Pax Mahle: Going over to the dark side, seeing the light, chocolate and asparagus

[J_a_y_H_a_c_k]

@Pax Mahle

. . . 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 . . .

Drink more Syrah!

~Pax

Yeah!!! My favorites. I can’t wait for a JBV horizontal with yours, Justin’s and Mike’s.

@Pax Mahle

. . . 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

Thanks for the laugh. Now that you have ruined my reputation as a real SOB, how am I possibly going to continue practicing law.

[Pax_Mahle]

@Michael Davidson

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.

Michael

Michael,

Alder Springs is a wonderful site that is continentally influenced and yes it can be quite cool for their location…(as are all of the vineyards I use regardless of brand). The last few vintages (2009-2011) have struggled to get ripe @ Alder Springs due to vintage weather, but I anticipate that the new Pax wines will be more reminiscent of the old Pax wines than they are of an A-R wine…I prefer the grapes from that site when they are picked w/ a little higher sugar than we pick our Sonoma Coast Syrah vineyards…for instance Griffins Lair is smack dab in the heart of the Petaluma Wind Gap…so it would make total sense for us to label that as a Wind Gap Wine, but I feel like the 3 vintages of Griffins Lair Syrah that we bottled as Wind Gap wine, tasted more like a Pax wine than they did a Wind Gap wine…so rather than arbitrarily pick earlier to make it or Alder Springs fit the Wind Gap model…I’ll pick the vineyard when I feel it will make the best wine, and the resulting wines from these sites taste more like they should be labeled as a Pax wine…too me.

The same w/ Castelli-Knight Ranch…rather than arbitrarilly pick earlier, we will continue to pick that site when I feel it makes the best wine possible…at that point which is typically 14+abv, I believe that the result tastes more like a Pax Wine than a Wind Gap wine…so it is the same goal in all the sites regardless of location…the difference in the wines is solely driven by the sites ability to ripen the grapes…and our ability to get what we believe is the best expression from that site.

So in short the new Pax wines will start again with the same core vineyards I started with in 2000…which tend to make richer fuller wines than the vineyards we use for Wind Gap.

I look forward to you trying the wines…let me know if it makes sense then.

Thanks,

Drink more Syrah!

~Pax

[J_a_y_H_a_c_k]

@Pax Mahle

. . . so rather than arbitrarily pick earlier to make it or Alder Springs fit the Wind Gap model…I’ll pick the vineyard when I feel it will make the best wine, and the resulting wines from these sites taste more like they should be labeled as a Pax wine . . .

The same w/ Castelli-Knight Ranch…rather than arbitrarilly pick earlier, we will continue to pick that site when I feel it makes the best wine possible…at that point which is typically 14+abv, I believe that the result tastes more like a Pax Wine than a Wind Gap wine . . .

So in short the new Pax wines will start again with the same core vineyards I started with in 2000 . . .

Drink more Syrah!

~Pax

Great news

[Michael_Davidson]

Thanks for the info, Pax. I started drinking wine after the Pax label ended, so I don’t have a frame of reference there. I have enjoyed the Wind Gap Griffin’s Lair, though, so I will definitely give the new/old ones a try.

I do appreciate that you’re willing to make all kinds of wines. It’s easy to get caught up in dogma on the Internet.

I will say that I had a 2009 A-R Alder Ridge 18 months ago, and it definitely seemed like it was a bit under ripe. Holding on to my other bottle, hoping for a change for the better.

Michael

[Jody_Smith]

That’s awesome news Pax. I loved the old Pax wines and haven’t found anything else on the market that I’ve considered a suitable replacement. Will you be bringing back the AS Terraces? Are you setting up a new list to support the brand?

[Peter_Petersen]

@Pax Mahle

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…


~Pax

We get (and got) the point and “the perfect slice of blue fin tuna” works for me.

[J_Singleton]

Just drank my last Pax wine over the course of last night and tonight. 2005 Lauterbach and loved every minute of it. Can’t think of any Pax wine I didn’t like. Big fan of the cuvée Moriah. I hope that comes back. Question though, is there a Pax site to sign up for the mailing list?

[dcornutt]

Smart guy and great winemaker. Nice person to boot.

[Glenn_L_e_v_i_n_e]

I have had the pleasure of 25-30 old PAX bottles I guess and still have a dozen left maybe but we have loved every Wind Gap wine we have had. I cry about not owning a case of Yuen Chardonnay.

[John_Kight]

@J a y H a c k

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.

That’s funny, as I always use a very similar analogy–If you offer a child a choice between a chocolate milkshake and iced tea with his dinner, the child will always choose the millkshake. But which is the better drink? Which one tastes better with dinner? If you could only pick one of those to have with your dinner every night for the rest of your life, which would you choose? While of course there is a place in the world for chocolate milkshakes (and during summertime, I could easily drink one a week), 99% of the time you’d choose iced tea, especially in the summer, and also almost always with your food (regardless of the season) unless you happen to be having a hamburger…

The best part is that whenever I give that “spiel” to someone, they always have the same reaction–they look at me blankly and say “What is it with you and iced tea? Do you have some kind of iced tea fetish?” They completely miss my point…

[John_Kight]

@Peter Petersen

I truly do not understand the fascination with that vegetable, it is possibly also one of the worst items to match with wine.

I understand this is accepted wisdom and the actual experience of most people, but I just don’t seem to have a problem with pairing asparagus. I find it works just fine with almost any acidic white wine, from a lemony white Burgundy to Sauvignon Blanc to Chablis…even Champagne…

[Robert.Fleming]

@John Kight

@Peter Petersen

I truly do not understand the fascination with that vegetable, it is possibly also one of the worst items to match with wine.

I understand this is accepted wisdom and the actual experience of most people, but I just don’t seem to have a problem with pairing asparagus. I find it works just fine with almost any acidic white wine, from a lemony white Burgundy to Sauvignon Blanc to Chablis…even Champagne…

+1

[J_a_y_H_a_c_k]

I had a 2004 Agharta tonight with friends. Still miles to go before it peaks, but even with a pop and pour, it was great.