Hints of blackberry, blueberry, violets and tar emerge from the glass in the 2009 Syrah Rattlesnake Rock. This is a relatively soft, juicy Syrah built more on fruit than aromatics or structure. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. I tasted a bevy of gorgeous wines with proprietor Bradley Brown this year. These new and upcoming releases are impeccable and strongly suggest Brown is one of the up and coming stars of the region. I can hardly wait to see how his wines develop in the future. Most of the 2010 Pinots were harvested during the first week of October, on the late side that year. The wines spent 16 months in French oak, between roughly 40-60% new. The 2009 Syrahs were picked during a broad window that started in early October and lasted much of the month. Brown gave his 2009 Syrahs about 27 months in French oak, from 50-86% new. I also tasted a number of wines from barrel, most of them 2010 Syrahs and Syrah-blends. Today, those wines are very promising, as the cold 2010 vintage seems to have brought out the maximum in varietal definition and nuance. Tel. (831) 621-8028

The 2009 Syrah Rattlesnake Rock, on the other hand, was harvested half before the October rains and half after. It shows notable verve and focus in its perfumed, delicate personality. Tobacco, flowers, mint and herbs add complexity to the fruit. Today this comes across as a bit on the light side. It will be interesting to see how the wine behaves post-bottling. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2017. Bradley Brown crafts gorgeous artisan wines from his vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains and Monterey County. The wines are fermented with ambient yeasts, see no racking and are bottled unfined and unfiltered. The Pinots are aged in 50% new medium toast barrels, while some of the Syrah and Syrah-based blends see higher amounts of new wood. Brown is gradually moving towards reducing toast levels and amounts of new oak. The 2008s are big, rich wines marked by the low yields of the year that are the result of the spring frost. Vintage 2009 was a flashier, more overt year until a heavy rainstorm hit on October 13. The 2009s generally are lower in alcohol than the 2008s. As good as these wines are – and they are often outstanding – my feeling is that Brown has just scratched the surface of his potential.Tel. (831) 621-8028; www.bigbasinvineyards.com