Sean Thackrey’s wines have been on my radar for a while now and my goal to experience more of them even found a spot on a personal resolution list for 2010 (a list which I’m managing quite well with so far). I was excited to make it to a dinner hosted by Shea Coulson (from Just Grapes) which included a few bottles of Thackrey’s Orion that Shea had collected. The night also boasted a delicious meat-centric meal perfect for the wines (lamb stew, flank steak), and a few of other interesting bottles thrown in the mix. Five of us were left to eat, drink and banter – the proper recipe for enjoying wine.

Sean Thackrey is a winemaker from the elusive town of Bolinas California who takes a very traditional approach in most ways. For a background on Sean, check out Shea’s post on this line-up as well as this fantastic interview from CHOW. The Orion is made from a field blend of at least 11 grape varietals, some of which are total mysteries. We compared the 2006, 2005 and the 2004 of Orion and the 2004 of his Petite Sirah called Sirius. Unfortunately, there was something seriously wrong with the bottle of ’05 – it had little aromatics and hardly any flavour profile – possibly corked, but regardless, we all agreed that this particular bottle was not good. The ’06 was a concentrated monster. Interesting, complex and a little strange – it tasted like dark purple fruit with licorice and a green herby character. There was plenty of alcohol, tannin, oak, and acid, yet it all balanced out. The ’04 was a little lighter with softer tannins and actually quite pretty. It was similarly centered around purple fruit, yet with cherry and an earthy clay element that didn’t show (yet?) in the ’06. This was the best pairing with the lamb and was the first bottle to disappear. The wines were both very good, yet I’d be more capable of drinking the ’04 on a regular basis. The Orions cost about $75 in the States and closer to $150 once they get on BC shelves.

The ’04 Sirius was much darker, more peppery, and meaty than the Orion. The tannins were finer grained and more obvious. The flavour profile contained ripe red fruit and lots of savoury elements. This is less a wine for my tastes and didn’t quite have the allure of the Orion wines. $100ish in BC.

Arnot-Robert ’05 Syrah ‘Hudson Vineyard North Block’ was a departure from the denser wines of Thackrey. This Syrah had surprisingly high acid and managed to combine herbal and savoury characters with ripe red berry fruit (verging on candied) and finished with a chalky minerality. Very good as well. $100ish (?)

The refreshment course was composed of two wines I’d happily be stuck on a desert island with. COS ’07 Frappato ($27 USD) and Marcel Lapierre ’08 Morgon ($39 CDN). I was interested to see how these two would compare side by side as they both have a similar weight and a light, soft, strawberry deliciousness to them. The COS definitely had more herbaceous fresh basil characters. A higher power likely put these wines on the planet to make my life much more enjoyable.