(97+ points) Lastly, the 2019 La Sangre De Jonata (91% Syrah, 6% Petite Sirah, and 3% Viognier) sports a similar dense purple hue as well as stunning blueberry and blackberry fruits intermixed with awesome graphite, ground pepper, liquid violet, and iron-like aromas and flavors. Stunningly pure, full-bodied, and concentrated, it has the more focused, structured style of this estate front and center as well as incredible purity and a finish that won't quit. This is brilliant all the way, and while it has some appeal today, it will benefit from 3-4 years of bottle age and, I suspect, have two decades of overall longevity.

The 2019 La Sangre de Jonata is another stellar wine in this range. Bright, floral and full of energy, the 2019 is endowed with so much finesse and silkiness. There was a time not too long ago when La Sangre was forbidding in its youth. Thankfully, those days are long gone. The 2019 is all class. Give it a few years in the cellar first, though. By Antonio Galloni on June 2021

This inky, brooding wine is prime evidence of what Ballard Canyon is capable of with Syrah. Aromas combine cured meat, pungent dried herbs, tobacco leaf, and pepper with wild blueberry, forest, black olive, and elusive violet. Dense and concentrated on the palate, blueberry evolves to mulberry, layered with earth and a kick of orange peel. The mid-palate power takes time to unwind, so give this one some air, but the results are quite stunning.