David Dorn

9.1

Lovely wine! — 6 days ago

Jason Phillips

9.0

Good, bold pinot. Coats the palate with a velvety texture. — a month ago

Bob McDonald

9.3

A beautiful top shelf Margaret River Cabernet drinking well at 16 years of age. Deep Ruby in colour. You would never know it was that age from the colour. My 2nd last bottle. A blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Malbec and 1% Cabernet Franc. Trademark herbaceous notes with mulberry and spice. 2008 was a hot and dry vintage in Margaret River. Severe winds at flowering drastically reduced the crop to the lowest yet recorded - under 1 tonne per acre. Shelley Anne named after Stuart Watson’s wife. Stuart is the chief winemaker and one of the owners. — 8 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

After reading the story of this producer, I inspired to try it. Especially, at $59.99 for a quality Napa Cabernet. These two brother’s are true pioneers of the Napa Valley. They do their own thing. Don’t follow trends and are not aggressive with their bottle price, nor do they really wish to. More rare than common in today’s Napa Cabernet market. I have a lot of respect for that and Napa Pioneers.

This also drinks pretty well for a young Napa Cabernet. I was expecting bigger/bolder based on write up. Not that this won’t benefit from cellaring.

The fruits are nicely ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, strawberries, cherries & blueberry hues. I was expecting more teeth. Think it is showing the finesse & balance of most 21’s I’ve had. Dark spice, grilled meats, light black pepper, barrel dust, dry tobacco, leather, savory herbaceousnes, moist clays, dry crushed rocks, cola, flower bouquet of red, blue & purple fresh flowers, rainfall acidity with a well balanced, softly structured, elegant finish that lasts just over a minute and lands crushed rocks and touch of spice.

It will be interesting to see if this shows more in 5 years.

Photos of; Smith Madrone vineyards and brothers Stuart and Charles Smith — 4 days ago

Shawn Thompson

9.0

From Jessica: The colour is lemony but not a lot of colour saturation. oOn the nose caramelized pineapple and apple pear, river rock breezy minerality. On the palate a pomelo brightness, good acidity with citrus and honey. — 9 months ago

GM Haggerty

9.0

Smooth finish, very slight herbal hints, wonderful with goat cheese…. And friends….. — a year ago

Jason Phillips

8.9

Refreshing brut. Pinot and Chardonnay blend with slight oxidation. — a month ago

Ali Copp

9.7

R Stuart wine club
One of our favorites we've had from them!
Smooth, subtle fruit tones.
Went great with steak night and cheese night — 6 months ago

Kate Parkerson

9.4

Smooth and easy. Enjoyed in Charlottesville VA — 9 months ago

Vanessa

9.3

Hello, California Syrah!!

From everything we’ve read, the Alder Springs Vineyard sounds like a truly majestic place.

It’s isolated in an undeveloped part of northern Mendocino County, situated in California’s North Coast region, where the steep and rugged terrain meet sweeping views of the ocean, bordered by rivers, redwoods, and snowcapped mountains… elevation stretches up to 1,800 feet above sea level.

It’s no wonder so many acclaimed producers, like Pax Mahle, source their fruit from here, where vines are sustainably farmed and cared for by Stuart Bewley. We were fortunate to visit Pax in Sebastopol in 2022, where we picked up this 2011 Cahto Ridge Alder Springs Vineyard Syrah. We’ve been waiting patiently to taste it. And here we are.

100% Syrah. Whole cluster fermented. Aged 12 months in neutral French oak barrels.

This wine is deep ruby trending towards garnet. The aromas are concentrated with ripe boysenberry, black cherry, blackcurrant, next to violet, black peppercorn, licorice, cured meat, peat moss, smoke, clove, leather and olive notes. On the palate, it is dry with medium (+) acidity, a medium (+) body, high alcohol (14.6% ABV), medium (+) fine-grained tannins, and a long, elegant finish.

It’s both elegant and wild all at the same time and we love it.

Cheers! — a year ago

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