Loving California Syrah is like loving an indie band that never breaks out. Sure, it’s easy to get tickets to their shows. But WTF—doesn’t anyone else realize what they’re missing?

California’s reds have long been dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel, but Syrah’s lower standing—in the minds of some wine consumers, at least—has never made sense. California Syrah is delicious, made in a wide array of styles from rich and powerful to spicy and lean, goes well with food, and grows well in lots of places. Hell, it’s even easy to pronounce.

Those attributes are both its blessing and its curse. In California, Syrah has many homes but no definitive one, unlike in France, where Syrah is synonymous with the Northern Rhône, and particularly celebrated in Hermitage and Côte-Rôtie.

You can find excellent Syrahs basically anywhere in California. Still, according to the California Grape Acreage Report, it ranks only fifth in the state among planted red wine varieties, trailing Cabernet Sauvignon (95,000 acres planted), Pinot Noir (47,000), Zinfandel (38,000) and Merlot (33,000). There are only 14,000 acres of Syrah planted in the state; San Luis Obispo County claims the largest share of them.

California Syrah: The Early Days 

Syrah was grown in California long before Prohibition, but not in any meaningful way—and often interplanted with Zinfandel. Most of the Syrah, like many other wine grapes, was destroyed by phylloxera in the 1870s and 1880s. When growers started replanting their vineyards with phylloxera-resistant rootstocks in the 1890s, Syrah often didn’t make the cut. Growers instead preferred to plant grapes that they felt went better with Zinfandel, like Carignan and Petite Sirah.

But some old-vine Syrah was discovered in the historic St. Helena Public Library Vineyard, which was planted sometime between 1880 and 1920, in a field selection that included Petite Sirah, Peloursin, and other varieties. These grapes were probably blended together in some of the Napa Valley’s earliest wines.

In the 1930s, two clones of Syrah were planted from French cuttings imported to the University of California, Davis by professor of viticulture and enology Harold Olmo. Dr. Olmo brought some of the original plant material from the Richter Nursery in the Mediterranean coastal city of Montpellier, though it was mislabeled at first as Petite Sirah, according to records kept by Foundation Plant Services. (Olmo later brought other Syrah cuttings to California from a viticultural research station in Bordeaux.)

These clones were planted at Christian Brothers in Napa Valley in the 1960s, though the Brothers never made a varietal Syrah, choosing instead to blend the grapes into their red Burgundy wines. 

By 1974, Dr. Olmo’s experimental plantings of Syrah in the Napa Valley were largely gone, except for at Wheeler Ranch, which was still owned by the Christian Brothers. As fate would have it, it was close to newcomer Joseph Phelps’ property in St. Helena, where Phelps was in the process of building a winery. 

That year, Joseph Phelps Vineyards made its first varietal Syrah from Wheeler Ranch grapes and put Napa Valley Syrah on the map.

“We brought Syrah into existence in the United States. We rarely get credit for it, but that’s the truth,” Phelps told his biographer, Paul Chutkow, in The Best We Can Be: The Life and Wisdom of Joseph Phelps. 

Another important Northern California Syrah clone is the Durell clone, which traces its lineage back to the Durell Vineyard in Sonoma Valley. Many growers in the area got budwood from Durell in the 1980s. Durell’s vineyard manager Ned Hill originally got cuttings from the Linda Vista nursery in Napa Valley and, after planting the Syrah at Durell, helped spread the clone around to other wineries, including Kendall-Jackson and Edmunds St. John.

The Central Coast—and Beyond

But the Central Coast soon latched onto Rhône varieties and never looked back. 

In 1975, Gary Eberle was the first to plant Syrah in what is called the Estrella District of Paso Robles, using cuttings from France. In doing so, he created the Estrella Syrah clone—which is said to represent a good 65 percent of all Syrah grown in the United States—and made a convincing case for Rhône varieties in the region.

Alban clones from Alban Vineyards in Arroyo Grande are also important contributors to California Syrah. Alban was one of the first wineries in the state to devote itself entirely to Rhône varieties and wines, which it did in 1989. Robert Parker once rightly described John Alban as “the spiritual and qualitative leader of the [Rhône] movement” in California. 

During the 1980s, legendary winemaker Randall Grahm further popularized Rhône grapes in California via his winery, Bonny Doon Vineyard, in Santa Cruz. He had spectacular success with a wine he called Le Cigare Volant, a blend of Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre. (Grahm sold Bonny Doon in 2020, but continues to focus on Rhône varieties with two new Central Coast projects, The Language of Yes and Popelouchum; at the latter he is attempting to propagate 10,000 new grape varieties alongside favorites like Grenache Blanc and Grenache Gris.)

