The search for intelligent bass

Edmunds St. John 2005 Syrah Bassetti (San Luis Obispo County) – Smoked salt on meat and fresh blueberry. Flawlessly poised, medium-bodied now vs. other Bassettis, but absolutely bubbling with potential. This will take a long time to unfold, and an even longer time to develop, but it should be a stunner when it does. (2/08)

Bassetti hound

Edmunds St. John 2003 Syrah Bassetti (San Luis Obispo County) – At long last, some of this wine’s most muscular attributes show signs of taming. I wouldn’t call it civilization, because it’s still a hulking brooder; it’s just that the fruit (classic meat/leather/black fruit syrah) is a little more accessible behind the thick, fleshy wall of tannin. In recent tastings, this wine has been so structure-dominated that I’ve been tempted to call it imbalanced, but now – as it ages – the balance is clearer. And with clarity, comes the inevitable patience: based on the evidence, this isn’t going to be mature anytime soon. Anytime soon. Stick it in a dark corner of the cellar…though in front of the 2005s, which will probably live forever. (12/07)