2006 RIBERACH Synthese

[Garagiste]

2006 RIBERACH Synthese -- Please keep the discussion on topic. Off topic posts will be moved or deleted.

Riberach

Dear Friends,

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend - I've complied anicelist of TNs from the festivities - some surprises and way toomanydisappointments. I will post them on the web site in afewdays.

To continue the holiday spirit and to start the most celebratory month oftheyear (December), think of this as a gift of sorts (ok, it'snotfree but it's almost half of what the US price will be) from oneofthe hottest newcomers on the French block - Riberach. With onlyafew vintages under their belt, the wines have become almost impossibletofind in Europe and there's something of an SQN-like buzz tothewinery (although the wine is completely different in style and farmoreclassic). Nestled into the Pyrenees foothills (1500ft) just southwestofPerpignan - you will hear a lot about this property in the years to comeasthey are not only producing some of the most expensive wines in the southbutthe terroir and results in the bottle are nothing short ofbrilliant.

From an incredible spot that seems half ancient history and halfmodernity,this new winery (known locally as "The Snail"for theirdistinct labels) has a near-perfect set of vineyards locateddirectly in thecooling tunnel of the mountain winds. With a radiantclimate, highelevation, the Tramontane winds and vines over 100 years of agethe stage hasbeen set for success that cannot be duplicated by manmadeintervention - thisis a one of a kind spot that mother nature created and itappears craftedsolely to capture the glory of the grape.

From very old Carignan (a la Priorat), 40-60 year old Syrah and a smallamountof old-vine Grenache (5-10%), the Synthese smells of class from thevery firstwhiff - a gorgeous cacophony of dried rosemary, thyme and mineralrich fruit -it has an extra dimension of tannin and sifted rock that sets itapart, adimension that appears to be imbedded in the most perfumed deep anddenseblack fruit. The varietal flavors are very pure and full dueto thestrong solar climate but also chiseled and restrained from the coolingwindand elevation - a combination that is enviable by many oftheirneighbors. Riberach believes it is the fossilized calcium anddriedthyme resin in the soil that makes their wine unique - both elementshavemade their way through channels in the solid granite over hundreds ofyears(or thousands in the case of the fossils) and are in direct contact withthevine root structure. If you've ever seen a blanketofcreeping thyme on patio rocks, imagine the same image in full purplebloomover a 5-acre parcel of 100 year old vines - dream-like is putting itmildlybut it gives evidential credence to their theory - one of themostspectacular and unique scenes I've been fortunate to passbefore myeyes.

While I applaud their hand-made efforts and the results cannot be denied, Idonot applaud their pricing - among the highest in the south(includingCdP). It will not be uncommon to see Riberach wines sellfor$60-70+ in the US which (in my opinion) is just too high. Irealizethe market dictates what is "fair" or not but Ilike$16.84 a whole lot better and the winery has agreed with me for thisparcel. If people can't taste the wine then what is thepoint? Idoubt many of you would open a wine on a whim if it carrieda $30-40 pricetag but at our price it invites experimentation and potentialfutureallegiance to their cause - now that's the sound ofsanity.

VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - ONE SHIPMENT ONLY at this price

This parcel has impeccable provenance, directly from the cellarsatRiberach

2006 Riberach "Synthese"CotesCatalanes (Roussillon) -


Please give us your maximum number and we will allocateaccordingly

To order: niki@garagistewine.com

This wine arrives with impeccable provenance in late 2008/early 2009 -pleasecheck OARS. It will ship during the first available shippingwindow(weather permitting).

Out of state orders will be held for free under ideal storage conditions(56degrees/70%humidity) until shipping is possible. Locals may pickupat their leisure.

For current local pick up and arrival/ship information, please see yourOARSlink below (at the bottom of this offer) - don't know how toaccessyour OARS? Simply click the link and see your account. Youcan alsopaste the link into your browser. If you are having troublewithyour link or your account, please contact:support@garagistewine.com


NO SALES TO RETAILERS OR WHOLESALERS

Thank you,

Jon Rimmerman
Garagiste
Seattle, WA

SOFR8130

[AndrewG]

Anyone have the offer letter on this wine? I usually keep the emails, but somehow didn't for this one, would like to refresh my memory why I bought.

[kain]

Riberach

Dear Friends,

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend - I’ve complied a nice list of TNs from the festivities - some surprises and way too many disappointments. I will post them on the web site in a few days.