After Grahm was featured in 1989 on the cover of Wine Spectator dressed as the Lone (Rhône) Ranger, the Rhône Rangers non-profit membership group was created, which brought together Rhône-focused winemakers across America to educate the public about these wines.

Bob Lindquist of Qupé Wine Cellars was another important pioneer in California's move to Rhône varieties in the 1980s. He made the first Syrah in Santa Barbara in 1982, and was also the first winemaker to make a Syrah from the now-famed Bien Nacido Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley. 

Tablas Creek, founded in 1989 as a partnership between the Haas family of Vineyard Brands and the Perrins of Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, imported dozens of new clones of Rhône varieties from France to Paso Robles. Not only did they bring in vine cuttings, they built a grapevine nursery and planted an estate vineyard from these cuttings, beginning in 1994. 

Beyond its many other virtues, Syrah offers variety. Syrahs from Napa Valley and Paso Robles are often ripe, rich, and velvety in texture, with flavors that tend more to meat than lavender. Syrahs from the Sonoma Coast, Santa Maria, or the upper reaches of Mendocino Ridge generally exude more of the rotundone compound that gives the grape its peppery spice and earthy undertones. 

But really: why not try them all?

Mendocino County

2018 Drew Valenti Vineyard Mendocino Ridge Syrah ($41)

Drew specializes in high-elevation Pinot and Syrah and this is a shining example of how well the latter can do at elevation while the vines are exposed to the winds and cold thanks to their proximity to an unforgiving Pacific Ocean. Wild at heart, this wine is light, bright, and full of verve, with violet and white pepper accenting sinewy layers of anise, mint, game, and herb.

2021 Halcon Estate Yorkville Highlands Syrah ($80)

Owned by Syrah aficionados Pax Mahle and Baron Ziegler, Halcon Estate is one of the longtime go-to sites for the grape, where it’s planted at an elevation of 2,500 feet: above the fog, but fully exposed to the cooling effects and winds brought about by the ocean. It is one of the highest sites in the state, overlooking the Anderson Valley, and the wine shows classic elements of cool-climate Syrah ferocity: from black olive and tea to sizzling acidity. Mahle, who makes the wine, thinks it’s the finest Syrah vineyard in all of California. 

2021 Minus Tide Valenti Vineyard Mendocino Ridge Syrah ($42)

Valenti is dry farmed and quintessentially cool climate, and this 50 percent whole-cluster Syrah captures everything you want in such a wine—it’s aromatic, spicy, fresh, and structured, melds together flavors of cassis, herbes de Provence, and black olive with ease, and is remarkably delicious.

Napa Valley

2021 Bedrock Hudson Vineyard T-Block Carneros Syrah ($60)

While Morgan Twain-Peterson’s Bedrock Wine Co. is based in Sonoma Valley, for this wine he sources from one of the great Napa Valley sites for Syrah: Hudson. This is a dense, chewy, and meaty wine that nonetheless possesses grace and subtlety. Lavender, black olive, dried herb, and white pepper abound around softly flowing tannins and beguiling texture.

2020 Ram’s Gate Hyde Vineyard Carneros Syrah ($80)

The mighty Hyde is well known for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, of course, but grows exceptional Syrah, too, from grapes first planted in 1979. This was a warm, concentrated vintage and the wine is duly concentrated, with brooding dark fruit, meat, and savory herb flavors, yet it remains well-balanced with bright acidity.

2019 Shafer Relentless Napa Valley Syrah-Petite Sirah ($90)

While Shafer is best known for its Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon, its Syrah-dominant Relentless is an equally impressive study in power, intensity, and structure. Built for considerable aging, the wine’s juicy black fruit takes on a gamey element as the wine opens, with well-developed features of smoked meat, black pepper, and blueberry pie.

Sonoma County

2019 B. Wise Moon Mountain District Syrah ($65)

Grown above 1,000-feet elevation in iron-rich red soils (next door to the famed Monte Rosso Vineyard), this Syrah brims with black olive, cured meats, lavender, and herbs. Juicy and lengthy, it has a full-bodied intensity that finds balance in its treasure trove of acidity, brightness, and minerally texture.

2019 Crescere Estate Alexander Valley Syrah ($100)

Made by Napa Valley-based wine consultant Philippe Melka and his team, this burly Syrah is rich and decadent, with lush black fruit and menthol tobacco notes coalescing well with secondary characteristics of wild game, iron, and garrigue.

2021 DuMol Wild Mountainside Russian River Valley Syrah ($65)

This gorgeous wine is sourced from two cool-climate sites, Hoppe-Kelly Vineyard and Dutton-Gregori Vineyard, the Syrah grown from Alban, Estrella, and Syrah Noir clones. Violet and black olive waft from the glass, with a lengthy concentration of lavender and cassis. 

