2007 Pax Syrah Kobler Family Vineyard
Vintage: 2007
Producer/Winery: Pax
Wine: Pax Syrah “Kobler Family Vineyard”
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Russian River Valley
Sub-Appellation: Green Valley
Varietal Composition: 92% Syrah 8% Viognier
Aging: 40% New French Oak
Climate: Maritime
Alcohol: 13.5 %
Winemaker: Pax Mahle
Imported By: N/A
Bottle Value: $65-$75 USD
Production: 195 cases
Where: Pax Wine Cellars When: July 2, 2009 With Whom: Tyler Thomas-current winemaker
Perspective: Cool climate driven Syrah with loads of black fruit balanced with savory components and well integrated tannins. Bad ass and delicious.
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity. Opaque ruby core with deep purple rim. No sediments or deposits.
Nose: Clean pronounced youthful aromas of plum, bacon fat, violets and gravel.
Palate: Dry, medium plus acidity, tannins, and body. Pronounced flavors of plum, blueberries, chocolate, black olives, anise, and stony mineral. Unctuous and lively with well-integrated tannins balanced with juicy fruit and gripping tannins. Fleshy viscosity with cool climate ripeness. Long finish.
Conclusion: Very good quality. Well balanced, concentrated with layers of complexity. Drink over the next 8 years.
2007 Pax Cuvee Moriah
Vintage: 2007
Producer/Winery: Pax
Wine: Cuvee Moriah
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Sonoma County
Varietal Composition: 80 % Grenache, 20 % Syrah and Counoise
Aging: 40% New French Oak
Climate: Maritime
Alcohol: 15.9 %
Winemaker: Pax Mahle
Imported By: N/A
Bottle Value: $55-$60 USD
Production: 500 cases
Where: Pax Wine Cellars When: July 2, 2009 With Whom: Tyler Thomas-current winemaker
Perspective: Silky yet firm cherry cola and strawberry with youthful tannins. I think this vintage will age longer than the 2004 that I tasted in May. Though it is drinking pretty well right now, not sure that I would exalt the patience and discipline.
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity, deep ruby core and rim. No deposits or sediments.
Nose: Clean, medium plus intensity with youthful aromas of red cherry, strawberry, violet and stones.
Palate: Dry, medium plus acidity, tannins, and alcohol. Medium bodied with medium plus intensity. Flavors of strawberry, cranberry, black cherry and pomegranate. Herbal elements of sweet spice, wet stones, supple tannins, well defined fruit, creamy viscosity and refreshing overall ripeness.
Conclusion: Very good quality, well balanced and concentrated. Long finish. Drink now up to next five years.
2007 Castro Ventusa “El Castro de Valtuille” Mencia Joven
Vintage: 2007
Producer/Winery: Bodegas y Vinedos Castro Ventosa
Wine: “El Castro de Valtuille” Mencia Joven
Country: Spain
Region: Castilla y Leon
Appellation: Bierzo DO
Varietal Composition: 100% Mencia
Aging: Joven/no oak
Climate: Continental
Alcohol: 14 %
Winemaker: N/A
Imported By: Boutique Wine Collection-Philadelphia, PA
Bottle Value: $15 USD
Production: > 1000
Where: Tucos Wine Bar- Davis, CA When: June 26, 2009 With Whom: Anh, Leslie, Vien, & Rob
Perspective: Clean and precise. Earthy mineral driven Mencia with clean rustic fruit structure. Its nice to see that Mencia is coming out of that “taste like cigar water” image that it had four years ago. This is a fun wine for grilling and eating cheese.
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity with dark ruby core and pale rim No deposits or sediment detected.
Nose: Clean with medium intensity, youthful with aromas of prunes, green herbs, black olives and underbrush.
Palate: Dry, medium acidity, low-medium unripe/green tannins, medium alcohol content and body. Pronounced flavors of black cherry, black currants, stony minerals, and tobacco. Medium finish.
Conclusion: Well structured, old world style, good quality, earthy with 3-5 more years aging potential.
