Tasted from barrel, the 2016 Syrah Lytton Estate (which will be bottled in November) is very promising, revealing notes of cracked pepper, violets, grilled meats, baked clay and cinnamon. On the palate, it's medium-bodied, tense and youthfully chewy, with a long, savory finish. By the time it's bottled, this Syrah (which contains 6% Viognier) should be exceptional. It's one of the hidden gems of the Ridge portfolio.

Blended with 7% Viognier, the 2015 Syrah Lytton Estate aged 17 months in 100% one-year-old, air-dried American oak. It's medium to deep ruby and explodes from the glass with kirsch, blueberry liqueur, toasted coconut, chocolate-covered cherries, leather, coffee and tapenade with touches of vanilla and forest floor. Medium to full-bodied, it's packed with dark, spice-laced fruits in the mouth with a firm but ripe frame and just enough freshness on the long, dense finish. Give this another few years in bottle at least.

"2014 was the driest year of the drought," winemaker Eric Baugher says. "We had one-third the normal rainfall." This is the current vintage for the Lytton Estate Syrah. "It's only sold in the tasting room, so we release it only when we feel it's ready. We make it in the C?te-R?tie style, co-fermented with Viognier." Medium to deep ruby-purple, the 2014 Syrah Lytton Estate (6% Viognier) gives up warm boysenberries, blueberries, black cherries and blackcurrants with white pepper, sage brush, fried herbs, iron, toasted coconut and bitter chocolate with accents of game meats and red fruit sparks. Medium to full-bodied, it floods the mouth with fruits, spices and savory nuances—great concentration!—with firm, pleasantly chalky-textured tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long and layered.

The outstanding 2001 Syrah Lytton Estate (includes 1% Viognier in the blend) boasts a saturated purple color as well as uplifting aromas of blackberries, black currants, licorice, vanilla, and forest floor. Dense, with medium to full body, supple tannin, good viscosity, and a long finish, this beauty will drink well for 7-8 years. Tel. (408) 867-3233