Stark – Condé Syrah
Stark – Condé Syrah
Vintage: 2005
Region: Stellenbosch (South Africa)
Varietal: Syrah
Alcohol: 14.5%
Price: $13.99
When you drink as much wine as I do, it makes sense to talk to and work with the staff at your local wine market. These people make their living selling, suggesting and sampling so it’s good to meet them to find out about what they like and what’s new. Sometimes, if you build enough of a relationship, they’ll stash a special bottle away of something they really like or that is being liquidated for you. This is how I was introduced to this offering from Stark-Condé. For the most part, I typically stay away from South African wines, for no good reason other than I haven’t had one that has really excited me or blown me away. Maybe this Syrah will change that.
Right off the bat, this wine and its presentation have some good things going for it. First off is the wrapper at the top of the bottle. How could this possibly matter? Well, lets consider the cost of materials. This wine wrapper is made of foil, which is more expensive to use than plastic which is typically found on most lower priced bottles. Next is the punt of the bottle, which on this bottle is reasonably deep. What is the punt you might ask? The punt is the divot at the bottom of the bottle, which some people believe that the deeper the punt, the better quality of the product within. Another nice attribute of this wine is the cork, which has vineyard printing and marketing information on it. Consider that these printed corks cost the vintner extra which may indicate a higher quality of product it is protecting. Whether you choose to believe these as indicators of quality, these can be helpful considerations for you as you choose your next bottle.
Ok, ok on to the wine. Color wise, this wine has a dark red, maroon almost black hue to it, which is interesting, probably due to the fact that it is unfined and unfiltered. On the nose, this is giving off a good combination of spice, coffee, toasted oak and smoke with a wee bit of berry fruit that is heavily masked by those initial tones. There is a bit of heat too, indicating that 14.5% alcohol is peeking through. Upon first taste and swish, the hints on the nose are punctuated and confirmed with in your face, smoky tannins that hammer the palate right away with a rich mouthfeel and those hints of sour berries at the end. It is finishing long and slightly hot with those smoky fruit tones hanging around for a good while. It is a very old world stylized effort produced in a new world region. So, what’s the verdict? This wine is good, well no, in fact it is very good but it might not appeal to the masses due to that aggressive smoke and toast characteristics. Due to this, it could be viewed as being unbalanced but in my opinion it has enough complexity and uniqueness to excite and I would look at pairing it up with some grilled or roasted lamb, Camembert cheese or something gamey like venison (deer or elk). Either way, at $13.99, it is a solid buy (expect to pay double, if you can find it) that I would keep my eyes open for at subsequent visits to your local market .
86 points
- Stark – Condé Syrah
- by Adrian Bryksa
- Published on October 1st, 2008
- Photos:
- From the Stellenbosch mountains
- Rating:
- 86 Points
More from Adrian Bryksa:
-
2007 Calgary Tattoo and Arts Festival
They can tell the world that you are an outlaw, or let people know that you were young and dumb once and have some souvenirs to show for it. These days, they can be a lifestyle indicator or be can added as a one of a kind piece of art.
-
Calgary Folk Music Festival 2007
Artists typically perform more than once as they may have a main stage presentation followed up by one or more side stages. It is here that many festival goers think the best performances occur, as most artists group together to jam to create something more wonderful than the sum of its parts.
-
Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival 2009
For the first few years, we saw it through the eyes of guests and we kept coming for the wide assortment of beers, spirits and wine. We enjoyed the wide swath of restaurants and retails showing off their samples of delectable nosh.
-
Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva
Lately, I have found several very good wines from Spain at value prices and lately it seems like the number of offerings is expanding due to their high quality and affordable prices. Perhaps I can add this offering to the list?
-
Kendall-Jackson Jackson Estates Grown Cabernet Sauvignon
Holidays can bring a time of depression, especially when faced with the ugly truth that work is awaiting along with any salivating creditors to which ones holiday good times were funded.
-
2008 Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival
For the third straight year, editors from Reading for New Times attended the Calgary stop of the Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival. The festival brings Calgarians a taste of some of the finest wines, beers and spirits being offered in the city……
Other recent features:
-
Sónar 2010 – Barcelona, Spain
The festival attracts a lot of outsiders, but the Mediterranean, Spanish and more specifically Catalan nature of the people makes the festival what it is. Catalan people are passionate and this passion is infectious. The atmosphere is electric in Barcelona as a city and heightened by music and intoxicants at Sónar.
-
Summer Party Naval Styles at Seven RestoLounge
Oysters, like wine are affected by terroir and these Miyagi’s flavor profiles ranged with one showing a cleaner, almost tropical profile and the other being more salty, marine driven. As I was devouring the seemingly endless plates put in front of us, I sipped on a glass of fine sauvignon blanc.
-
R4NT Radio March 2010
R4NT Radio March 2010 um wow it’s been far too long since the last edition edition, featuring: Hector Hernandez, The Infesticons, Blockhead, Gramatik, Emika, Thunderheist, Parov Stelar, Eddy Meets Yannah, Anti-Pop Consortium, The Slew, Lighterthief, Andreya Triana, Parasyte Woman, Mathon, Venetian Snares, and Funki Porcini.
-
O Restaurant & Lounge revisited
Calgary has a diverse set of urban communities, most of which have the ubiquitous strip mall watering hole. In the South West community of Marda Loop, a reinvention of this paradigm has been established.
-
Predictions 2010.. and beyond!
So 2010 eh? Almost but not quite (no year zero they say) another decade? It seems like just yesterday that the world was waiting for Y2K. R4NT started publishing in March 2001, so we’re not quite 10 years old yet, but in internet years we are already a senior citizen.
-
Invictus
No matter what, the reality of Nelson Mandela is something that deserves screen time. Should this film even remotely intrigue the masses to take interest in this figure, the world would likely benefit greatly from it.