Livermore Valley: Concannon Winery
One of my next stops in Livermore was to another of the region’s oldest wineries, Concannon Vineyards, established in 1883 by Irish immigrant James Concannon. When reading the stories of how far James traveled and what lengths he went through to establish his winery, you truly understand the meaning of determination. James Concannon was born in 1847 on a small island off the coast of Ireland. He came to the United States when he was 18 years old and began to work in the hotel business in Maine where he met his wife. The couple later moved to San Francisco and James franchised a rubber stamp business, which at the time was an exploding market. James was a devout Catholic and with close ties to the church was advised by the first Arch-Bishop of California that he should go into the wine business and produce sacramental wine for the church. With the earnings from the stamp trade James moved to Livermore Valley and purchased 47 acres of land to create his winery. Livermore Valley’s rocky and sandy soil composition was similar to that of Bordeaux and the Southern Rhone so naturally several clippings from France were taken and planted in Livermore. James was so pleased with the success of his vines that he spread his knowledge and techniques to the south into Mexico where he began to sell vine clippings as well as instruction manuals in Spanish on how to properly grow and maintain the vines. This was only the beginning of Concannon’s beneficial contributions to the wine industry.
In 1911 James Concannon died and the winery was left in the hands of his three sons, Thomas, Robert and Joseph. Robert and Joseph took over operations and Thomas became the winemaker. In 1950 Joseph hired America’s first technically trained female winemaker, Katherine Vajda from Hungary. Katherine, with an educational background in chemistry, studied under Professor Edmund Twight, the winemaker/chemist at Cresta Blanca Winery in Livermore. After Professor Twight retired she became winemaker until 1950 when she joined the Concannon team. At this time she was the first and only female winemaker in the United States. Katherine made the wines at Concannon for the next ten years while the Joseph’s two sons, Jim and Joe completed their education and military service. When the brothers returned home, both took their place in the family business. Joe looked after the vines and Jim cultivated his interest of making the juice. Jim mentored under Katherine for several years and took over as winemaker in 1960. In the 1970’s, Jim and his brother Joe began working with Drs. Alley, Olmo, and Goheen from UC Davis and together their drive led to the cultivation of the well known Clones 7, 8, and 11 Cabernet Sauvignon. The Clones were highly noted for their yields and quality. After being heat treated and studied at Davis the clones were cultivated in Napa Valley. Today these clones make up 80% of the Cabernet Sauvignon varietal in Napa.
Not only did Concannon Vineyards make great head way with Cabernet, in 1964 Concannon released the world’s first Petite Sirah. From that point on Petite Sirah became the major focus of Concannon’s wine program. Today as an advocate for the varietal, Jim is a charter member of PS I Love You (PS=Petite Sirah) and has hosted numerous seminars and events that promote the cultivation and production of Petite Sirah. Currently the winery produces several different Petite Sirahs: Captains Joe’s Reserve, Nina’s Cuvee, Heritage, Reserve and Limited Release. In 2004, Jim hired an Australian native, Adam Richardson, as winemaker. Richardson graduated from Charles Stuart University in New South Whales and holds a deep interest for Rhone style varietals making Livermore an ideal home to make great wines.
On my visit to the tasting room I headed straight for the Petite Sirah. As I mentioned in my first article on Livermore Valley, I recently purchased a bottle of the Limited Release and I liked it so much that it lead me to the tasting room to try others. It had been several years since I last tasted Concannon and I am glad that I decided to revisit them. I tried a lineup of three wines: 2005 Captain Joe’s Reserve, 2006 Nina’s Cuvee, and 2004 Heritage. All three wines showed great and each possessed a unique identity. Captain Joe’s, a tribute to Jim Concannon’s father, is a dark, rich, rustic style of Petite Sirah with a touch of Syrah added for structure. Nina’s Cuvee is a tribute to Jim’s mother and is 100 % Petite with more silky feminine dark fruit structure. The Heritage, 100% Petite Sirah, was a monster. This single vineyard wine, which comes from a small block in front of the winery, is full of spicy black fruits and has an intense terroir backbone of mineral and stone. A great wine for the cellar, the Heritage is only produced in ideal vintages; otherwise the fruits from this block are used in the other reserve wines. In addition to the Petite Sirah I also tasted the 2006 Zinfandel Reserve that I very much appreciated. This is my kind of Zin! Rich, bold, port like structure, with tar and mineral notes. The most impressive aspect of this wine is that is comes from vines that are only three years old. Vines at that age are still infants and are not noted for producing rustic complex fruit so early on – very impressive. I must say that after my visit to Livermore Valley, I have a better understanding and appreciation of the wines. I also learned quite a bit of history, which for me is one of the most interesting aspects of wine – the story.
