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The Imbiber: Rattlesnake Rock is a star

By Dan Dunn

2:51 PM EDT, April 1, 2008

Your Imbiber humbly prides himself on being at the cutting edge of what's new and exciting in the world of wine. And while I'm certainly not one to brag about my exceptional oenophilic acumen, I am one to repeat what other people in the know say about me -- that I am much better at this than most of the other hacks in the spirits reportage business. And being that I'm just a simple writer with a gift, well, who am I to argue? Ah, but with great power comes even bigger responsibility, and so I believe it is my sacred duty to work tirelessly on your behalf, scouring the globe in search of great vino. And, boy, did we ever unearth a gem for you this week: the 2005 Rattlesnake Rock ($54), which releases today, is a limited production syrah from Big Basin Vineyards in California's lush Santa Cruz Mountains region.

Big Basin is a groovy mom-and-pop outfit run by owner/winemaker Bradley Brown and his wife Samantha, a renowned yoga instructor. Not only do the Browns produce great vino, they periodically lead wine-themed wilderness expeditions into the High Sierras as well as host provocative seminars such as "A Tantric Exploration of Wine & Yoga."

The '05 Rattlesnake Rock Syrah is a tempestuous little beauty, to be sure. Bold blueberry flavor intermingles with mocha and sharp spice for a veritable medley of divergent tastes. While it'll drink very nicely now, I strongly recommend two to three years of bottle aging to further integrate and allow the intense fruit core to open up. This bold red is very tightly wound in its youth, and even decanting and leaving a bottle open for 24 hours will not do the wine complete justice. Brown himself assured me that the '05 Rattlesnake Rock will come into its own sometime around 2010, as the tannins polymerize and the fruit begins to express itself.

Boutique wines from NorCal are a dime a dozen these days, but truly exceptional ones are still quite rare. The 2005 Rattlesnake Rock falls into that category -- one of the very best in a crowded field. Kind of like that handsome guy in the picture at the top of this column or so they say.

(Next week: I'll violate two more of the Seven Deadly Sins by revealing the names of celebrities I lust after and the lucky SOB's they're sleeping with.)

You need to be on the Big Basin mailing list to order their wines. To do so, visit www.bigbasinvineyards.com.

Dan Dunn is the author of the book "Nobody Likes a Quitter (and other reasons to avoid rehab