Horsepower, The Tribe Vineyard Syrah, Walla Walla Valley

Remarkable. I've had several bottles of Cauyse before so I had an idea of what to expect. This was right in line. Was enjoyed along side a much younger bottle of Cayuse(unsure of which bottling) and they were so similar. Still in great shape. Not really showing signs of age when comparing it to the younger wine. Drink now or continue holding with confidence.

2012 vintage

As delicious as the last bottle!

2012 vintage

Love this grenache! The typical Cayuse funk blew off this one after a 3 hour decant so just bright red fruits with a lingering finish that was inspiring.

2012 vintage

From Magnum; 4.5 hour decant, lots of that Rocks Funk, but sweet blackberry fruit underneath, along with dark chocolate, road tar, grilled beef, iodine, and cracked black pepper. Outstanding!

2012 vintage

Popped and poured. This is a dark red wine without any sediment. The nose immediately shows the distinct traits of these wines, including white bean and ham hock stew, animal sweat, and black olives. There’s also a bit of fruit peeking through, which at times shows as pomegranate and at other times is closer to an earthy beet juice. In the mouth, this is salty and meaty, with more black olive elements and modest red fruit hiding in the background. …

2013 vintage

Aging beautifully with crushed wet stone & dark raspberry aromas and flavors on the maturing palate with silky texture culminating in a long finish.

2012 vintage

Light-bodied, dominated by savory Rocks notes, but a little more restrained than my prior bottle, 6 years ago. Fruit has also receded. Thinking these need to be finished up sooner than later at this point.

2012 vintage

Walla Walla (Amy and Scott's house) : Decanted 3 hours. (Do note that this is the oldest red at the tasting and the only one decanted because *I* decanted it) While there is some funk here, I don't find it excessive. There's enough fruit to keep the funk and the greenness in check. In fact, this comes across as deep while at the same time not heavy. Iodine, olives, slight smoked meat and leather. I would seek this out if …

2013 vintage

Still relatively muted for hours on end. Like letting a tube amplifier warm up, this just gets better and better as the hours roll by. Tasting more and more Northern Rhone-like in expression, if NR had iron laced blood in spades. The mineral, the leather and the herbs are there, the fruit exists, but the iron rich meaty notes dominate with more and more airtime. I initially thought we might’ve waited too long, and on day two I’ve revised that …

2012 vintage

I believe my palate has moved on from these wines, which is a crying shame as I still have a boat load in my cellar. This was decanted to 36 hours and still never blew off the funk. While the nose got better, the taste retreated as time went on.

2013 vintage

Pine resin, leather, and blackberries. Heavily sulfated to the point of effervescence. I shook it vigorously to gas off the sulfer.

2012 vintage

Christophe is a mad genius. Never had wines like this before.

2012 vintage

Liked from the Sucking Tasting. I like the natty house style. 91- pts.

2021 vintage

Seriously funky, maybe too much so for some, but certainly not for all. Dark, almost brooding fruit. Could use a bit more body and structure, but still drinking rather well.

2013 vintage

Layers of delicious dark fruit, minerals, and meat on the nose and palate with a silky smooth texture and long finish.

2012 vintage

Punching way above its weight and outshining the 01 Verite next to it, this was one of my favorite American Syrahs that I have had this decade. Generous fruit balanced well with savory notes of soy and cacao, this wine worked well on its own but was truly delightful with short ribs. Would absolutely get this again at the right price.

2012 vintage

WOTN in a lineup with stellar offerings from Rochioli, Quilceda Creek, Longshadows, Corliss, Leonetti, Rasa and L'Ecole. 4 hour decant, drank over several hours. Smoked meats, olives and an appropriate dose of Rocks funk. Delicious with plenty of time left.

2012 vintage

Surprising - my first subpar bottle of anything from Horsepower. Thin and watery throughout. Had very little of signature funk or secondary/tertiary flavors. Standard grenache profile but nothing special in this botttle Perhaps a bit aged now?

2012 vintage

Super funky on night one with a fairly strong iodine and funk. Sofened on night two and into night three with a pretty balance of black fruit and powerful tannins. This still has room to grow. Will revisit in 5 years

2013 vintage

Classic earthy, funky Rhone style. Drinking perfectly after 1 hour decant. Perfect match with ribs.

