- Practicing Organic
- 100% Syrah
- Sourced from Walker Vine Hill, Castelli-Knight Ranch, Griffins, Felix, Nellessen Vineyards (Sonoma County AVA)
- Combination of rocky decomposed soils and vines planted in sandy soils
- Label inspired by Northern Rhône’s Raymond Trollat’s wines
- 100% Whole-Cluster
- 10 months in neutral French Oak Puncheons & Concrete Tanks
- 12.5% abv
- Free SO2 – 20ppm
Info
Producer:
Vintage:
2022
Country:
United States
Region:
California
Appellation:
Sonoma
Variety:
Syrah
Color:
Red
Farming Practice:
Practicing Organic
Sizes Available
Full Bottle | US-PAX-20-22 | 12/750ml |
Tasting Notes
Sweet purple flowers, pink peppercorns, blueberry liqueur, white pepper, and exotic high toned fruit pastilles. Plush blue fruits on the pallet, spicy with high toned red fruits and swirling aromas of earth, umami and fresh summer fruits. Intense and vibrant, this is going to stay fresh and lively for many years into the future and improve with time in your cellar.
Press & Reviews
Jeb Dunnuck
Score
96
Date
2024-06-28
"Displaying a dark purple hue, the 2022 Syrah Sonoma-Hillsides is fermented and aged in concrete and takes on a fantastic chalky texture. Aromatically, it reveals notes of lavender, wild berries, black olives, and wet stone, and on the palate it offers ripe tannins with great, savory notes lasting long on its clean finish. Drink 0225-2037."
Vinous
Score
94+
Date
2024-02-13
"The 2022 Syrah Sonoma Hillsides is a blend of several sites. Aging in cement helps retain a good bit of freshness, and that gives this wine quite a different feel from the other Syrahs, all of which are aged in neutral oak. The 2022 doesn't have the immediacy or flashiness of the very best years, or of the other Syrahs in the range, but readers who can wait will find a wine of magnificent pedigree."
VinePair
Score
93
Date
2024-11-13
"Inspired by producers in the Northern Rhône, this Syrah is sourced from a series of cool-climate hillsides across Sonoma and crafted with elegance and restraint in mind. Aged in concrete tanks, it has an impressive body and structure, but still feels lively and energetic on the palate. Layers of smoked meat, olive tapenade, eucalyptus, and crushed black pepper define the nose. The palate offers notes of wild blackberries, cherries, and more of the grape's distinct savory character that avid Syrah-drinkers will love."
Wine Advocate
Score
93+
Date
2024-10-10
"The 2022 Syrah Sonoma Hillsides was fermented with whole clusters and matured for 10 months in concrete tanks. It's bursting with scents of blueberry liqueur, candied violets, powdered sugar and Castelvetrano olives. The medium-bodied palate shows off the prettier side of Syrah with its restrained ripeness, detail and perfume. It's structured by finely chalky tannins and bright acidity and has a long, floral finish. It will benefit from 2-3+ years in bottle."
REVIEWS FROM PAST VINTAGES
2023
Vinous
Score
98
Date
2025-01-30
"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."
2023
James Suckling
Score
96
Date
2025-02-13
"Very pure and perfumed aromas of blackberries, dark cherries, plums, cured meat, dried herbs and violets. The palate is supple, with seamlessly integrated tannins and bright acidity, giving flavors of mulberries, graphite, black olives and mocha. A serious northern Rhone-inspired syrah with a soft touch. Excellent. Drink or hold."
2021
Vinous
Score
98
Date
2023-01-24
2019
Vinous
Score
97
Date
2022-06-17