Bergstrom - Syrah "Gargantua Pantagruel" 2019 American 750ml (13.62% ABV)

WINE CLUB SELECTION MAR 2024 - Surprises Level

notes from the winemaker on the monster mythology behind this wine:

"He lived in and created a world of extravagant hedonism that held comedy, irreverence, obscenity and adventure. I believe that everyone has a Gargantua hidden inside of them, mine happens to be a love affair with the Northern Rhône grape varietal, Syrah. So now, after 18 intense years of solely focusing world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, gargantua is a new Bergström Wines effort to craft world class Syrah from the West Coast of the United States.

The gargantua labels are original paintings created by my childhood friend, Nat Meade, a talented and thoughtful artist living in Brooklyn, New York. I encourage you to visit his website to discover his vivid expressions on canvas. When I decided to finally bring our Syrah to life, I immediately thought of Nat to create the image. The paintings depict a man whose shadow is that of a beast: Gargantua. The different colors of each label represent the state and appellation character. Our version of gargantua, with the text intentionally presented in small, lower case type, speaks to the creation of wines that are balanced, reserved and driven by acidity and perfume."

a vision of American Syrah

blended from different vineyards in the Willamette, Umpqua, and Rogue Valleys in our home state of Oregon plus sites in California - hence why the 2019 is labelled "American" vs. a specific state.

An American AVA Syrah; pantagruel is blended from best our best barrels out of the various West Coast AVAs that make up our single state gargantua wines. Together, they showcase a philosophy, a palate, and a vision of American Syrah that captures fresh juicy flavors with a panoply of spice, garrigue herbs, ripe fruit, and mineral character that tells the world that the best U.S. Syrahs are competing with the top old-world examples of this noble varietal. Pantagruel is drinkable, thought provoking, and is crafted to be on the table on a regular basis and pair well with a variety of foods.

black olives, pepper, savory herbs, dark raspberry, blackberry, plum, boysenberry, grilled meats, tomato leaf, and marinara sauce aromas are there to greet you. This wine is rich, opulent, satiny, and deeply fruited on the palate. All the aromatics follow through into flavor and add sweet tomato paste, ripe red and dark red fruits, and black-garlic-tinged umami notes. This wine is very quaffable right now with a zippy and energetic finish. Lively and fun.

exotic and complex bouquet - garrigue, violets, smokey herbs, a mix of red, blue, and purple fruit, boysenberry, black pepper, tomato paste, subtle forest floor earthiness, medium bodied, seamless, satiny, suave, zippy acid backbone, a perfect mix of Northern Rhone tradition with West Coast flair. delicious

region: Oregon & California,  USA

varietal: Syrah

style: red

farming/cellar: organic and biodynamic, hand picked, whole cluster fermentation (no destemming) and aged in large format French oak demi-muids and ovals.

pairing: