Pax Syrah, Sonoma Hillsides 2023 (750 ml)

100% Syrah
100% Whole-Cluster
Fermented in concrete with indigenous yeasts and bacterias
Aged in neutral 500L French Oak Puncheons & Concrete Vats
Free So2 @ bottling - 21 ppm
ABV 12.5%
3.7 pH 

98 Points - Galloni

The 2023 Syrah Sonoma Hillsides is one of the greatest wines I have tasted from Pax Mahle. The Hillsides is a blend of the best sites in the range, fermented in cement with whole clusters and also aged in cement. The long growing season resulted in a rich, heady wine with intense fruit and perfectly ripe tannins. Magnificent. 

- Antonio Galloni, Vinous, Jan 2025

Tasting Note:

Deep, inky purple hue, indicative of its concentration and intensity. Crazy aromatics with notes of sweet purple flowers, pink peppercorns, and blueberry liqueur. Hints of white pepper and exotic, high-toned fruit pastilles add layers of complexity. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied with a plush texture. Flavors of ripe blue fruits, such as blueberry and blackberry, are prominent, complemented by spicy nuances and high toned red fruits. The palate also reveals swirling aromas of earth, umami, and fresh summer fruits, contributing to its depth and vibrancy. The finish is long and persistent, with fine, chalky tannins and bright acidity providing structure and balance. A touch of salinity enhances its mouthwatering quality, inviting another sip.

Inspired by the Syrah based wines chiseled from the slopes of St Joseph, this 100% Syrah is becoming a reference point of its own for Syrah in the new world. Just like in St Joseph, we pulled this blend together from multiple sites and utilized the most interesting expositions of these meticulously cared for vineyards. Hillsides that show the freshness and vibrancy that Syrah can only achieve on cool-climate slopes.  Blended together in cubic concrete vats, this wine is the epitome of density, finesse, style and deliciousness.  This wine eschews the standard run-of-the-mill Syrah tropes, shapeless with blubber, oak and extraction that many people wrongly confuse with quality. This is pure Syrah at its finest.

Inspiration

One night, after an incredibly extensive tasting of great vintages from the cellar of Raymond Trollat, Pax expressed his interest in creating a wine label designed as an ode to the iconic French winemaker. Raymond immediately led him down to the cellar, shocking everyone by handing him a roll of his very own labels. Fortunately, someone more fluent in French quickly explained the miscommunication, and with that the label for the Sonoma Hillsides Syrah was decided.

In 2016 we finally felt that we had created a wine worthy of the label. Inspired by the flamboyant wines of St. Joseph, this 100% Syrah is one of the most exciting and compelling wines we have ever put into bottle. Just like in St. Joseph, we pulled this blend together from multiple sites and utilized the expositions of these hillside vineyards that show the freshness and vibrancy that Syrah can only achieve on cool-climate hillside slopes. This wine is decadent, delicious and all hyperbole aside, will probably be one of your favorite Syrahs after just one taste. It is without any doubt, one of our finest creations.

Vineyards

Classic winemaking begins first and foremost in the vineyard. The sites we select for the Sonoma Hillsides blend feature blocks with intriguing hillside expositions and cool climates influenced by the coastal wind gaps of Sonoma County. These vineyards are farmed using organic, sustainable and/or biodynamic methods and are among the most heralded sites of this region for growing Syrah. This blend typically includes wines vinified from Walker Vine Hill, Castelli-Knight Ranch, Griffins, Felix, Nellessen Vineyards, and perhaps others. The health of these vineyards allows us to use indigenous yeast for fermentation.

Whole Cluster

Stems are what separates a classically styled Syrah from a modern Syrah. We ferment all our Syrahs 100% Whole-Cluster. In wet vintages (2010 & 2011) or a vintage with a very poor set (2013) is the last time we were forced to destem a few small lots. Leaving the grapes on the clusters and gently crushing these whole clusters by foot creates a wine loaded with aromas and flavors achievable only by using these methods. These old school methods bring us one step closer to our goal of vinifying classically styled Syrahs from our new world terroirs.

Carbonic Maceration

The process of carbonic maceration adds another dimension that elevates the Sonoma Hillsides Syrah. This anaerobic fermentation process (fermentation without oxygen contact) is known for producing bright fruity flavors in wines, resulting in a certain vibrancy that harkens back to the Old World. We only use carbonic maceration on certain blocks from certain sites for this wine.

Concrete

We blend the components of the Sonoma Hillsides Syrah early in the year into a large concrete cubic tank. This allows the components to harmonize in a vessel that breathes less than an oak barrel and more than a stainless steel tank. This practice enables the wine to evolve slowly as all its parts synchronize to become a seamless expression of pure, vibrant Syrah from the cool-climate, hillside vineyard blocks of Sonoma County that we love.

Reception.

As soon as the very first vintage of this wine was released in 2017 it began making waves in the wine community and we were honored by a 100 point score by Antonio Galloni of Vinous in January 2018. As the vintages have come and gone, this blend is becoming a reference point of its own for Syrah in the New World. Each harvest brings its own unique challenges and in 2020, plagued by wildfire smoke, we were not able to put this wine into bottle. The following vintages have redeemed this disappointment in every way.

2023 featured a long, cool growing season where, as we watched the summer days grow ever shorter, we wondered whether some of our Syrah vineyards would ever fully ripen. Mild, even temperatures all throughout the California harvest are rare, and the heat spikes we normally see in August and September that bring up sugar levels simply never materialized. Much of our cool-climate Syrah continued to hang on the vine into November, eking out every last iota of phenolics (flavor compounds) during the long season. The results so far have been nothing short of spectacular, deeply layered and nuanced wines that must be tasted to be believed.

Pax Wines:

Pax and Pam moved to wine country in 1997 to create a lifestyle that involved working with wine. After a few years of tasting and sourcing wine from all over California, Pax finally found a vineyard in which he felt a kismet connection. Alder Springs Vineyard was the site and subsequently led to the launch of the PAX brand in 2000.

The Mahles made a bold choice by favoring the “untapped potential"  of the Syrah grape. Their entire lineup of wines came from cool climate vineyards in  Sonoma County and Mendocino. These wines were big, rich expressions of Syrah that went on to be highly sought after. As a result, Pax quickly became established as one of California’s premier producers of Syrah.

Presently, Pax Wines has evolved to include new and exciting varieties in addition to Syrah. This includes Trousseau Gris, Chenin Blanc, Gamay Noir, and Mission, along with a host of others recently planted. 

At Pax Wines winemaking is approached holistically. This is done by taking care to use only grapes that are grown without the use of chemicals and by hand making their wines with as little intervention as possible. As a result, all of their wines are crushed by foot and hand, and fermented using only natural yeasts. To taste these wines visit the urban winery and tasting room in the outdoor Barlow market in downtown Sebastopol.

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