This year, the final blend of La Cote Rousse included barrels from all 4 blocks of Red Mountain Syrah. Clone 383 brings the softest texture, and most perfume to the blend. Delicate notes of lavender and iron are its hallmark. Clone 99 is the most concentrated and structured. Here the fruits lean toward blackberry and raspberry, where both tannin and acid are abundant.. Clone 174 expresses the ripest character of the French clones, combining boysenberry, and pomegranate. At Ranch at the end of the Road, the early ripening Tablas creek clone provides blueberry fruit and smoky meatiness.
"The 2016 Syrah La Cote Rousse is built around clone 99, all from Red Mountain, that saw 45% whole clusters in the fermentation. This cuvee, which is also moving more and more toward Ciel du Cheval, is 88% from this terrific site. It’s another inky purple colored red with a beautiful bouquet of black raspberries, toasted spice, dried herbs, and mineral aromas and flavors. Still tight, backward and reserved, yet with beautiful potential, this full-bodied, ripe, layered Syrah needs 2-3 years of bottle age and will keep for 15+ years."
- Jeb Dunnuck (April 2018), 95+ pts
Bob and Cathy Betz crushed their first vintage of Betz Family Wine in 1997 with the help of volunteer friends, producing 150 cases of wine in the warehouse district of ...
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"The 2016 Syrah La Côte Rousse reveals notes of purple flowers, crunchy dark berry fruit and cracked pepper, followed by a medium-bodied, youthfully chewy but fine-grained palate that's bright and chalky. Taut and concentrated, it will require—and reward—some patience. - William Kelley"
"Some much spice and mineral aromas here with hints of cloves and white pepper. Full body, ink and dark fruit and some black olives. A solid and chewy syrah with so much strength yet form. Give it two or three years after release."
"Tightly wound and trim, with blueberry, stony mineral and spice flavors that finish with a slight tannic grip. Best from 2021 through 2024. 400 cases made. –TF"
"The 2015 Syrah la Cote Rousse is a blockbuster Syrah from Red Mountain that’s from the Ranch at the End of The Road and Ciel du Cheval vineyards. It’s a mix of four different clones and is brought up in barrel. This deep, inky, seriously black Syrah gives up Hermitage-like notes of scorched earth, charred meats, graphite and licorice. It’s a big, concentrated effort that’s going to benefit from short-term cellaring and keep through 2035. - Jeb Dunnuck"
"A blend of four clones; from Ciel du Cheval and Ranch at the End of the Road; aged in 45% new oak. Bright dark ruby to the rim. Lovely precise aromas of boysenberry, violet, licorice, bitter chocolate, brown spices and roasted meat. A serious spine of acidity and tannins gives a penetrating quality and superb vinosity to the very intense dark berry and violet flavors. Finishes with big tongue-dusting tannins and outstanding purple-fruit intensity. Still quite youthfully imploded and built for a long life in bottle. - Stephen Tanzer"
"Much more mineral driven than the La Serenne release, the 2013 Syrah la Cote Rousse comes all from Red Mountain and is always 100% Syrah. Like the other Syrahs here, it saw 11 months in barrel and won't be released until the fall of 2015. Exhibiting lots of blackberry, black raspberry, graphite, smoke and crushed rock, it's beautifully concentrated, has top-notch purity of fruit and a great finish. I love its mid-palate density, and while it has a lot of tannins, they're nicely integrated into the body of the wine. Give it 2-3 years in the cellar and enjoy bottles through 2033. It should be one of the longest-lived Syrahs in the vintage."
"Aromas of iron, fresh-roasted coffee beans, high-toned dried herbs, mineral, blue fruit and savory spices explode from the glass. This wine coats the palate from end to end with supple, dense fruit and savory flavors that feel sleek but still show depth. The tannins bring some heft."
"Firm and chewy around a flavorful core that splits the difference between gorgeous blackberry and dark plum fruit, revealing savory notes of leather and wild plants. Best after 2020.—H.S"
"This aromatically appealing wine brings aromas of blue fruit, barbecue briquettes, herbs, mineral and assorted spices. The fruit flavors are lithe yet intense, with a squeeze of tannins that lead to a supremely long finish."
"(aged in 45% new oak): Bright ruby-red. Complex nose melds cranberry, licorice, minerals and smoke. Sappy, smooth and light on its feet, showing terrific lift to its sexy flavors of red berries, flowers, pepper and game. Youthfully sinewy and complex wine with a rising, perfumed finish showing great class. Really high-quality barrels here! Betz noted that he's now working to "take down the overall astringency of the wines through reduced skin contact, generally gentler extraction, and more seed removal." He explained: "Red Mountain fruit does not need any more seed phenolics."
"(from a warmer site than the La Serenne): Bright red-ruby. Black raspberry, flowers, minerals and spices on the nose, plus a hint of black walnut that reminded me of Hermitage. Juicy on entry, then sinewy and penetrating in the middle, and clearly less pliant and sweet today than the La Serenne. The dark fruit and bitter chocolate flavors are supported by obvious Red Mountain structure. For all its power, the minerally, spicy, peppery finish displays very fine-grained tannins and lovely subtle persistence. Actually a bit higher in pH than the La Serenne but this is likely to need at least as much time in the cellar--say five or six years."
"Originating half each in Ranch at the End of the Road (source of this bottling’s first appearances in 1999 and 2000) and neighboring Ciel du Cheval (tapped since 2001) on Red Mountain, the Betz 2010 Syrah Le Cote Rousse features ripe but tart-edged dark cherry and plum accented by smoky, carnal, saline, mouthwateringly savory notes that (idiosyncratically, granted!) put me vividly in mind of pan scrapings from a roasting goose. This feels firmly tannic but that doesn’t keep it from displaying generous primary juiciness in a sustained finish. As with a number of wines tasted on this occasion, I’d be inclined to leave it in peace for a couple of years and then anticipate at least 6-8 years of bottle development. "