2022 Fat Dragon Dry Creek Valley Syrah ($70)

The inaugural release of this brand-new brand, which is made in miniscule amounts, this Syrah is grown on a 30-degree sloped hillside on the eastern side of the appellation, where it enjoys gravelly soils and abundant sun. Full-bodied and lush on the palate, it offers bold flavors of blueberry and fig, with savory undercurrents of white pepper, leather, tobacco, and bacon.

2022 Pax Sonoma Hillsides Syrah ($60)

A blend of several favored organically farmed sites—including Walker Vine Hill, Castelli-Knight Ranch, Griffin’s Lair, Felix, and Nellessen—all of which, as the name suggests, are sited on hillsides. The grapes are fermented whole cluster, crushed by foot, and given some degree of carbon maceration. The resulting wine is full of verve and earthy intensity.

2021 Peay Vineyards La Bruma Estate West Sonoma Coast Syrah ($80)

Peay’s estate vineyard on the extreme Sonoma Coast is one of the coldest vineyards in California planted to Syrah. This and its other Syrah cuvée show the white pepper, mineral, meaty, and earthy notes that predominate in such climatic conditions, amid a texture with depth and breadth.

2021 Puppione Intero Don Miguel Vineyard Russian River Valley Syrah ($48)

Made from 100 percent whole-cluster grapes, foot-treaded and native yeast-fermented, this wine is unfined, unfiltered, and aged for under a year in neutral French oak. All of which accentuates the cool-climate characteristics of the fruit, ranging from black and white pepper to smoked meat and herbes de Provence.

2016 Ramey Rodgers Creek Vineyard Petaluma Gap-Sonoma Coast Syrah ($65)

David Ramey is among California’s greatest interpreters of Syrah, and he crafts this wine from a cool site at 800-feet elevation on Sonoma Mountain fully exposed to the winds of the Petaluma Gap. Co-fermented with 8 percent Viognier, this displays aromas and flavors of smoked meat, green olive, white pepper, and other feral qualities while delivering ample layers of texture and complexity. 

Central Coast

2017 Alban Reva Estate Edna Valley Syrah ($177)

Grown in sandy soils, this Syrah is named for John Alban’s mother and typically co-fermented with a small amount of Viognier. Oyster shell is its signature, alongside fennel, graphite, and black fruit.

2022 Eberle Steinbeck Vineyard Estrella Clone Paso Robles Syrah ($42)

Eberle’s Steinbeck Vineyard, now planted with 40-year-old vines, remains a standard. A full-bodied wine with lovely aromatics and an enduring earthiness.

2020 Fulldraw Honey Bunny Templeton Gap Syrah ($90)

This new-ish producer is based in the Templeton Gap AVA on Paso Robles’ western side. The fruit comes from their 100-acre site next door to Booker Vineyard, from soils brimming with limestone, and is blended with 8 percent Mourvèdre. Burly and big, with power and concentration in spades, but also beautifully inviting aromatics and texture.

2021 La Pelle Bien Nacido Vineyard X Block Santa Maria Valley Syrah ($70)

Napa Valley-based winemaker Maayan Koschitzky uses 30 percent whole cluster with some stem inclusion and only 30 percent new French oak in this Syrah, keeping it lean and focused. It is deliciously peppery, earthy, and just beautifully balanced, with texture, brightness, and well-resolved tannins, and just a hint of bacon fat on the nose.

2021 The Language of Yes Rancho Réal Vineyard Santa Maria Valley Syrah ($45)

Legendary winemaker and original Rhône Ranger Randall Grahm co-ferments this exceptionally cool-climate Syrah with a small percentage of Viognier, employing 50 percent whole cluster to accentuate its essential earthiness and grasp of garrigue, cured meat, and black olive.

2021 Stolo Hillside Reserve San Luis Obispo Coast Syrah ($69)

This vineyard (planted originally by John Alban in 1998) in the hillsides of the coastal town of Cambria is planted in ancient limestone, where it grows alongside Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Raj Parr makes the wine, using 100 percent whole-cluster fermentation and neutral wooden fermenters. It’s as cool-climate as they come, feral, frenetic, and full of wild herb and pepper.

2021 Tablas Creek Adelaida District Syrah ($50)

Tablas Creek uses most of its Syrah in blends, but it also makes this bottling of solo Syrah in limited amounts when the variety shows to be exceptional on its own. This, its fourteenth bottling, is delightfully light and bright and full of juicy acidity, dotted with white pepper and iodine.

2021 Terre et Sang Bien Nacido Vineyard X Block Santa Maria Valley Syrah ($75)

In the hands of rising star winemaker Duncan Harmon, the famous Bien Nacido, known predominantly for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, makes a compelling case for Syrah, offering wild, feral qualities of garrigue and white pepper. This wine is well balanced, demure in style and will linger on your palate—and in your mind—well beyond the glass.