2011 Shane, Syrah “The Villain” Santa Lucia Highlands.
Shane Finley, a former winemaker at Kosta Browne and now at Lynmar, does a fantastic set of wines under his own label Shane and while very limited they still can be found and they are all priced extremely fair considering the quality and the tiny amount made. Shane’s handcrafted wines include a couple of Rhone style wines made from mostly from Syrah, such as this one from the Santa Lucia Highlands The Villain. The 2011 Villain comes from well known sites in the Santa Lucia Highlands that maybe include Garys’ and the like and it is a rich terroir driven wine with great color, intensity and texture showing plenty of black fruits, dark chocolate, gamey notes, mineral, pepper and briery earth. Blackberry, blueberry and cassis flow across the palate throughout and linger on the finish making for a hedonistic experience, but the good balance, focus and complexity make this beauty one to admire completely with it’s velvety tannins and lifting acidity, drink over the next 5 or so years.
($34 Est.) 93+ Points, grapelive
