Bright, saturated ruby-red. Blackberry, black raspberry and sexy oak spices on the nose. Primary dark berry and mint flavors show enticing sweetness and good stuffing and depth. Finishes with broad, tongue-dusting tannins and a smoky nuance. Not yet complex, but built to evolve in bottle.

Most of the Toso wines are screaming successes, but this Syrah is mostly an amalgamation of extract and lots of oak. The wine smells like blackberry syrup caked with mocha, while the flavors and feel are limited except for the barrel notes. As Syrah goes, this doesn’t deliver much finesse; just weight and wood.——M.S.(5/1/2008)—— 83