Wine is so cool like that. We all must have those wines…the wines that flip the lights on for you…I am honored that one of our wines may have had an impact on you!
For me it started with a Viognier (Condrieu actually) from Faury…it changed me forever. I was still in High School… I have been a Rhone variety fanatic ever since…Rhone, Spain, Italy, South Africa, Australia, Wa State, Cali, etc…I adore them all…and they continue to inspire me over 2 decades later…
[QUOTE=neilfindswine, post:9, topic:355914]
…an Andrew Murray Syrah opened my eyes to the beauty of California-grown Rhone varietals many moons ago… Very happy to see Mr. Murray on Woot again.
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[QUOTE=AndrewMurray, post:20, topic:355914]
Right on…thanks so VERY much. We only “saved” 6 Watch Hill magnums for the wooters…so I am glad that you got in on one. BTW, the 2010 is a bit more like the 2008…cool vintage, lower alcohol (only 14.1%), impossibly dark, yet balanced and nervy…I have been out on the road quite a bit and it seems that all kinds of folks appreciate the Watch Hill…I feel like a proud father when I pour this wine…
Andrew
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Thanks Andrew! Sounds awesome, can’t wait to try it. I’m tentatively planning on coming down to Los Olivos after the Sonoma/Napa wooters tour in July, so I’m going to try to stop by your tasting room this time around.
[QUOTE=AndrewMurray, post:19, topic:355914]
I get a bit defensive when folks accuse our wines of being “over priced”…I work so darn hard to grow and craft and bottle wonderful, distinctive and unique Syrah bottlings (heck all of our varieties).
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Fair enough. My problem with paying $50+ for a Paso Syrah is that I can buy a N. Rhone for less. It may be unfair for me to “be ok” with paying $50 for a St. Joseph and not for a Paso Syrah but I am more “ok” with it.
No apologies needed…Thanks for being here in the forum today…I was sort of worried that I would be typing to myself…I just had a feeling that you may have been speaking about the 2006. As I said, sweetness is confounding. I bet that I have been wrong about sugar levels nearly as often as I have been right. I bottled a Zinfandel for a customer recently…I swore that it had to have 1-2% RS by taste…I sent the sample off to the lab prior to bottling…it was 16% alcohol, etc… The RS came back from the lab as “unreadable” < 0.01%
BTW, I neglected to add the stats on the Unplugged (white blend). It is 13.5 alc, 0.01% RS, 3.38 pH, 6.3 g/L TA…
[QUOTE=kylemittskus, post:13, topic:355914]
Andrew: it was the 2006. Sorry for the confusion.
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I actually could not agree more…I don’t have any of those fancy, high scoring, high alcohol $50+ wines in my cellar (though I taste them at every opportunity I can get because I want to know what they taste like, hedonistically, I like many of them)…the label needs to say Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, Cote-Rotie, Saint Joseph, Hermitage, etc…for me to pay $50+. We have only one wine that is even near that price…our Reserve Syrah is that price…we craft only 100-125 cases per year and we spend a bit of extra money on that wine, so we feel the price is justified…Thankfully we sell out of it each vintage as quickly as we release it…we are currently sold out… Thanks for your comments and keeping this fun for me!
Andrew
[QUOTE=kylemittskus, post:23, topic:355914]
Fair enough. My problem with paying $50+ for a Paso Syrah is that I can buy a N. Rhone for less. It may be unfair for me to “be ok” with paying $50 for a St. Joseph and not for a Paso Syrah but I am more “ok” with it.
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Please reach out to me at Andrew@AMVwine if you would like to arrange a tour and tasting at the winery. I will do my best to accommodate y’all! Thanks
Andrew
[QUOTE=redwinefan, post:22, topic:355914]
Thanks Andrew! Sounds awesome, can’t wait to try it. I’m tentatively planning on coming down to Los Olivos after the Sonoma/Napa wooters tour in July, so I’m going to try to stop by your tasting room this time around.
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Sorry if I said 5…thinking I allocated 6…I am pretty sure that
the woot! censors might get mad at me/us for disclosing this…guess we look pretty lame if they don’t sell out? Oh well…I strive for transparency and honesty…I am just glad that someone listened to the Voice-mail…
Cheers
Andrew
[QUOTE=redwinefan, post:17, topic:355914]
Not sure if I should give away the secret on this thread since I’m contemplating buying one, but in his vinter’s voicemail, Andrew says there are only 5 Syrah Magnums allocated to Woot!
