Wind Gap Syrah 'Armagh' 2012

Pax Mahle tells a tale of two Syrahs.

In the early 2000s, Pax found success with his dense and powerful expressions of Syrah – as then, a largely untapped variety for Sonoma and Mendocino – but after a dispute with a backer, Pax Wines was disbanded. Pax and his wife Pam began to explore the cooler areas of California, especially vineyards planted along the geological breaks in the coastal hills, which gave rise to the name of their new project: Wind Gap.

By taking cues from the iconic vignerons behind their favourite bottles (Northern Rhône titans such as Thierry Allemand, Marius Gentaz, and Jean-Louis Chave), the style of their wines became fresher and brighter, as Pax re-calibrated his approach to include a higher proportion of whole-clusters, neutral vessels, and as little intervention as possible.

Underlining Syrah’s essential place in California and Pax’s mastery of the variety, the highly fragrant 2012 Wind Gap ‘Armagh’ marries waves of incense-spiked fruit with gorgeous graphite minerality.

94 Points, Vinous.