LYRARAKIS | Red | Kotsifali – Syrah | 2016
kotsifali | syrah

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Tonight we are going to review a very intriguing and unique wine blend from Greece – Red Kotsifali – Syrah 2016 by Lyrarakis – a family-owned winery which has been producing high quality wines since 1966 with a strong focus on rare local varieties. The Lyrarakis family is credited with the revival of two ancient cretan varieties, Dafni and Plyto, while a third ‘vineyard treasure’, the indigenous Melissaki, is recently added to the credits. Made of grapes sourced from the Alagni area in the central Crete, Lyrarakis Red is a wine blend vinified by combining indigenous and international grape varieties, which have perfectly acclimatised on the Crete island. The wine has been fermented with selected yeasts, with 15% of the blend aged for 12 months in large oak barrels. That said, without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
concentration: medium
colour: garnet
clarity: hazy
hue/rim: garnet

//Olfactory
intensity: powerful
fruit profile: black fruits
__black fruits: black cherry | black plum | blackcurrant | blackberry
fruit character: ripe

//Flavor
non fruit: vegetal | spice | oak | animal
__vegetal: asparagus | olive
__spice: black pepper
__oak: tobacco | oakwood
__animal: game | veal | leather | barnyard | horse saddle
__wood: old /  medium
aroma: primary | secondary | tertiary

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: med(+)
alcohol: med(+)
tannin: med(+)
__grip: ripe
body: medium
balance: good
__dominant: alcohol
complexity: complex

//Taste
fruit profile: black fruits
fruit character: ripe
non fruit: animal
finish: med(+)
aftertaste: velvety

//Scoring
LYRARAKIS | Red | Kotsifali – Syrah | 2016
variety: kotsifali | syrah
country: Greece
region: PDO Peza
rating: 93.0

//Conclusion
maturity: in its prime
verdict: great
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This is definitely a great wine of Greece and, with a total of 93.0 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a great wine indeed – a wine that has already reached the summit of its prime form – supple, ripe and voluptuous, with a firm, fine-tannic structure and a very savory, old-world accent – this wine begs for just a bit more ageing, as it can definitely resist another year or two in the bottle. The wine feels complex and very well balanced, with a harmonious and well structured palate, mouth-watering acidity and a touch of alcoholic burnt on the mouthfeel, all that filled with ripe black fruits and leathery-gamey flavours. What can we say more – this is a great great wine indeed – one of the best old-world styled wines we have ever tasted. Enjoy!
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