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bright, floral, tropical, and honey…no butter, oaky or caramel notes. Crisp, yet somehow smooth is how many describe it…I know sounds a bit contradictory. The smooth Chardonnay helps to “soften” the super crisp/honeyed Chenin…
Andrew
[QUOTE=kylemittskus, post:16, topic:355914]
No butter because of the no MLF. I can’t answer the other questions, though.
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[QUOTE=AndrewMurray, post:26, topic:355914]
Please reach out to me at Andrew@AMVwine if you would like to arrange a tour and tasting at the winery. I will do my best to accommodate y’all! Thanks
Andrew
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What a lovely offer! Thanks for extending it to the community here!
Alright gang…I have to go radio silent for a bit… I need to load a waiting truck with wine (1,000 cases of different yummy treats) for ageing in the warehouse and then I am rushing to my daughter’s graduation. I promise to circle back, so please keep up the great dialogue!
Sorry…almost missed this one. The higher alc is from wonderfully ripe Cab and Cab Franc…they were both picked at a potential alc of about 15.5%, which gives them wonderful fruit flavors (as opposed to grassy bell peppery flavors) and smooth/ripe tannins. These two varieties represent about 67% of the blend…just over 10% each of the Temp, Sangio, and Grenache Noir. These last 3 had lower alcs and higher acids to use as blending components. It keeps this wine big, yet fresh.
The Unplugged is comprised of 44% Chenin Blanc, 33% Sauvignon Blanc, and 22% Chardonnay…
The Eleven Red is tasting great now, but should age gracefully for 5-7 years and the Unplugged should age for 1-2 years…I think that it is best enjoyed in the near term because it is so darned tasty right now…
My two cents…
Andrew
[QUOTE=North316, post:14, topic:355914]
I saw the 14.5% and had to scroll back up to see if this was Paso juice, and it looks like only the Grenache was. Does the high alcohol in this case just come from the ripeness of the fruit and the fact that you fermented it to dry?
Also, what is the proportions of the varietals in the red blend (and the white for that matter), I don’t see either listed anywhere?
And what would you suggest as the drinking window?
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I would like to recant my previous statement of over-priced and apologize to Andrew. In my head I was confusing the winery prices of Andrew Murray and Stolpman (a tasting room we really did not enjoy, BTW). Stolpman has many $48+ bottles.
Andrew’s prices are not unreasonable and at the woot prices, I think are quite fair.
Sorry woot friends for lying to you and Andrew, sorry for sullying your name! I do still think that the 06 Eleven was perceptively sweet (even if there wasn’t RS). That comment, I am standing by!
I can honestly say that there is no one in our neck of the woods that I respect more as a winemaker and winery owner as Andrew. He tells it like it is - no candy coating, no BS. He makes wonderfully balanced wines and is meticulous in his craft. He bends over backwards to help other winemakers in need and expects nothing in return.
When I was getting my Masters in Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis, I was enamored with the rhones from the Santa Barbara County area, and I put Andrew up on a pedestal because of his reputation and the quality of his wines. After moving here and getting to know him both professionally and personally (my son will be graduating along with Andrew’s daughter this afternoon!), I came to realize that he’s a pretty straightforward guy who is committed to winemaking, to family, and to community . . . not a bad trio if you ask me.
Sorry for the rambling - just thought I’d pipe in here.
Awesome to see these wines here.
The entry-level AM syrah (tous les jours) completely blew me away the first time I had it, and has become my go-to “inexpensive” (~$15) california red. Unfortunately, my favorite wine store in Virginia sells out of it shortly after getting it, so it’s hard to come by!
[QUOTE=beefytaco, post:36, topic:355914]
Perhaps the first ever Chenin offer on Woot?
These look fantastic, but it’s the white blend that’s getting me excited.
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There’s been some other offers with Chenin Blanc blends, but not recently. That being said, I am excited about this white blend.
[QUOTE=redwinefan, post:37, topic:355914]
There’s been some other offers with Chenin Blanc blends, but not recently. That being said, I am excited about this white blend.
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Great to see a bit of enthusiasm over Chenin Blanc…it is such a GREAT variety, but often overlooked in favor of Chard or SB. This wine definitely speaks of Chenin Blanc…hope you all take a chance on this yummy white!
[QUOTE=dah7m, post:35, topic:355914]
Awesome to see these wines here.
The entry-level AM syrah (tous les jours) completely blew me away the first time I had it, and has become my go-to “inexpensive” (~$15) california red. Unfortunately, my favorite wine store in Virginia sells out of it shortly after getting it, so it’s hard to come by!
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Nice to read your comments! So glad that you appreciate our TLJ. Thanks much for sharing! We work so hard not that wine to be yummy and affordable. Mixed emotions about it selling out so quickly…
