Just received the Pax Spring mailer, and the email hit my inbox a couple of weeks ago. I’m wondering how many previous Pax list buyers were still buying? Personally, I am not. Given the price, the amount of time that I will have to let them sleep to be drinkable, and a pretty wide selection of really good wine competing for my dollars - at 60% the cost of Pax at minimum, I can’t justify it.
I’ll enjoy what I have, and maybe try to steal some at auction or some other aftermarket source.
I’m not buying anymore.
I have a ton of 05’s, and I think the pricing is too steep.
I bought a couple of 06’s - Griffins Lair, WVH but not much after 05. The prices are way too steep and like you say there is way too much out there in the $30 to $40 dollar range that i can enjoy now. I would like to Know how they’re selling ( not well if i had to guess) Joe has called my twice and seems to call others too.
Even though the 06 and 07 Pax’s are great, they are hard to buy given the prices. I did buy 06 Griffin’s and 06 Richards Family, but that’s it. These are really great wines, but just too expensive given what else is out there. Tasted through most of the 06’s in tank and 07’s in barrel with Tyler and all are outstanding wines. In the end I will probably pass as these usually can be found in stores after release at cost or a bit cheaper.
like everyone else i seek Pax away from their DTC list. love the wines still.
I’m really on the fence on this. Some of my favorite CA wines were Pax. I really respect Joe. I think he’s actually lowered prices a bit. I may bite, not sure.
I have too much wine.
I’m passing. Good stuff, but …
I’m passing too. I’ll end up buying them at retail where they’ll be the same price(or less) and not have to pay the shipping.
If you like them why not buy them on Winebid for 40 cents on the dollar?
On the subject of Pax, I visited with Pax Mahle today at Wind Gap Wines (his new label). After a marathon tasting of 19 current releases and barrel samples, I was very impressed at what he’s doing now. His winemaking style has changed since the days of very big wines he made in earlier years (the new wines are very low alcohol with the exception of a Booker Vineyard Grenache), although a number of his winemaking hallmarks remain, such as the considerable use of whole cluster fermentation.
His current releases are all really good - 2 Chards, a Pinot Gris (fermented on the skins so it’s got some color), Syrah, and Grenache. The '06 Sonoma Coast Syrah in particular is killer. And be on the lookout next year for the first Nebbiolo from Wind Gap, an '06 from Paso Robles - it’s also stunning. Prices are very reasonable for the quality. So I think if you’ve enjoyed the wines that Pax has made in the past, you should definitely check out his latest wines from Wind Gap.
Hope to have more detailed notes on all the wines soon…
there’s that too, and I have done that 
Nope
I took the day off work and joined Ken for the trip today (also visited Kathleen Inman and Moshin). It was definitely the right choice to take a day off. Pax pulled a number of samples of different Nebbiolo treatments he’s been trying as he learns how to make great Nebbiolo in California. He knew that Ken and I would be particularly interested because a winery where we work part time, Harrington, crushed their first Nebbiolo last summer, including one common vineyard. Ken and I (with four others) also plan to make a barrel of Nebbiolo in the upcoming harvest. Pax is also also expanding his repertoire in other interesting ways. It’s good to see that he and Wind Gap are off and running strong.
-Al
i prefer pax syrahs and grenache wine to almost all other California producers, including the likes of Carlisle and Saxum. they are, IMHO, incredibly well put together with such an incredible balance of big ripe fruit, interesting non-pure fruit characteristics (e.g., smoke, tar, spice, pepper, bacon, etc.) and most of all, with some exceptions given the vineyard, ACID. i probably would buy if i hadn’t loaded up on wine bid purchases over the past year. i mean, come on, '04 alder springs terraces for $35?! i love carlisle, and have more of that winery’s wines than any other, but if i want something that is satisfying on all dimensions, i reach, i mean, lug, that huge ass bottle out the fridge, scrape the label off on the racking coming out, and spend another 30 minutes trying to figure out how to open the damn wax top and drink some really really good PAX.
I really enjoy Pax, but at that price point, I would rather buy Lillian or Saxum.
I’m on the fence. I won’t spend for the high dollar bottles, but I may buy a few of the Walker Vine Hill this go around. I’ll also probably pick up a few of the Griffin’s later on. Their wines are very impressive to me.
Has anyone tasted any of the post-Pax Pax? Has the style changed at all?
What do we know yet about the quality of the “post-Pax” wines from Pax? My last visit there was a barrel tasting of the 06’s, which I think represents the last year that he took their wine to barrel. All of the pricing concerns aside, most would agree that the wines are fantastic. I’m curious to see what kind of imprint Tyler is making on these wines, or if he’s following the same formula that Pax started.
On the subject of Pax’s new venture, Wind Gap, I received the first mailer from them but did not pull the trigger. As others have said, he’s making some really interesting wine that seem stylistically different than what he did at Pax. When we were visiting Juan at Realm in the Fall of '06, Pax was there picking up a bunch of barrels. We said hello and wished him well, and he seemed pretty excited with his new venture. I’m anxious to try the Nebbiolo!
Doh…I guess when the bboard software suggests reviewing newer posts while I am writing mine, it’s a good idea to check it first! Great minds think alike! ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
I’m not a lister. What are the current prices like?
I’m still waiting to be really wowed by a Pax wine.
My bro is a faithful buyer, but like many in this thread, I too find there are better values out there.