98pts James Suckling

So peppery, wild and dramatic, with aromas of beef crudo, turned earth, iron filings and black pepper. Structured for aging, yet so elegant and smooth, laced with filigreed tannins. Full-bodied but sleek, trim and compact. Stays fresh and lively in the glass. From organically grown grapes. Drinkable now, but best from 2030.

97pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Along with its other high-density counterparts, the 2022 Syrah The Great Places August James Stolpman is a dramatic step forward for Syrah in Santa Barbara County. It presents east-facing, stake-trained vines planted to 6,000 vines per acre, as well as a portion of interconnected vines layered via "provignage" from a single mother vine, with the plant material originating from Domaine Auguste Clape's pre-clonal holdings in the Reynard lieu-dit. The most initially introverted of The Great Places quartet, aromas of kelp, clove, espresso and purple flowers assemble slowly around a core of saturated dark fruits. The palate offers an intensity, concentration and floating quality that all seem to compound each other, forming a spellbinding texture that is altogether unique and deeply captivating. Among this textural intrigue, a simmering tension builds and releases into a fantastic finish of paradoxes: lifted yet grounded, floral yet meaty, complex yet straight to the point, all framed with supple, precise and ethereally grippy tannins that expand and linger. This is the only wine like it in Santa Barbara County—if not California—and due to its embryonic nature, I would strongly recommend holding off on popping corks, as difficult as that may prove. 110 cases were produced.