Pax Mahle was pouring his Wind Gap line up in New York City last night and I had the pleasure of chatting with him for a while about whether he had, as some have said, finally seen the light or, as I suggested, gone over to the dark side. Seems like a very nice guy, by the way. Has he given up making wine with 14%+ ABV? No. So why does his current line up need fortification to get to that level (no, he does not actually fortify his wines)? Because that’s what the vineyards where his grapes come from give him. His current line up - a troussaut gris, chardonnay, pinot noir, grenache and syrah - are relatively light, elegant, no oak expressions of cold climate Sonoma County vineyards. I will ignore that other thing that tasted like bananas to me and that should be bannished to the wine by the glass menu at a vegan restaurant.
I found the syrah especially surprising. Although it had some flavor components of what I am used to in syrah, if I had tasted it blind, I would have guessed cold climate Cali pinot, and that was before he told me that the vineyards were in the coldest part of California grape growing areas. Compare and contrast the Aubert UV Pinot, which some of you have famously pegged as Cali Syrah when I poured it blind. The Wind Gap syrah is more pinot than the Aubert pinot. Not that one is better than the other. But the colder climate vineyards where he is currently getting his grapes generate a different kind of wine in the hands of a good winemaker who knows how to get the best out of the grapes he has to work with and does not try to make those grapes into something they are not. I decided that the perfect pairing for the Wind Gap syrah was pork tenderloin, something I never would have paired with, let’s say, the 2004 Pax Walker Vine Hills Syrah, more suitable for a good rib steak.
BUT do not dispair, yee lovers of the strong, flavorful wines. Pax told me that he has some warmer climate syrah (I think he said Castelli Knight Ranch) in barrel that will be released soon. Not to be confused with Wind Gap.
Oh yes, chocolate and asparagus. His explanation of the difference between the “old” Pax wines and the “new” Pax wines. Well, it goes like this. If you offer a child a choice between a chocolate bar and asparagus, the child will always choose the chocolate bar. But you can’t eat a chocolate bar every day (oh yeah?) and there are days when asparagus is just better than a chocolate bar. At age 61, I was pleased to be likened to a child. Made me feel young again.
Will the Castelli Knight Ranch be released under another label as a separate project because it isn’t a ‘wind gap’ located vineyard, or will it be Wind Gap labeled with the disclaimer that it is a different beast thasn the others?
I’ll happily stay away from green asparagus. I truly do not understand the fascination with that vegetable, it is possibly also one of the worst items to match with wine. So give me chocolate any and every day. It’s probably healthier anyway and is great with Banyuls.
Btw fresh white asparagus can actually be a treat when covered in hollandaise or butter, and you can match it with Grüner.
I do not recall what it was called but I think it was an oddball Spanish variety that I had never heard of. Someone said it was not for public release and it is not on their web site. Pax said that the bananas, which I found similar to what you get in Beaujolais Nouveau, was the result of a very volatile ester that is noticeable only in very fresh new wines, but disappears quickly. Not, as I had been previously told, due to the specific kind of non-indigenous years used in nouveau.
Although a sushi bar I used to frequent in Michigan did a roll with steamed asparagus, a hint of mayonnaise, and a generous application of smoked bonito flakes. It was an unbelievably good combo, and not difficult to pair with a mag of '07.
Jay, I appreciate your post. Your comment about Pax aand Aubert…it’s similar to what you would find if you opened up the 2010 Copain Baker Ranch, which is very pinot-like. It too is low in abv, is cool climate in nature. Like you, I have enjoyed the Pax wines of the original label, still hanging onto a bottle of an 05 Castelli-Knight that I would reload if some popped up, and you’ll find some similar weights and colors in the Wind Gap Castelli and Griffin’s bottlings, like the 2007 but these are not what Wind Gap are for me. The Armagh, which won’t be suitable for some, is cool climate, rugged, with olive and acid.
Anyway, I appreciate your perspective, to try the wines and support what’s in the bottle. Dig it.
Bacon and olives for me, with a little hint of black pepper. Personally I like the fact that we are seeing California syrahs hitting some of the same notes as the more traditional N. Rhone producers. The '10 Clary Ranch from Arnot-Roberts is even further in that direction, if that sort of thing is your bag.
Interesting, since the 07 Castelli-Knight (which I loved) came out under the Wind Gap label. There have been several posts over the past year that Pax has regained the rights to the “Pax” name, so my uninformed guess would be that it will come out as a Pax wine if not Wind Gap.
Yes he is. The new PAX will remain at the Forestville location while Wind Gap will move production to The Barlow in Sebastopol which is almost completed.
With all the craft breweries housed at Barlow I wonder if there is going to be Brett problems cropping up for the wineries?
There are of course other wines made by Pax and not in the Wind Gap style. Agharta is one, and I seem to recall talking to the Alder Springs Winery and them telling me Pax made their first vintage, although they currently list B. Kosuge as their winemaker on their web site.
Jay-The oddball white was our 2012 Arinto, a Portuguese varietal found in Vino Verde…we sell it by Keg only to restaurants in the bay area…I bottled some up for parties and personal consumption to share with our guests @ CorkBuzz to taste a little California bottled sunshine.
Brian T is of course on the money…While it is always a surprise to me to learn that people still don’t know that I own the Pax brand and always have, I still get asked the question. Believe me the last thing I want to do is keep that a secret…I’ve got wine to sell… The fact is that I am the sole owner now and have always been an owner…regardless of the bullsh*t you have probably heard barked into your telephone… of the Pax Brand. The 2010 Pax wines will be released this fall…our current line-up of vineyards includes Griffins Lair, Castelli-Knight Ranch, Alder Springs, James Berry and >>> oops gotta wait for the ink to dry on that one…
My analogy comparing a chocolate bar to an Asparagus was an attempt to make a point…I s’pose it works better if you compare a chocolate bar to the most perfect slice of raw blue fin tuna…give them both to anyone and ask which one tastes better…well the chocolate tastes better, but in the correct context the perfectly sliced piece of Tuna tastes better than the chocolate…(I’m sure lots of people don’t like raw tuna too) but side by side the chocolate ‘tastes’ better…hopefully all you asparagus haters get the point now…it isn’t about a green flavor it is about perception and context…
Also, I would be remiss if I did not mention the fact that Jay Hack is a much more pleasant man to talk to in person than he comes across on the interweb…
Pax, curious about how you’re going to divide the wines between Pax and Wind Gap. Alder Springs is pretty cool climate, at least judging by the A-R rendition. Sounds like Griffin’s Lair is switching labels this year? Look forward to trying the wines in any case.
![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
![[welldone.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/f/fc9709a841aa9379fd892a9cf0b535b05f473b86.gif "[welldone.gif]"){kind=small}
