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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 93.2 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 287 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by melvinyeowq on 11/3/2023 & rated 91 points: Soo's birthday: My contribution. 76% Syrah, 18% Mourvedre, 6% Grenache and a whopping 16.7% alcohol. Most managed to identify this as an American Syrah. Still quite youthful, most guessed that this was around 10 years old. A huge, powerful wine with dark cherry fruit but in a restrained rather than hedonistic manner. Not my style but could drink this, unlike more modernist makers that swing towards more oak, extraction and blue fruit. (1145 views) | | | Tasted by travelme on 6/4/2023 & rated 98 points: This bottle was unbelievable once I got the cork that busted right near the bottom out. It had depth and complexity, great fruit, and was absolutely awesome from the pop and pour. One of the stars of the night. Absolutely loved it! (998 views) | | | Tasted by RSheldon on 4/7/2023 & rated 99 points: Garnet color, medium aroma, medium body, low tannins and modest acidity, "absolutely stunning" bright big candied personality with layers of raspberry, strawberry, watermelon, cranberry jelly and subtle candied cherry all intertwined with smoke, forrest floor and dried black currant. Who says Paso won't age!!! Likely will go another 3+ years. Shared at 52 birthday party, bought on release. 99 (!) (1144 views) | | | Tasted by SurLie on 11/25/2022 & rated 100 points: Might be the best bottle I’ve ever had (1346 views) | | | Tasted by Dagalaifus on 11/23/2022: In the glass, the wine was dark ruby. On the nose and palate, red fruits including cherry and raspberry with a hint of balsamic vinegar. The finish comes up too short. This was my first "WOW" wine, which I had the pleasure of tasting circa 2009. So, you can imagine how disappointed I was tasting this same wine in 2022. To be fair, I can't tell if the wine was way past its prime, or I sampled a bad bottle. Considering the recent and extraordinarily positive reviews of this wine, it's probably the latter. Still, this bottle cost me nearly $200 including shipping. For that price, I won't be buying it ever again. (1299 views) | | | Tasted by Geoff on 11/22/2022 & rated 96 points: Half hour decant. From magnum. Seductive nose of red and dark fruit, oak/smoke, grilled meats, secondary ad some tertiary notes. Sweet smooth tannins, smooth mouthfell, full bodied but not overpowering. Could not feel the 16.6% ABV. Long, Long finish. This wine has it all. Very pleasing. (957 views) | | | Tasted by BerkeleyBoy on 9/29/2022 & rated 94 points: Still going strong. (872 views) | | | Tasted by TMacpherson on 9/10/2022 & rated 99 points: A really outstanding bottle showing very well with no hint of old age. The nose is pure black fruit - raspberries and cherries. You definitely know at this point it’s going to be a very strong wine. The mouth is nearly identical - just gobs of dark black and blue fruit with a hint of vanilla oak. Incredibly well balanced. You don’t get a lot of heat from the fruit. The finish lasts a good 45-60 seconds. Well done! (978 views) | | | Tasted by NY Wino on 8/18/2022 & rated 95 points: Still drinking beautifully (823 views) | | | Tasted by travelme on 4/9/2022 & rated 96 points: Citizen1 and Cow Town nailed the general notes on this wine. Glad I bought three way back when. Looking forward to tasting this again soon. Magnificent after an hour and got a sweet note on the finish ad the fruit unfurled from the long slumber. This wine could go for quite a long while still. 16.6 ABV but with no heat whatsoever. Justin is an absolute wizard. (1154 views) | | | Tasted by citizen1 on 3/26/2022 & rated 97 points: Not past its prime. Pop and pour was fantastic. Another half an hour was even better. (1051 views) | | | Tasted by Cow Town on 2/7/2022 & rated 95 points: Winning wine in a blind lineup of wines with Mourvedre in them. It just seemed luxurious. Great mouthfeel, depth that you don't find in many wines. Seemed reasonably young (oldest guess was 2012), this wine is just a machine. At this rate, it seems like it could last another 15 years. (1164 views) | | | Tasted by hrazdiiv on 11/14/2021 & rated 93 points: Very much in line with the other reviews - this is a wonderful bottle that beautifully threads the needle between ripeness and subtlety. Color is now a medium purple-red, fairly translucent given the high percentage of Grenache in the blend. Decanted for about an hour. Nose is terrific - lots of the berry-like notes described by others but also rose petal, red licorice, maybe a little cinnamon as well. Tannins have been nicely sanded down, but are still lurking in the background. Palate was still full bodied with plenty of ripe fruit coming at you, well into the 20 second finish. Tasted among a really wonderful lineup of cabs, this really stood out. Still in peak drinking, in my opinion. (1327 views) | | | Tasted by peterk on 6/5/2021: Not my style of late; but this was lovely when paired with BBQ - a great match. Still singing, with a way to go. (1559 views) | | | Tasted by Rbtrage on 3/12/2021 & rated 93 points: Excellent! (1503 views) | | | Tasted by BGH247141 on 9/14/2020 & rated 93 points: Wonderful and full bodied. Complex notes of chocolate and warm berry. (1906 views) | | | Tasted by GrandeSerataFuori on 5/16/2020: Not sure of exact date. Notes from memory.
