2022 Lindquist Family Central Coast Syrah
This wine is 80% Syrah, 8% Mourvédre, 4% Grenache, 4% Cinsault and 4% Petite Sirah. It grapes come from 6 different cool climate vineyards in both Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties: Bien Nacido in the Santa Maria Valley; Shokrian in the Cat Canyon area of Los Alamos; Mesa Verde in the Los Olivos district; Reeves in the Edna Valley; Spanish Springs in the San Luis Obispo Coast; and Nolan in the Alisos Canyon. This is my 41st consecutive bottling of Syrah from the Central Coast!
2022 was a warmer than normal vintage with a nine day heat wave that started on Labor Day weekend. Luckily, these were all late ripening varietals grown in cool climate sites, so the grapes weren’t negatively affected. That said, it was still a challenging Harvest.
The various lots were all hand harvested at different times, beginning on September 27th, and finishing on October 21st. All lots were fermented separately in small open top fermenters, with manual punch downs twice a day. After pressing, each lot was aged separately in neutral French oak barrels. After 11 months, the wine was racked, blended and returned to barrel for another 5 months. Three weeks before bottling it was lightly fined with organic egg whites to soften the tannins and bring the wine into focus.
As with all 40 Central Coast Syrah’s that came before this, it is a savory, fresh and elegant expression of the Syrah grape, with spicy, dark berry aromas and flavors to match. Beginning with the 2012 vintage, this wine is bottled under Stelvin screw cap for easy access and imminent drinkability.
Cheers, Bob Lindquist
November 2025
*91 Wine Enthusiast