2012 vintage

Slow O for 3 hours after an initial short pour to open the neck. Had out of Mondavi Bordeaux glasses and enjoyed over 2-3 hours. Definitely unfurling and showing nicely. This seems to right in the middle of a great window. Gamey, funky, meaty, smoky, briar patch, boysenberries, charred blueberries, and nice soy like umami notes throughout. Certainly not in danger of going anywhere yet, but definitely firing on all cylinders now. This 10-15 year mark seems to be where …

2012 vintage

Pop and pour. Seems as mature as it's going to get. Sharper than Cayuse but similar profile. Powerful.

2013 vintage

Decanted two hours. Tasted just after opening and for about 90 min post and really odd pithy bitterness that eventually faded. Two hour mark great mouthfeel, unmistakably Baron, funk faded a bit, lots of soy, salinity, umami. If I’m being a bit critical some distracting astringency on the finish. That said a solid wine. My first of the ‘13 3 pack. Not sure where it goes from here, don’t think it improves? Will probably drink one soon and then save …

2013 vintage

Classic Baron style in a really good place. Funk has mellowed and I just don’t see this getting any better at 10yrs.

2013 vintage

Two hour decant, next time at least 4 hours. A bit tight and sharp upon first sips, but improved significantly over next few hours, garnering two first place votes in our 6 bottle blind syrah tasting. All you would expect from a Christophe wine, very well made, fully integrated, rich, luxurious this feels like it will continue to evolve over the next few years so no rush to drink our other bottles.

2013 vintage

Layers of delicious dark fruit, minerals, and meat on the nose and palate with a silky smooth texture and resolving tannins on the long finish. Drinking beautifully!

2013 vintage

The 2012 Tribe Vineyard Syrah. This may be the most unique syrah I have ever tried in terms of profile. When I first opened this wine, I honestly thought someone had messed up and opened a Piedmontese wine like a Carema or Barberesco. The nose was full force damp leaves, cherry, strawberry, and rose petals to the point where my brain shut down for half a second. After a good long decant, the initial wash of aromas mellowed and more …

2012 vintage

Excellent. Upon opening a floral/fruity nose wafted up. Roses and lychees. Upon sipping lychees, roses, blue flowers, mangoes and cannabis on the palette. All around drinking well and extremely intriguing and nice. Noticed a distinct Cayuse profile as well. *2nd night open. Roses and violets. Raspberries. Cayuse funk profile making more of a presence. Olive tapenade and some thyme elements. Other volatiles upon opening (last night) have blown off. Some faint distinct cannabis on the nose. Nice fruit on the …

2012 vintage

Decanted briefly. You never know what you're going to get with these Cristophe Baron wines. This one showed with effervescent, bright black cherry on top of hay and herbs. Delicious with BBQ chicken and no further cellaring needed.

2012 vintage

Coming together beautifully!

2012 vintage

Drank for Thanksgiving. May have turned. My wife didn't like it at all. I was on the fence but it certainly was a unique taste. Drink up your stock!

2012 vintage

This required a lot of air to come alive, but once it did, there were copious notes of flowers, brined olives, smoked beef and roasted herbs. Medium-bodied in the mouth, strongly minerally and earthy, with ample dark fruit and bacon fat. Really lingers on the finish, with fine grained tannins arriving late and coating every square inch of the gums. While approachable with extended aeration, my guess is that this outstanding Syrah is a good decade away from its prime …

2013 vintage

Not sure what's going on with these wines, but I have experienced a nasty, bitter finish from many of the Horsepower and No Girls wines from the '13 and '14 vintages that I have opened over the past year or so. The finish is almost metallic in character. Really not good.

2013 vintage

DAY 1 Served with the Vinloq System 👃Powerful:Smoke, dark fruit. Meaty. Horse sweat. Musky. Earthy. Florals. So much going on 👅Sweet red & dark fruits with smoke & earth. Fresh. Solid acidity. Mellow tannins. Full bodied but lithe. Drinking well Remaining wine Slow Decanted in my refrigerator DAY 7 👃Smoky, musky, horsey with red/dark fruit & kirsch 👅Cranberry/raspberry, smoke, bacon, iron, spice, & stones Hitting all of the notes on DAY 7 but I preferred the unbridled 🐎 intensity of …

2012 vintage

Consistent with my prior notes. This has aged well and ready to go.