To continue the holiday spirit and to start the most celebratory month of the year (December), think of this as a gift of sorts (ok, it’s not free but it’s almost half of what the US price will be) from one of the hottest newcomers on the French block - Riberach. With only a few vintages under their belt, the wines have become almost impossible to find in Europe and there’s something of an SQN-like buzz to the winery (although the wine is completely different in style and far more classic). Nestled into the Pyrenees foothills (1500ft) just southwest of Perpignan - you will hear a lot about this property in the years to come as they are not only producing some of the most expensive wines in the south but the terroir and results in the bottle are nothing short of brilliant.

From an incredible spot that seems half ancient history and half modernity, this new winery (known locally as “The Snail” for their distinct labels) has a near-perfect set of vineyards located directly in the cooling tunnel of the mountain winds. With a radiant climate, high elevation, the Tramontane winds and vines over 100 years of age the stage has been set for success that cannot be duplicated by manmade intervention - this is a one of a kind spot that mother nature created and it appears crafted solely to capture the glory of the grape.

From very old Carignan (a la Priorat), 40-60 year old Syrah and a small amount of old-vine Grenache (5-10%), the Synthese smells of class from the very first whiff - a gorgeous cacophony of dried rosemary, thyme and mineral rich fruit - it has an extra dimension of tannin and sifted rock that sets it apart, a dimension that appears to be imbedded in the most perfumed deep and dense black fruit. The varietal flavors are very pure and full due to the strong solar climate but also chiseled and restrained from the cooling wind and elevation - a combination that is enviable by many of their neighbors. Riberach believes it is the fossilized calcium and dried thyme resin in the soil that makes their wine unique - both elements have made their way through channels in the solid granite over hundreds of years (or thousands in the case of the fossils) and are in direct contact with the vine root structure. If you’ve ever seen a blanket of creeping thyme on patio rocks, imagine the same image in full purple bloom over a 5-acre parcel of 100 year old vines - dream-like is putting it mildly but it gives evidential credence to their theory - one of the most spectacular and unique scenes I’ve been fortunate to pass before my eyes.

While I applaud their hand-made efforts and the results cannot be denied, I do not applaud their pricing - among the highest in the south (including CdP). It will not be uncommon to see Riberach wines sell for $60-70+ in the US which (in my opinion) is just too high. I realize the market dictates what is “fair” or not but I like $16.84 a whole lot better and the winery has agreed with me for this parcel. If people can’t taste the wine then what is the point? I doubt many of you would open a wine on a whim if it carried a $30-40 price tag but at circa $16 it invites experimentation and potential future allegiance to their cause - now that’s the sound of sanity.

[AndrewG]

Thanks so much.

[AndrewG]

Anyone tried this yet? I think this might be the most excited I've been to open a garagiste wine, only to be massively let down. I have 5 more sitting in the cellar, am hoping the first bottle was just massively off. Would like to hear some other thoughts on the wine though.

[egath]

Agree. Massively disappointed. Swampy nose initially that managed to partially blow off to something like nylon carpet, and never became even close to: "the Synthese smells of class from the very first whiff - a gorgeous cacophony of dried rosemary, thyme and mineral rich fruit". NOT!!! This was something I simply have not had before, and never want to again. On the palate, there was ... wait for it ... NOTHING, followed by a 2 second finish! This was simply the most disappointing wine ever. Maybe fossilized calcium and dried thyme resin just sucks for growing grapes? Jon, you sure it was thyme? This wine blows.

[Andrew Hall]

Agree with above. My first bottle was marginally decent and meet the fairly low standards of a basic drinking bottle. The 2nd bottle was dominated by the swampy and metallic notes mentioned above.

A.

[Jon]

This is alarming to read -

I will try one post-shipping to see what the condition is. If the winery failed to bottle what I tasted and approved then we will immediately refund everyone's investment - no questions asked (I also will not support the winery in the future). I will be able to try one next week so please sit tight until then.

This wine should be fabulous, nothing in the middle.

- Jon Rimmerman

[Vinsant]

Jon,
Very interested to see what you think. This was my first disappointing Garagiste purchase. Just a very weak, simple, blah wine.

[AndrewG]

Any more news on this wine? Seeing some more notes in CT has it back in my mind. Still sitting on 5 bottles, the first bottle was clearly the worst wine I have opened in 2009. I'd love to find out that my tastes aren't so different from Jon et al.