Special thanks to Jim Concannon for providing the necessary information for me to write this article. See you next time I am in Livermore. Regards, Dylan.
2004 Concannon Heritage Petite Sirah
Vintage: 2004
Producer/Winery: Concannon
Wine: Heritage Petite Sirah
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Livermore Valley
Varietal Composition: 100% Petite Sirah
Aging: French/American Oak
Climate: Mediterranean
Alcohol: 14.5 %
Winemaker: Adam Richardson
Imported By: N/A
Bottle Value: $50 USD
Production: > 1000 cases
Where: Livermore Valley When: June 19, 2009 With Whom: Tasting Room Host
Perspective: Age worthy, bold, powerful, this wine displays every bit of it’s terroir in the aromas and mouth feel. You can taste the pebbles in this wine. Where is that steak I ordered!
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity with opaque purple core and rim No deposits or sediment detected.
Nose: Clean with pronounced intensity, youthful with aromas of pepper, tar, dark chocolate, raisins and blackberry. .
Palate: Dry, medium acidity, high unripe/green tannins, high alcohol content and body. Pronounced flavors of bramble, dark chocolate, blackberries, raisins, plum and dusty stones. Medium plus finish.
Conclusion: Well structured, high quality wine with 8-10 more years aging potential.
2006 Concannon Nina’s Cuvee Petite Sirah
Vintage: 2005
Producer/Winery: Concannon
Wine: Nina’s Cuvee Reserve Petite Sirah
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Livermore Valley
Varietal Composition: 100% Petite Sirah
Aging: French & American Oak Barrels
Climate: Mediterranean
Alcohol: 13%
Winemaker: Adam Richardson
Imported By: n/a
Bottle Value: $30 USD
Production: > 1500
Where: Livermore Valley When: June 19, 2009 With Whom: Tasting Room Host
Perspective: The feminine complement to Joe’s Petite Sirah. Silky, smooth and juicy wine that can be drunk on its own or with food, a blue vein cheese comes to mind.
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity with opaque ruby core and deep purple rim No deposits or sediment detected.
Nose: The nose was clean with pronounced intensity, youthful notes of sweet blackberry and ripe plum.
Palate: The palate was off-dry, medium acidity, medium plus body, tannins and alcohol, with pronounced reoccurring flavors of sweet ripe plum, blackberry, pomegranate, dried prunes, and black liquorices. Medium plus finish.
Conclusion: Good Quality, concentrated with 3-5 more years of aging potential.
2005 Concannon Captain Joe’s Reserve Petite Sirah
Vintage: 2005
Producer/Winery: Concannon
Wine: Captain Joe’s Reserve Petite Sirah
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Livermore Valley
Varietal Composition: 87% Petite Sirah and 13% Syrah
Aging: 23 months in French & American Oak Barrels
Climate: Mediterranean
Alcohol: 14.4%
Winemaker: Adam Richardson
Imported By: N/A
Bottle Value: $30 USD
Production: 1200 cases
Where: Livermore Valley When: June 19, 2009 With Whom: Tasting Room Host
Perspective: Firm, dense and spicy blend with a good balance of tannins and black fruits. Wish they served porterhouse in the tasting room. I would love to see how this wine ages.
Systematic Approach
Appearance: Clear clarity with opaque ruby core and deep purple rim. No deposits or sediment detected.
Nose: The nose was clean with medium plus intensity, youthful aromas of blackberry, black currants, tar and earthy mineral.
Palate: The palate was dry, medium acidity, medium plus body, tannins and alcohol, with pronounced flavors of sweet ripe plum, blackberry, black currants, leather, dark chocolate, white pepper and wet stones. Medium plus finish.
Conclusion: Good Quality, concentrated with 5 more years of aging potential.