La Sirena Tasting with Remi Barrett

2013 Moscato Azul

8/10/2015

A few months ago, the Bon Vivant Gourmets attended a private tasting of La Sirena wines hosted by Remi Barrett (see below) and were so impressed with the dry muscat canelli that we acquired a few. Recently realizing that we've actually consumed the lot of them, we thought we should take a closer look at our last bottle.

Muscat traditionally is a very soft, silky wine with very floral aromatics and exotic fruit flavor profiles...and is usually in a sweeter form. Remi Barrett's mother, Heidi Barrett (a history involving Screaming Eagle and a marriage to Chateau Montelena''s Bo Barrett, her father) thought, "why not!" and managed to create a very successful dry muscat - something the Bon Vivants have never had! To say the least - IMPRESSIVE!

At first glance, the clarity of the wine is much like an untouched lake in the de-motorized zone of the Boundary Waters between Minnesota and Canada. Pristine and clear. So clear that the camera is able to focus directly through the wine to show the pits in the wood of the hand carved bar. On the nose, one notices lychee, mango, pomegranate and flowers....flowers like those in the gardens of St. Cloud! Nowhere else within America can such a florescent air exist such as in this garden...or the glass of this wine. Purity is the primary essence of the wine. In the mouth, it is silky smooth with beautifully bright acids balanced softly with the aforementioned exotic fruits. Nothing better for 100+ (40C+) days in the south, a summer where mango salsas and BBQ'd shrimp rule the pits.

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La Sirena

5/4/2015

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Fort Worth, Texas welcomed Remi Barrett of La Sirena Winery. This special private tasting event dazzled everyone! Ms. Barrett generously shared stories and gave intimate insight into the wines produced by her mother, Heidi Peterson Barrett (of Screaming Eagle fame and wife of Chateau Montelena's Bo Barrett; whose father, Jim, beat the French at the Judgement of Paris and was portrayed by Bill Pullman in the Hollywood production Bottleshock. Bo was portrayed by Chris Pine).

2013 Muscato Azul
The evening began with a glass of dry Muscat Cannelli - a first for the Bon Vivants! In fact, we don't know of any dry Muscats anywhere in the world! Why shouldn't there be one? There are dry Semillons, dry Rieslings, dry Gewurztraminers....why not!? This really surprised us because it maintained the integrity and identity of a Muscat - very clean, crisp, FLORAL and most importantly, very soft and smooth in texture. The wine was very well structured with almost unnoticeable acids and could stand on it's own by the pool as an aperitif, pair well with a lobster salad on a beach, or blend nicely with a shrimp étouffé on the deck at sea.

2011 The Pirate
The Pirate came to be after a day of blending - 7 varietals were thrown into the mix and something extreme was created. It was named after the 7 seas...Pirates of the Seven Seas to be precise! Comprising of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Syrah and 20% of Grenache, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Petite Syrah, this wine is naturally dense, extremely rich, powerful and something requiring two hands to lift!

2006 Syrah
100% Barrett vineyard Syrah.
This was a very special treat pulled from the cellar uniquely for us. The '06 was surprisingly youthful and could sit for another 5 years! Warm weather Syrah in style, its soft fruits are very smooth and truly represent varietal characteristics of dark plums, olives, black peppers and baked blueberries. This was a very much appreciated treat!

2009 Le Barrettage
Amazing! This is only one of two wines found by the Bon Vivants in the western hemisphere that exudes old world richness of earth in an old world style! Barrettage! Very befitting of a wine that is clearly new world yet mimics the best of the old world's Hermitage style! It is extremely well structured, age able, rich, multilayered, and perfectly balanced. Very soft tannins promote earth notes with Violettes, plums, mushrooms, cloves, wet earth, and a very California fruit forward blending of blueberries, cassis, and Christmas boysenberries. This is an extremely unique wine that stands tall with its own identity. Worth getting as much as one can!

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon
This is a very high quality wine! Deeply complex, well structured, fruit forward and balanced! This is an extremely elegant representation of the Cabernet Sauvignon varietal and exudes opulence.

2010 Barrett and Barrett
Mrs. Heidi Barrett awoke one day to a phone call - a reporter was asking her to comment. She was confused....comment on what? The sale of Screaming Eagle where she was the head winemaker. This was no doubt a shock! Then, Chateau Montelena was up for sale, her husband's winery. That fell through. The husband and wife had always wanted to collaborate but never seemed to do so. With the formation of La Sirena and the prospect that one day they could lose Chateau Montelena, they decided that some day was today - and Barrett and Barrett was accomplished!

Barrett and Barrett is a single vineyard (the Barrett vineyard) crème de la crème collaboration between two of America's greatest winemakers! Both masculine and feminine elements are clearly visible in the wine as is a sense of place...that special and unique element that is terroir! The truth of this wine and what makes it unique is that it embodies the greatest of both winemakers' imagination and succeeds at accomplishing that vision while respecting nature and art. This wine is beautifully crafted in such a way that it is powerful and graceful young but also possesses the quality to age.

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