If You've Ever Wondered Where I Get My Inspiration From, Here's A Hint ~ My Beautiful Regal Star & The Idea Behind The Quality & Imagery Of SQN!

Are But A Few Major Points.

I drank most of my 2012s during the pandemic, I often had both bottles open in a span of 3-4 days and I played winemaker with one of my favorite brands. You only live once, time to ignite the sensations of moving at lightspeed while the flavors explode and penetrate your wine Psi Chi.

~ The Only SQN Wine Lab

BADASS DOUBLE 100 POINT ENSEMBLE

Jeb Dunnuck While With The Wine Advocate

2012 11 CONFESSIONS

Syrah Touche ~ 3 Bottles

Lastly, the utterly perfect 2012 Syrah Touche reminds me of a great vintage of Guigal’s Cote Rotie La Landonne. A blend of 93% Syrah, 5% Petite Sirah and 2% Viognier, all from the Eleven Confessions Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills, it spent 40 months in 78% new French oak. Deep, concentrated, full-bodied and layered, with a multidimensional texture and to-die-for notes of camphor, cured meats, violets, smoke and assorted dark fruits, this beauty has fine, perfectly ripe tannin and blockbuster length. Give it 3-4 years and drink over the following two decades.

Grenache Rattrapante ~ 3 Bottles

A perfect wine any way you look at it, the 2012 Grenache Rattrapante comes all from the Eleven Confessions Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills and spent 33 months in 27% new French oak. My notes start - and end - with “Wow.” Giving up tons of black raspberries, peppery herbs, licorice, dried flowers and cured meats, it’s a massively concentrated, rich and layered Grenache that somehow manages to stay graceful, lively and fresh on the palate. There are roughly 800 cases of this elixir and any Grenache lover should do their best to latch onto a bottle (or two). It’s also worth noting that this cuvee saw 26% whole clusters, which is a small change from past vintages.

DEPENDS ON HOW YOU VIEW THE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF THE ELEMENTS (Label Art)

Fire is an element that can stimulate growth, can sharpen your will to continue by recalibrating and refocusing. Once one is in a transitional flow, it's a very good idea to only focus on quality. Quality people, quality time, and most importantly quality wine. Allow this 2018 11 Confessions Syrah to engulf you in a state of elemental greatness.

~ The SQN Infused Lab

100 Points Jeb Dunnuck

2018 SINE QUA NON

11 CONFESSIONS SYRAH

The 2018 Syrah Eleven Confessions Vineyard is pure gold and Syrah doesn't get any better, no matter what region you're talking about. Incredible notes of ripe cherries, currants, ground black and white pepper, cured meats, and saddle leather all soar from the glass, and it's full-bodied, deep, and concentrated on the palate. Opening up with time in the glass, it certainly offers pleasure today yet warrants 2-4 years of bottle age and will have two decades of overall longevity. Hats off to the Krankl family for another utterly magical wine.

WORDS & LETTERS ARE POWERFUL, WHEN THEY EMANATE FROM POSITIVITY, THEY ARE CELESTIAL

We've all written something that was fueled by the passion for someone we love. Perhaps you delivered it or simply projected it, either way, it added to the positive cosmos.

Paul Lato was here this past week and joined my wine-tasting panel, we shared connections that have led us all to this point in time. Appreciation for quality wine, time, and positive people was the focus!

Paul's Letters To Europe delivers.

~ The California Rhone Lab

96 Points Jeb Dunnuck

2019 PAUL LATO

LETTERS TO EUROPE

An even split of Grenache and Syrah from Bien Nacido and Larner Vineyards, the 2019 Letters to Europe offers a big, boisterous, Grenache-driven bouquet of raspberry and strawberry fruits supported by ground pepper, cured meats, and gamey nuances. Rich, full-bodied, and seamless on the palate, it's another rocking wine boasting incredible richness and depth while staying weightless, elegant, and seamless.

SINE QUA NON

Def: ( Latin )

an essential condition; a thing that is absolutely necessary.

My all-time favorite wines continue to push and feed into the brands meaning! I only desire quality, vision, the arts and sounds that define my day to day life!

~ The Wine Lab

((( Arriving Mid February )))

2020 Sine Qua Non

Syrah Distenta 11

99 Points The Wine Advocate / 99 Jeb Dunnuck

The 2020 Syrah Distenta 11 is a blend of 82.9% Syrah, 7.5% Grenache, 3.9% Mourvèdre, 3.4% Petite Sirah and 2.3% white (1.5% Muskat and 0.8% Petit Manseng, to be precise). It comes entirely from estate vineyards: The Third Twin (43%), Eleven Confessions (32%), Cumulus (21%) and Molly Aïda (3%). It was fermented with 16% whole clusters and matured for about 23 months in 66% new French oak. "I like whole cluster less on Syrah," Manfred Krankl explains. "It can be more herbal. But these 2020s are much more fleshy and unctuous, so it shows better." Opaque purple black in color, it features aromas of cassis and blueberries, charcuterie, lavender and coffee beans, changing continually as it spends time in the glass. The full-bodied palate boasts tremendous floral perfume, a frame of rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and fragrant. 

JD

Tons of red, blue, and black fruits as well as peppery herbs and liquid violet-like nuances emerge from the 2020 Syrah Distenta II, a full-bodied, concentrated, remarkably balanced barrel sample that's based on 83% Syrah, 7.5% Grenache, and the rest Mourvèdre, Petite Sirah, Muscat, and Petit Manseng. I love its mid-palate, it has ripe, sweet tannins, and a gorgeous finish. It's unquestionably a brilliant wine in the making.