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Winter Releases
 
2021 SYRAH BENCHLAND
2021 SYRAH
2021 PETIT FRERE
 UNTI 
2021
BENCHLAND
SYRAH
  Syrah in California has had, as Betty Davis could have said, “a bit of a bumpy ride.”  An excellent candidate for MTV’s Behind the Wine Grape (Music), Syrah has all the necessary ingredients. Early fame (darling wine grape attracting attention and unrealistic expectations from California growers and wineries), struggles and adversity (consumer demand below production in the early 2,000s), and a heartwarming comeback (several wineries today, including UNTI, dedicated to growing and producing distinctive Syrah, highlighting the variety’s best attributes). 
 
 Allow me to be Captain Obvious for a second. It is our dedication to Syrah, inspired by the best examples from the Rhône, that kept our Benchland Syrah vines in the ground. We experienced some early success making interesting wine from this vineyard and have spent the next 25 years perfecting it, even when the market for Syrah was a little shaky. We did this by identifying sub-sections of the vineyard where the soils might be more capable of making distinctive wine, reducing yields, and drastically cutting back on irrigation.
 
 The 2021 Benchland Syrah is easily our best since 2007. Interestingly, both years had low rainfall. ’21 also had a very small crop-set with dry moderate weather through harvest. Vine age (now over 30 years-old) also likely contributed a dimension of depth and complexity to the wine. When Jason and I first evaluated our individual lots of ’21 Syrahs, I tasted the Benchland, looked up at Jason, and he said, “Oh Yeah.” Opaque in color, the 2021 Bench has intense blackberry and blueberry fruit along with the savory character we have come to expect from this vineyard. Considering its concentration and tannin structure, it has fantastic balance, which should allow it to age well for at least 10 years. An absolute must for you “Benchheads.”
 
200 cases
$55 btl
$44 when you purchase any 12 UNTI wines
BUY 2021 SYRAH BENCHLAND
Mick Unti + Winemaker Jason Valenti
2021 UNTI BENCHLAND
BUY 2021 SYRAH BENCHLAND
UNTI 

2021 SYRAH
 
  We used to refer to this bottling of our Syrah as "normale", as it includes not one, but several vineyard blocks and clones.  Since 2015, that term has been woefully inadequate—even misleading. It is now one of the best wines in our lineup. As you would expect, the ’21 version raises the bar.  We now use our Creekside block almost exclusively in the bottling of Syrah. It is the same clone planted on our Benchland vineyard, so the wine is extremely dark with some savory aspects.  However, the Creekside site is our coolest microclimate, which results in some Northern Rhône aromas, and more intense fruit. The extremely low crop-set in 2021 resulted in a wine that has more structure than the average vintage, making this a very serious Syrah—perhaps capable of outliving the Benchland.  I’ve been calling this Syrah our biggest ‘bang for the buck’ for several years. I’d say that analysis is even more apropos with this 2021.

250 cases produced
$45 btl
$36 when you purchase any 12 UNTI wines
 
BUY 2021 SYRAH
Mick Unti + Winemaker Jason Valenti
discuss the 
2021 UNTI SYRAH
BUY 2021 SYRAH
2021
PETIT FRERE

steadfast + structured
A juicy Rhône blend from UNTI 
at a fantastic price. 
BUY 2021 PETIT FRERE
  All this talk about big tannin structure in the ’21 Syrahs might have you wondering, “Is there a wine from ’21 I can drink now?” Never fear, Petit Frere is here. The ’21 PF is 59% Syrah and 41% Mourvedre. The Syrah is clone 383, which was very aromatic and fruity in 2021, without the bold tannin structure present in all our other lots. We blended it with a batch of our Mourvedre that was similarly fruit-forward and plush. While we were tempted to bottle the Mourvedre on its own, the blend with Syrah was a much better wine. 
 
 150 cases produced
$29 btl
$23.29 when you purchase any 12 UNTI wines
 
BUY 2021 PETIT FRERE
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2020 PETIT FRERE

ESTATE VINEYARD: Benchland Syrah planted in 1991, Winery blocks Grenache Noir and Syrah planted in 1998, Primitivo planted in 1998.

BLEND: 62% Syrah, 25% Grenache, 13% Primitivo


HARVEST: September 15-30, 2020


WINEMAKING: Destemmed and fermented with native yeast in small, open-top tanks. Aged in French Oak Barrels. 30% new.


BOTTLED: February 2, 2022
 
 
 
 
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2018
Benchland
Syrah
100% Syrah
17 MO. 35% New French Oak
275 Cases
In Texas, they say “Dance with the one who brung you.” Well, we’ve been dancing with Syrah from this vineyard since 1995…and we’re still not tired of it.
 
It’s funny how certain personalities, performers, artists, writers resonate with people. One of our favorite comedians, Norm MacDonald, recently passed away. Norm’s humor was not for everyone. However, if you were a fan, you wholeheartedly agreed with David Letterman’s take - “There are better comedians, but nobody was funnier than Norm.”
 
In today’s sophisticated California wine market, it seems Syrah grown in cool climate regions (where Pinot Noir is located) is garnering most of the press. This makes sense, since the Northern Rhone, where the world’s finest Syrah is grown, is a cool climate compared to most of California.
 
However, just as there are some iconic Syrah vineyards in the Southern Rhone, there are compelling, distinctive Syrah vines in warmer climes. At the risk of sounding too proud, our Benchland Syrah is one such vineyard.
 
Planted in 1991, our Benchland block is one of, if not THE oldest Syrah vineyard in Sonoma County.   Like many of us, the Benchland vines might be slowing down, but they are producing higher quality. The crop level is more in balance with its root development, resulting in more consistent high-quality fruit. Combined with an even ripening vintage like 2018, you have one of the best wines from this vineyard. Intense color and fruit, with a distinct savory character you’ve come to love from this wine. This 2018 has the depth and structure found in our 2016, 2012 and 2007, rewarding those who aged them.
 
 
2018
Sangiovese
WEST TERRACE
100% Sangiovese
15 MO. 35% New French Oak
150 Cases 
6 Bottle Limit
For the past ten years we labelled our best Sangiovese “Riserva” because it was clearly the best lot of Sangiovese we made. Well, truth be told, our Riserva comes from one, ten-row section of the vineyard George planted in 1992. It is the west hill side of that steep, terraced vineyard. So, there you have it. Calling it like it is.
 
2018 will go down as one of the great vintages of this century, which is quite evident in our Sangiovese West Terrace. Year after year, Jason and I are amazed at the quality coming from this section of the vineyard. Like legendary guitarist, Pat Metheny, our Sangiovese is getting better with vine age. Always great color and structure (both tannin and acid), with classic Sangiovese character. Our West Terrace Sangiovese has helped me understand why producers in Montalcino to release their Brunellos in the fifth year after the vintage.
 
Like many of our 2018’s, our Sangiovese WT (ha!) goes to 11 on the fruit scale. So much so that you might not notice its tannin structure. This is a big wine that has incredible freshness and verve. Brunello-like tannin with Dry Creek fruit.
 
Unfortunately, we can’t magically expand the section of this vineyard to make more wine-so production is limited to 150 cases. As such, we are offering you first crack at it prior to us releasing the wine in 2022. Try to hold off from drinking this wine too quickly. It will sure reward you in several years, and last much longer if you so desire.
 
 
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