United States

“The 2023 Pinot Noir Richardson Ranch is floral and lifted in feel. Crushed flowers, red/purplish berry fruit, lavender, rose petal and spice grace this mid-weight Pinot. Brisk acids support the saline finish. Today, the Richardson Ranch comes across as one of the more understated wines in the range. There is something about this wine—and the other wines from this site I have tasted from other producers—that suggests Richardson Ranch is a very special site. Drinking window: 2026-2033. 94-96 points

My annual tasting at Littorai is always one of the highlights of the year because the wines encompass so many top vineyards in Sonoma County and Anderson Valley. Explorations of site. That’s what this range is all about.

Cold, foggy weather was a constant in the early part of 2023. Conditions were much more favorable in Anderson Valley, where growing degree days outpaced those of Sonoma through late May. “Between the Sonoma Coast and Anderson Valley, we had the most radically different start to the year as I have ever seen,” Ted Lemon noted. “It was the exact opposite of 2022.”

July saw high temperatures that were problematic in some spots, notably Savoy, where Lemon dropped a significant amount of the crop because of sunburn. Cluster sizing continued throughout August and September, leading to fruit being dropped as late as mid-September. The Pinots were picked starting on September 20 with Mays Canyon and Richardson Ranch. All the other Pinots were harvested in October, with two picks on November 1. For Chardonnay, harvest ran from October 10 to 25, almost a month later than 2022. The Pinots were vinified with a fair proportion of whole clusters. I tasted all the 2023s from tank, except for the Charles Heintz Chardonnay (which was still fermenting). Lemon opted to bottle a handful of Pinots early because of their softness. Those wines are reviewed from bottle.

There aren’t a lot of surprises with the bottled 2022s. The whites are soft and open-knit, as they were last year, while the Pinots are every bit as exciting as they were when I tasted them from barrel. Stem inclusion is in the 20% range for most Pinots, a bit less than in 2023. Stylistically, the 2022 are quite supple, while the 2023s are more delineated.”

Antonio Galloni, Vinous (01/25)

“The 2021 Syrah Sonoma Hillsides is towering and statuesque in bearing from the very first taste. I don’t think I have ever tasted a Sonoma Hillsides with this much finesse, this much purity. A wine of vertical energy, the Sonoma Hillsides possesses tremendous depth from start to finish. In many vintages the Hillsides leans towards a darker expression of Syrah. The 2021, on the other hand, is marked by more of a red/purplish fruit profile, with bright floral and citrus overtones that confer freshness. Once again, Pax Mahle made one of the truly epic wines of the year. His Sonoma Hillsides has been one of the very finest wines in Northern California for a number of years now. Drinking window: 2024-2036. 98 points

Pax Mahle presented a stellar set of new releases in our most recent tasting. The 2021s might be the most impressive set of wines I have ever tasted here. The Gamay Noirs show just how expressive this variety can be. But Syrah once again steals the show in a collection of wines that hit all the right notes. The wines are done with 100% stems, with fermentation in concrete or steel. Aging takes place in neutral 500-liter barrels for about ten months. The exception is the Sonoma Hillsides blend, which is aged in concrete. In my view, the Sonoma Hillsides is the most compelling wine in this range and one of Syrah’s great expressions in the United States. The 2021 is more than a worthy follow-up to previous vintages. Pax fans will also want to check out the new Halcon Estate, which Mahle purchased with Baron Ziegler of Marine Layer in 2021.”

Antonio Galloni, Vinous (08/23)