2012 vintage

Again, these are love it or hate it style wines, and I fall on the “love it” side every single time. This was part of a blind lineup for “Rhône style wines”. These wines are a bit difficult not to identify in a blind lineup due to their distinctive aromatics. My note here is pretty similar to the 2011 I opened a year and a half ago. In true to Christophe Baron style, this is a savory packed punch wrapped …

2012 vintage

After 8hr decant. Unmistakable Cayuse/Horsepower/ the Rocks funk on the nose. Delivers on expectations. Iron, blood, graphite, saddle leather, boysenberries, black pepper and charred meat- both on the nose and the palate. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but if it is your jam, it delivers in spades. This 2013 is positively firing on all cylinders and singing at the moment. This is an excellent intersection on the road of this wine’s development and my palate preferences. Just a great place. …

2013 vintage

Nose was unbelievable! chocolate, black fruits, toasted spice, and plums. But what followed was a overly acidic/acute + astringent. Needed to be paired with meat or cheese, full-bodied and concentrated on the palate.

2012 vintage

Drank in London The name says it all

2013 vintage

Stinky, iron bloody, like a rare steak. Olives. Violet & lavender florals.

2012 vintage

Took advice from CTers on the long decant -- 6 hour decant and this is really great. Balanced, soft tannins, complex, acid dialed in (drink with food), funky with a bit of smoke, and a long finish. Great now but will keep going.

2013 vintage

This is so good it is hard to describe! An amalgam of flavors ranging from white pepper, dark berries, touches of leafy soil, kirsch, and leather. Exquisite mid-palate concentration and a heavenly finish. Truly a gem, bravo!

2012 vintage

This screamed Grenache and had a sandy-soil lightness and red-fruitedness that recalled Pignan (I won't say Rayas!) or des Tours. Raspberry notes for days. Really nicely balanced at 13% ABV. Total winner and worth every penny of the release price (~$115). Drinking great right now, and probably another 5 - 7 years of prime time.

2012 vintage

Fantastic. I didn’t love these Horsepowers when they were young. At 9 yrs of age they have integrated beautifully and gained balance and settled enough so that the complexity shines. This was fruit forward but perfectly complemented by black olive, cured meat, and a touch of tar. Amazing wine.

2012 vintage

Dark and opaque. Wonderful pronounced and immediate aroma od smoke, roasted meat and toasted oak, black fruits on the aroma and palate. Very full-bodied but also smooth and balanced. Tannins are well in the background. It has developed some complexity, is definitely on its plateau of maturity but has years ahead of it. Tasted alongside 2012 Cayuse "Cailloux", also excellent, but this was a step above it. Ric

2013 vintage

Fabulous, and perfectly drinkable! Garnet, no brown edges, but not totally opaque. Pronounced complex aromas of roasted meat, smoke, pepper, mushrooms. On the palate, medium-full bodied, but soft and round; full of flavors, definite elegance, not a huge mouth-coating wine. Very long aftertaste, with some anise at the end. This is not a big, huge wine but more refined and complex, definitely similar in style to Guigal's single vineyards. Enjoy over the next 5+ years. Ric

2012 vintage

WOTN at Old vs New World Syrah tasting at Barts. Unanimously bettered Grange, Guigal d’Ampuis, Dead Arm, and all the rest. Pulled cork at 8am. Splash decanted at 5pm. Tasted at 7pm. Huge over the top aromas, dark fruit, a hint of char, very balanced with great acidity. Tannins were in perfect balance.

2013 vintage

Drinking bottle #2 after 5 years from bottle #1. Violets, lavender, salty bacon. Floral through and through, it’s like pushing your face through a garden of purple flowers. Mineral salinity, finishes with a ton of complexity. Fruit is an after thought, maybe a touch of cherry. Rich and full bodied. While floral notes dominate, this is a powerful wine and not delicate. I think this is drinking very well now, but I did decant for about 4 hours.

2012 vintage

Very rich and full, but extremely smooth and balanced. Plenty of concentrated fruit but not a "fruit bomb". Not at all austere or tannic. Very long aftertaste. Ric

2013 vintage

Almost a year since my prior bottle of this, and I find that it's in a much more agreeable spot. PnP, this was a little tight, but quickly opened to reveal the savory funkiness that I was hoping for. Fantastic bottle from start to finish.

2012 vintage

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Horsepower, The Tribe Vineyard Syrah, Walla Walla Valley

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