Even keel, njce sweetness, not over the top. At $10 a bottle fantastic. — 9 years ago
Pretty even-keel. And lovely. — 10 years ago
Yes, yet another SIPA, this one a little different, German and Cluster hops, very nice, like this a lot — 10 years ago
Great Riesling — 11 years ago
Black Raspberry Merlot from Keel and Curley Winery. Plant City, Florida — 13 years ago
A night of Saxum and Booker comparisons. On the nose, bright, ripe; dark cherries, cherries, strawberries, cranberries, pomegranate, vanilla, cinnamon, red vines, crushed volcanic minerals, loamy top soil, dark Burgundian earthiness with dark red florals. The body is M with well resolved tannins. The fruits are bright; dark cherries, cherries, strawberries, cranberries & pomegranate. Vanilla, cinnamon, steeped fruit tea, red vines, cherry cola, crumbled, grey volcanic minerals, limestone chalkiness, stem inclusion, red roses, violets, cherry lifesavers, softened leather, bright red florals, brilliant fresh acidity and a long, lush, round, elegant and well polished finish. This will be even better in 2-3 years. Photos of; the James Berry Vineyard, barrel room, rock shale and Justin barrel tasting. Producer notes and history...Justin's father James was a veterinarian in a fast-growing suburb of San Diego who wanted to live in the countryside. He bought the James Berry Vineyard property when Smith was 10 years old and planted Chardonnay, because that's what he liked to drink. He sold the grapes to Fetzer and argued continually with Bobby Fetzer who wanted them farmed organically. Justin Smith does farm organically, but is not certified because he says, "my dad would keel over." James Smith still lives on the property, a few hundred yards away, and still farms a section of the vineyard for his own pleasure. But he has given over the majority of it to Justin, although that didn't happen for years. It was in the late 1980s, John Alban (Alban Vineyards) that convinced James Smith that the area in western Paso Robles was better for Rhône varieties than Chardonnay. Slowly over time, the Smiths pulled out Chardonnay and replanted to Mourvèdre, Viognier and Syrah. Justin did much of the early work. When he graduated from Cal Poly, he came back to manage the vineyard. As payment, his father gave him one block of Syrah. Justin and his college roommate Matt Trevisan started Linne Calodo winery with the fruit, making 300 cases in their first vintage. They later parted ways and Smith formed Saxum. In 2003, he built the garage winery under his house. By 2004 it was the most crowded building in the county. Villa Creek also made its wine there. At the time, they were all making about 500 cases of wine. Saxum is now well out of the garage and makes around 4500 cases give or take what conditions allow. Only a few hundred cases are not sold to their members and into marketplace, mostly in restaurants in California, New York and Chicago. Saxum's largest production wine is Broken Stones, a multi-vineyard blend that's heavily weighted towards Syrah and is a little more mineral driven. There most famous wine is the one Smith has been farming the longest, the James Berry Vineyard red blend. The stylist labels for Saxum's single vineyard wines are made by local artist Joe Kalionzes. Some change from time to time., but the Paderewski Vineyard, Joe scratched an eagle onto a rock that came from the vineyard and made a block print from it. For the Terry Hoage single vineyard wine, he painted a label and scratched some of the paint away to create a dragonfly because Terry Hoage has a big pond in his vineyard with lots of dragonflies. — 8 years ago
Even keel and light through the bottle, subtle, smooth berry flavors, however finish is lasting, tapering but uninspiring. Tannins are lacking in the beginning but awakened (2011) — 10 years ago
Wine at becco after letterman show
Dawn, Susan, Sue Curley and Marshak's — 11 years ago
Surprisingly good! Much much better than their blueberry wine. — 12 years ago
Smooth and very drinkable Pinot Noir from the mornington peninsular. — 9 years ago
Simple, light texture. The dark berries do appear quite quickly - which is quite refreshing. Doesn't linger long but definitely full of flavor when drinking. — 9 years ago
$20 a bit steep — 9 years ago
Beautiful color and balanced mango and session flavors. As far as fruity IPAs go thus is pretty good. — 9 years ago
Very nice, dessert selection — 10 years ago
Sweet and fruity, exactly what I expected and wanted. Yum. — 11 years ago
A lovely unique wine from Plant City, Fl. Also available in a sweeter version. — 12 years ago
Mark Flesher
Last time I had this one was February 2017, and knowing what I know now, I murdered BOTH bottles. This one poured a dirty maroon into the glass, with nose of mint and dirty raspberry. Hint of baking spice and cumin on the nose. The entry is raspberry with great acidity. Much more even keel with cheese and crackers than even the chicken dish it was first served with. The middle has a terroir driven note, hint of cola and herb, with still very nice acidity to the finish. This wine has had a bit of heat blow off over the last 16 months, but my interpretation of this wine is that it will really be a powerhouse in 2022 and beyond. — 7 years ago