Our interest was piqued in the Juris St. Laurent Selection 2004 when a staff member at K&L described the wine’s features as a cross between an earthy Pinot Noir and a meaty Syrah.  In case you’re curious, the varietal here is St. Laurent, which is widely produced in Austria.

Here’s what we found: aromas of leather and berries; a leathery palate but accompanied by the flavor of — and this is going to sound weird – warm blackberry sorbet; a mildly bitter finish reminiscent of the sensation you get from eating plum skin; and an interesting, lightly tannic, and full mouthfeel.

So was it truly a mix of Syrah and Pinot?  Certainly, the combination of berry scents, leatheriness, and a filling texture would support that notion.  But having now tried the wine, we’re more of the mind that what’s inside the bottle is so out-of-the-ordinary (at least by our standards) that it’s perhaps best appreciated in its own light.

Where to get it: We bought our bottle at K&L Wines in San Francisco.  They ship.  You can also find it using the Snooth search function under “Wine Locator” in the right hand column of this page, or by visiting wine-searcher.com or winezap.com.