Once again, no exciting back story. I was browsing in the Cambridge Wine Merchants Bridge Street branch, and came across this. There’s not really a lot more that needs to be said. As the one or two readers of the blog will know, I’ve liked pretty much everything I’ve had from Lampyres, and plan to drink my way through their range when and as I’m able to afford to do so.
In the glass
Dark, cloudy, ink. Brooding. Purple towards the rim. Another wine WSET wouldn’t approve of.
The nose
Smells purple. Not like compote, but dark cherries of a sort? Plum? It’s kind of prominent, whatever it is.
The palate
Much lighter and brighter on the palate than I was expecting. Medium, with sour cherries and some other darker red fruits. Midway through a mouthful, I’m hit a sort of acidic, zesty bit on the cheeks. There’s a hint of cherry throat lozenges as well, but it works here. Refreshing.
Decent finish. Not overly long, but nice.
When I go look up the grapes, I’m surprised to find it’s mostly Syrah. Definitely wouldn’t have gone with that if forced to name grapes. But then again, I’m not, so it’s ok. After this, I recall that I probably made a similar comment about a previous Lampyres wine, but I’m too lazy to go and check. So, yeah, unusual and yummy things with Syrah.
Rating
Yummy-plus overall, pretty on the visuals.
Goes very well on its own, or with food. Easily could be a quaffable wine, although given it isn’t the cheapest, you probably don’t really want to do that. it is very tempting, though. I Coravined the bottle the tasting, and resisting pulling the cork now. It’s worth trying to wait until someone else is around to share it with.
Sustainability
Vegan, certified organic, low intervention
The technical info
12% ABV, Syrah, Carignan Noir, £34.99 from Cambridge Wine Merchants