2018 | Saxum | Paderewski Vineyard Paso Robles

Leading off the 2018s from bottle, the perfect 2018 Rocket Block is mostly Grenache but includes 13% Mourvèdre and 11% Syrah, aged 29-30 months in mostly 300-liter barrels, plenty being new, although you wouldn’t know that by tasting this elixir. As good as any Châteauneuf du Pape or Grenache-based wine out there, it offers a brilliant array of sweet kirsch and blackberry fruits as well as white pepper, garrigue, and sandalwood. Full-bodied, ultra-pure, flawlessly balanced, and one of those wines that brings sensational richness and intensity while at the same time staying weightless and elegant, it should deliver the goods any time over the coming 15+ years.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Primarily Grenache with smaller portions of Mataro (13%) and Syrah (11%), the 2018 Rocket Block James Berry Vineyard is denser and firmer than the toned-down 2019 iteration, offering loads of plush fruit. Medium ruby-purple, it's scented of roasted plums and wild berries with notes of blood orange, fallen leaves, dried flowers and spices. The medium to full-bodied palate has an abundance of grainy tannins, generous floral fruits and a long, flavorful finish.
  

• Vinous: Bright purple. An expansive, finely detailed bouquet evokes ripe red and blue fruits, sandalwood, candied flowers and exotic spices. Gently chewy and penetrating in the mouth, offering intense Chambord, blueberry, lavender pastille and spicecake flavors and building botanical herb and mineral nuances. Shows superb clarity and mineral lift on the strikingly long finish, which features polished tannins and reverberating blue fruit character.
  

Producer Information

Saxum Vineyards is a Californian wine producer in the Willow Creek District of Paso Robles. It is known for its portfolio of red blends produced from the key Rhône varieties: Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre.The estate was planted at the end of the 1980s with a majority of vines now over 40 years of age. Located a mere 10 miles (16km) from the coast, unearthed fossilized whale bones have been discovered here requiring a jack hammer to plant the vines. Planted throughout an undulating landscape the vineyards are located on slopes at an altitude of approximately 1200 feet (365 meters).Saxum's portfolio now features a collection of proprietary cuvées. The Rhône varieties reign supreme, but there are small plantings of other grapes like Zinfandel and Petite Sirah, which are used in small amounts. Strict yields inform the limited production of roughly 5500 cases annually.

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