla latte flavors that flow across the palate. Concentrated ripe and integrated tannins finish with a dash of peppered beef. A show stopping wine.
93 points - Connoisseurs' Guide to Wine
About as big and as potent as they come, but a Syrah with lots of spicy specifics and fruity muscle to spare, this immense, highly extracted efforts skirts the boundaries of being too much of a good thing. It is rough and tannic, and it is palpably hot but, in the end, it succeeds on the strength of its surprising structure and altogether riveting depth. It will take time and plenty of it before finding even a semblance of beauty, and, if five years is the minimum wait, we can see it improving for another decade past that.
2010 The Brawler | Wine Notes
Rich color - magenta on a moonless night. Gamey, thick tar & floral dominated by lilac & lavender with a secretive core of ripe black fruits. Flavors of blackberries & blueberries are buoyed by a fine minerality and deliciously thick mouth feel.
92 points - Wine Enthusiast
90 points - Wine Spectator
A rough and tumble effort that's all the more intriguing because of it, offering a rich, complex mix of roasted coffee, dried currant, crushed rock, gravel pit and roasted herb notes. Immense and firmly tannic. Syrah and Viognier. Best from 2013 through 2022. 125 cases made.
—J.L., Wine Spectator
2009 The Brawler | Wine Notes
The Brawler is back with a vengeance. A deep ruby purple color coats and grips the glass with legs that have strong thighs. Dark and gamey, dried herbs and leather aromas frame a core of blackberry and elderberry fruit with a hint of apricot in the background. Flavors are rich, blackberry/apricot cobbler that is perfumed with sweet spices, dark chocolate and espresso. Tannins are still a little edgy, but fine and silky on the finish and will only get better with age.
92 points - Wine Spectator
A potent, rich and graceful mix of scorched earth, dried berry, roasted herb and spices, all tightly focused, with muscular yet well-integrated tannins. Ends in a long, persistent finish with shades of melted licorice. Syrah and Viognier. Best from 2013 through 2023. 173 cases made.
—J.L., Wine Spectator
93 points - The Wine Enthusiast
2007 The Brawler | Wine Notes
This wine is inspired by the blends of Cote Rotie in the Rhone Valley of France. This wine is 96% Syrah and 4% Viognier. Big, ripe and fleshy, powerful yet elegant and stylish, offering robust, chewy blackberry, wild berry, plum and mocha, gaining a nice toasty oak edge and ending with a full-blown finish.
92 points - Wine Spectator
Big, ripe and fleshy, powerful yet elegant and stylish, offering robust, chewy blackberry, wild berry, plum and mocha, gaining a nice toasty oak edge and ending with a full-blown finish. Syrah and Viognier. Drink now through 2016. 118 cases made.
—JL, Wine Spectator
92 points - Wine Enthusiast
An ambitious Syrah. Shows extraordinarily fine tannins, soft and rich, with complex flavors of blackberries, currants, mocha and pepper. A touch of Viognier goes a long way, adding a vein of lime taste and acidity. Give it six month to integrate and calm down.
—Steve Heimoff, Wine Enthusiast
2006 The Brawler | Wine Notes
90 points ~ Wine Spectator, November 2008 | View Article
A ripe, juicy style. Full-bodied, with complex cherry, currant and wild berry fruit that?s well-proportioned, turning supple and polished on the finish. Syrah and Viognier. Drink now through 2013.
—James Laube Wine Spectator
2005 The Brawler | Wine Notes
93 points ~ Wine Spectator, November 2007 | View Article
Firm, ripe, intense and concentrated, with rich plum, blueberry, spice, anise, sage and light cedar. Offers complexity, depth and focus, with a long, persistent finish. The dash ofViognier gives this a sweet spot. Syrah and Viognier. Drink now through 2012. 150 cases made.
—James Laube Wine Spectator
