Spanish Syrah

One of my tasting groups recently conducted a double-blind Spanish Syrah tasting. We tasted 12 wines, mostly 2003s but with some exceptions and, of course, some ringers. Most of the Spanish wines, typically of moderate price, ranked better than the ’03 Pax Obsidian and the 2003 Rene Rostaing (Cote Rotie) ’la Landonne’, which Parker scored 96 and 97 points, respectively. For value, Finca La Estacada Reserva de Familia 2003 was one of the best. Finca Sandoval 2003, a bit more expensive, also did well. But the truly incredible wine of the night was Finca Garbet 2001 - clearly a world-class Syrah.