Lagier Meredith Syrah Mt Veeder 2014 | “One of the Classics”  RP

The Lagier Meredith Syrah Mt Veeder 2014 is deep blue/purple with outstanding concentration. Fat blueberry bursts from the glass, with cocoa, cured meat, and floral aromas. A generous and plush mouthfeel coats the palate, melting away to a fine tannic finish. This is Napa richness and Old-World complexity at its best.  A labor of love from Steve Lagier and Carole Meredith.

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94WS | Achieving an agile balance between plump fruit and great structure is the Lagier Meredith Syrah Mt Veeder 2014. Blueberry, dark chocolate and orange zest aromas lead to rich, complex flavors of boysenberry and peppered beef.  Minerally tannins ease in on the finish. Drink now through 2028. 450 cases made.

About Lagier Meredith Winery | Vision and Hard Work pays off!

Had Steve Lagier and Carole Meredith planted Cabernet Sauvignon on their coveted hillside site atop Mt. Veeder and produced a wine of this quality, it would easily fetch $90+. Instead, in 2014, they eked out just 450 cases of some of the valley’s richest, most structured Syrah. Wine Spectator rated it 94 points, praising the “agile balance between plump fruit and great structure.

While Robert Parker found this rich mountain-fruited gem “One of the classics of Northern California.  In addition, “seamless,” and “can be drunk now or cellared for up to a decade or more.” Miraculously, the recent wildfires that burned atop Mt. Veeder skirted around this site

Steve Lagier and Carole Meredith

Steve Lagier and Carole Meredith purchased their 84 acres on Mount Veeder in 1986.  The property had sat unsold for years.   Home to a rutted road, rattlesnakes, and a smattering of olive trees, but no vines.  Then, Steve was a winemaker at Mondavi and Carole a professor of viticulture and enology at UC Davis   When they were not working they were toiling at their mountainside property, clearing stumps and roots and planting cover crops. All without help.

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The property came along slowly after eight years of contending with their day jobs (and in Carole’s case, a hellish commute).  Finally, in 1994, they planted the first vines on just 5 acres. Releasing their first commercial wine in 2000, 14 years after purchasing their property. That is where the hard work, along with their decades of shared expertise, started paying off.

Lagier and Meredith’s reverential treatment of the Syrah — they eschew new oak for neutral — has gained well-deserved attention. This is a chance to see why Robert Parker calls Lagier Meredith “one of the classics of Northern California.”