Possibly waited too long or maybe there was slight storage issues. Stewed dark fruit. Chocolate and cherries. A little bit of some herb......marjoram?? (1702 views) | | | Tasted by A.Hansen on 4/24/2020 & rated 94 points: Very tasty. Loaded with sweet red fruit - lots of cherries and raspberries with a touch of chocolate and spice. Hides its alcohol amazingly well. (2021 views) | | | Tasted by BerkeleyBoy on 2/8/2020 & rated 94 points: What an excellent wine. The flavors were well integrated although after about 15 seconds, the finish was hot and distracting. 16.6% alcohol. (2039 views) | | | Tasted by Cadby on 11/28/2019 & rated 94 points: This is one ripe bitch! Twisted and balanced, ready now...not on the downhill, but I can’t imagine it improving. (2120 views) | | | Tasted by IanAltman on 11/15/2019 & rated 95 points: Decanted for 90 minutes and served with steaks. Blockbuster rhone ranger. Dark fruit and then a bit of leather. Well-integrated tannins. This wine can cellar for I would imagine at least another decade. Glad we have more of it. (1972 views) | | | Tasted by mclanew on 9/3/2019 & rated 94 points: Popped and pour. At first this came off a little overdone and jammy. After about thirty minutes of air it settled in to a great groove. Overt nose of blackberrys, plums and smoked meats. The palate is rich and structured with a powerful inner core of red and black fruit, earth and spice culminating in a long long finish. I think this will get even better in five more years. (2052 views) | | | Tasted by Cailles on 7/13/2019 & rated 92 points: Saxum Tasting (Zurich): Comprehensive vertical tasting of several Saxum vineyards and a total of 24 wines. Most wines on a good to very good level in the 93 to 95 points range, just one on an exceptional (97+ points) level (James Berry Bone Rock 08). The consistency of the wine-making at Saxum is impressive but the tasting proofed to be rather a bit boring with less difference between the vineyards and vintages showing than expected and wished for. Heart Stone stood out a bit (bigger vats used, little new oak) thanks to more terroir expression. James Berry (mostly Grenache) and James Berry Bone Rock (elevated complexity and sexiness) were great. Best vintage (we tried wines from 2003 to 2011) is clearly the 2007 which produced the wines with the most depth.
TN: I'm a fan of Central Californian Grenache based wines as the combination of the warm climate with the elegance and light-footedness of grape seem a match made in heaven. Hence it is no wonder that the highest scores in this mini-vertical (6 vintages) went to the wines with the highest share of Grenache in the blend (perfect correlation!). The 2006 consists of 45% Grenache (rest Syrah, Mourvedre). This wine showed fairly complex with the typical James Berry profile of dark and red fruit with a herbal and earthy component. What made it inferior to other (younger) vintages was the elevated ripeness and a certain fatness. Not too extreme, still a good wine but not the vintage I would chase. Maybe some more years will make it more harmonious. Not decanted, no decant needed. (2622 views) | | | Tasted by sirpat00 on 6/22/2019 & rated 90 points: Grand Saxum Tasting (Gustav in Zurich): Grand Saxum tasting over several vineyeards and vintages. 23 wines in total. What was remarkable is the consistancy in aromatics across vintages and partly also across vineyards. Big and powerful wines but not without elegance. As a vintage 2007 stood out as exceptional across all vineyards. Booker stood out as the most consistent on a high level while James Berry vineyards had the highest range, but was oustanding in some vintages. The top wines for me were 2008 Bone Rock and Booker 2007.
