Community Tasting Note
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sid_loves_wine Likes this wine: 93 points
June 16, 2021 - Impressive stuff- I wasn't /entirely/ convinced that the combo of big alcoholic fruit and attempted elegance/complexity was fully realized, but it certainly came close. Very enjoyable and interesting, although with some idiosyncrasies that made it only so-so QPR for me around $50 (purchased at the Pax Winery.)
Deeply pitched fruit on the nose, broad-shouldered and although it's not exploding from the glass, it's still pretty pungent. It smells really "dense", a big wine of course but more concentrated and packed-in rather than blowsy or overripe. Lots of spiced plum, dark reddish currant, blackberry pie, maybe even apple pie (!) with that good dose of baking spice- the fruit and spice were accented with notes of black licorice and even a slightly musky tone, which evolved into a sort of a glazed meat thing that worked really well. Loved the nose, not crazy complex nor ultra rich, but definitely inviting.
The palate didn't have as much charm- it had some of that delicious dark fruit, not jammy and the heat was easily balanced by the ripeness and even acidity. At times the acidity felt miraculously well-integrated, while other times it felt awkwardly tart and didn't match the ripeness. I appreciated the energy in either case.
The biggest detractor for me here was the tannic structure. Even after 11 years, this was absolutely RIPPING with tannins, chalky and quite harsh as the fruit had relaxed slightly, but seemingly without the grip loosening at all. Weirdly, I had a really similar experience with the other older Pax wine I've tried, a 2012 Griffin's Lair Syrah- that was even harsher, with very faint fruit and an absolute sandpaper palate, like a super young Barolo even at 8 years old. Thankfully in this case, the tannins were tamed nicely with food, but the harsh structure was still an inharmonious part of an otherwise beautiful wine.1 person found this helpful 913 views
2 Comments
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Mark1npt commented:
6/17/21, 1:01 PM - Thanks for the update on this one, much appreciated! Cheers!
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sid_loves_wine commented:
6/17/21, 4:57 PM - For sure!