2019 Saxum, James Berry, White, Paso Robles, Bottle (750ml)

JD97 "This estate fashions one of the best whites in the region, and the 2019 James Berry Vineyard White showed brilliantly. Honeyed quince, peach, crushed stone, flowers, and toasty notes all define the bouquet, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a rich, layered textured, good freshness, and a great finish. It can be drunk any time over the coming decade or more. The blend is 46% Grenache Blanc, 31% Roussanne, and 23% Chenin Blanc, brought up in 60% new French 600-liter barrels.I was able to taste three vintages from Saxum, the late release 2019s from bottle, the majority of the 2020 lineup from barrel, and a handful of 2021 barrel samples. As I wrote last year, the 2019s are just brilliant, ripe, hedonistic, magical wines, and these late releases only reinforce that opinion. Looking at the 2020s, this is clearly a challenging vintage, with many wines having subtle smoky nuances and firmer yet still ripe tannins. Justin commented that the lab numbers regarding smoke taint were very low, so I think these are safe wines that will offer plenty of pleasure, although this is not a vintage to hide in the cellar. The 2021s that I was able to taste were terrific, and this will clearly be another terrific vintage here. In addition, they�ve planted a new vineyard located just four miles off the Pacific, the Cayucos Ridge Vineyard, and I expect we�ll see more releases from that site in the future." JD Sep 2022

RP95+ "In its third iteration, the 2019 James Berry Vineyard White was matured in mostly new 600-liter demi-muids for 20 months on the lees. A blend of 46% Grenache Blanc, 31% Roussanne and 23% Chenin Blanc, it has lush quince paste and apple pie aromas with tones of jasmine and beeswax. The medium-bodied palate offers intense, ripe, savory fruits and bursts of fresh acidity, finishing with great length." EB for TWA May 2022