Tasting note:
A rather darker fruit reminding me of coca cola candy - not sure if maybe some grubby winemaking? Palate ok but not more. (2002 views) | | | Tasted by Babik on 2/17/2019 & rated 97 points: My second Saxum with any significant age. Decanted and poured some in a glass as well; tasted 10 mins later. At first was like a watery young Cornas with acidity and quite fierce in general. Sat in decanter for two hours before trying again. From that point until 3 hours later (finally finished 5 hours after popping) it metamorphosed from younger Mourvèdre to Asian hoisin barbecue through southern barbecue with brine and fruit and just amazing. However, this might be end game (pun intended). Drink now. Wow; great stuff. (1910 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Josh Raynolds
Vinous, November/December 2008, IWC Issue #141
(Saxum Vineyards James Berry Vineyard Paso Robles (Pre-Arrival)) Subscribe to see review text. | By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (11/12/2009)
(Saxum James Berry Vineyard) Very dark red violet color; menthol, plum, berry nose; big, black fruit, berry, tar, hot palate; medium-plus finish 88 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Saxum Producer website
Justin Smith of Saxum Vineyards is focused on producing Syrah, Grenache, and Mataro based blends from the Willow Creek District of Paso Robles, California. We let our rocky calcareous soils, steep hillsides, and cooling ocean breezes speak through our wines by keeping our yields extremely low, picking fruit at the peak of ripeness, and using a minimalist approach in the cellar. We respect our land and farm everything sustainably without chemical fertilizers, herbicides, or pesticides. Because our vine’s roots penetrate deep through the fissures in the calcareous soil irrigation is rarely needed. Production is kept at 5000-6000 cases per year divided between 12 different cuvees, Broken Stones, Heart Stone Vineyard, James Berry Vineyard, James Berry Vineyard White, Booker Vineyards, Rocket Block, Bone Rock, Paderewski Vineyard, G2 Vineyard, Terry Hoage Vineyard, 4hearts Vineyard, and The Hexe.Red Rhone Blend Read about the different grapes used to produce red and white Rhone wines
On CellarTracker, Red Rhone Blend is the term for a wine consisting of two or more of the traditional 13 Southern Rhone grape varieties. Typically it's the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre or Cinsault grapes, but can also contain the Muscardin, Counoise, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Picpoul, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Picardan or Vaccarese grapes.
A 'food' wine. Lacking pretension and intended for local consumption with local cuisine. Lacks the 'high' notes on a Bordeaux, more earthy and sharper so often a better partner to meat dishes with a sauce. James Berry VineyardUnder the expert care of Justin Smith, James Berry Vineyard has quickly established itself as one of the premiere Rhône varietal vineyards in the state. The “Carlisle” block of James Berry Vineyard is located just below the terraced “Bone Rock” section and is planted to Syrah clones 470 and 174. Justin practices sustainable farming, using no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. And with the limestone laden soils and devigorating rootstock, the vines struggle, yielding small quantities of intensely flavored fruit.
Copyright © 2013 Carlisle Winery & Vineyards, all rights reserved
On weinlagen-infoUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Central Coasthttp://www.ccwinegrowers.org/links.html
http://www.discovercaliforniawines.com/regional-wine-organizations/
http://beveragetradenetwork.com/en/btn-academy/list-of-winegrowers-association-in-central-coast-california-274.htm
Central Coast AVA WikipediaPaso Robles Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance
Set apart by unique climate and geography, Paso Robles Wine Country provides prime growing conditions for more than 40 varietals planted over 26,000 acres of vineyards. More than 300 wineries craft this fruit into premium wines, gaining recognition around the world. The fruit, the wines and the distinct environment have quickly made Paso Robles California's third largest and fastest growing wine region. |
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