The flagship Syrah is the 2012 Syrah Upslope which is a selection of the top barrels across all of the vineyards. In 2012 it was cofermented with a dash of Viognier, was mostly destemmed, and spent 22 months in 50% new French oak. It has a middle of the road feel compared to the other single-vineyard releases and offers classic cassis and black raspberry fruits, toasted bread, licorice and spice in a clean, balanced, full-bodied style. Nicely focused and with the purity of fruit and balance that all of the wines from Craig and David show, it's already drinking beautifully, yet will evolve gracefully for at least another decade.

The (40% new French oak): Inky purple. Brooding aromas of cherry compote, blueberry, licorice pastille, smoky minerals and cola. Juicy, concentrated and expansive, offering deeply pitched flavors of dark berry liqueur, cherry-cola and candied violet. Shows real energy for such a rich wine. An impressively long smoke- and spice-tinged finish is framed by velvety, slow-building tannins, with the licorice and cola notes strongly repeating.