Pax, Syrah Cuvee Keltie, Napa Valley

Similar to N. Rhone (Hermitage?)... all agreed and enjoyed

2003 vintage

lots of eucalyptus on the nose. Initially served a little warm, so it was very alcoholic on the palate and burned a little going down. Very floral nose with ripe and sweet fruit, but not quite jammy. After chilling for 45 minutes this was more fragrant on the nose, with more leather notes but still a little sharp on the nose. Around 1½ hours after decanting it was a little savory on the palate. Almost 3 hours after decanting this …

2003 vintage

Consistent with our last tasting note from a year ago. Drink up.

2007 vintage

We have another bottle, but based on this one, I don't have high hopes - brackish, tannic blackberry liqueur with little finesse. Think these need to be opened sooner rather than later.

2007 vintage

ripe and sweet fruit, almost honeydew melon, woodsy, leather, and eucalyptus. Beautiful, and starts to remind me of Côte-Rôtie. Still pretty full-bodied.

2003 vintage

Can't believe I'm saying this, but... Old World. Came out re-strained with a touch of funk. Needed 45 minutes to reveal itself and become, dare I say, elegant. Blind, I would have guessed on the richer side of Hermitage with a bit more bottle age.

2003 vintage

initially nose was fragrant but still restrained due to chilling, with smoke, ripe, black fruits, and woodsy notes, with almost a hint of violet. Amazing concentration here after more than 16 years, with tannins that have softened to the right level on the palate. Still going strong after 2 hours in the decanter.

2003 vintage

Pax is the Syrah master...what else can you say, no signs of age, ink black in the glass, explosive black fruit on the nose, the tannis are finning at this point but it’s all in balance. Drink now with serious air time, thru 2024.

2007 vintage

Pop and poor for one of Rose’s cooking classes, French bistro. While it seemed a bit flabby out of a Sarot glass they still had some life in Tanic structure in a standard Cabernet glass. Everyone enjoyed!

2003 vintage

Last bottle at age 15... a savory cool climate Syrah... lots of pastrami, pepper, black and boysenberry with lovely tannins and lively acidity providing a mouthwatering, long finish. Absolutely wonderful and would be interesting to taste this 15 years from now.

2003 vintage

Double decanted this magnum and drunk with lamb sliders, etc., at Eatery A DSM. This being the "old style Pax", I imagine this would be a polarizing wine. Not my style of syrah, ergo no score. Still, I can appreciate it for what it is. Big, very much still alive, and balanced. Kind of a "sweet tart" nose and a reasonably long finish. I call this a "slutty" wine, and indeed it has its charms. But for those looking for …

2003 vintage

This tastes more like 5 yrs old than 14. Rich ripe fruit with a strong palate penetration. Excellent balance with some savory nuances. Hint of oak supports the big structure. Long finish. Great stuff!

2003 vintage

PnP. Has a better balance than I might guess. A good way to end the night. 14.4%

2007 vintage

Small taste this afternoon, brief note from memory. Mature dark fruit aromas followed by pleasant enough flavors, but somewhat muted and tired. Clearly overshadowed by the Pax 2003 Castelli just tasted.

2003 vintage

These were the best of the cute Kelties

2003 vintage

From a beautiful embossed jeroboam. Inky purple. Aromas of creme de cassis, spearmint and game. Sour cherry predominates on the palate, with some black pepper and spice. Very powerful, very Syrah and very California. Great with the 9 spice lamb.

2003 vintage

Aerated into decanter. Nose is still huge permeating the wet bar area. The once multi-layered dark fruit characteristics have peaked for sure, yielding a narrowed profile, but still quite enjoyable.

2003 vintage

Drinkable, but not as flavorful as the 2005 Keltie consumed 9 months ago. This exhibited "wow" aromas and it took some time to open up on the palate. The tannins smoothed out with decanting. Overall not worth the original price, but not the dire falling off a cliff thoughts you might have from reading the last few reviews. However, I didn't drink this in its youth so I can't compare it to what it once was!

2003 vintage

Well, we live and learn. My last note from 2010 portrays a wine that's pretty different from the one I just drank. The grenache liqueur is nowhere to be found here; instead, we have blackberry liqueur, lavender, and a secondary saline note. It's drinkable, but I don't see any positive evolution from here, and I'm not sure that it has all that much longer before it goes off a cliff, so drink up.

2003 vintage

On opening I thought this was way past prime, unrecoverable -- over maybe 3 hours it actually opened up, showing vastly improved (but still not in-your-face) Pax fruit. I'd say it's time to drink up, but do be patient on opening with either a decant or long time in the glass to let it show.

2007 vintage

PNP and never really got going in any sort of way I enjoyed....too acidic and maybe austere is the word...I got very little of it b/c many friends but personally not moved

2003 vintage

Density beyond my current taste

2007 vintage

after several ripe, plummy Pax's I didn't have too much hope for this one, as I have been dutifully opening them to go through my remaining bottles. This one is a pleasant surprise. While ripe, rich and full, the most noticeable element is the nervy, vibrant acidity. This is evident on first taste and gets better with 30 minutes of air. The nose is on the sweeter side and reminds me of a Carlisle. The palate is impressive, and has …

2007 vintage

FIRST BOTTLE WAS CORKED. THIS TASTING HAD RICH DEEP BERRY RICH AND BLACK CHERRIES IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR WITH HINTS OF CHOCOLATE AND EARTHINESS. NICE COMPLEXITY AND A MEDIUM TO LONG FINISH.

2003 vintage

WIML90 Tasted non blind at a wine dinner. Purple color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of roasted meat, currants, plums and black berries. Flavors of currants, plums and berries. Medium acidity, medium tannin, full bodied. Drink or hold.

2007 vintage

Joan and I both didn't like this wine either the first or second night. It shows very austere with lots of tannin despite perfect storage since release. I know some people like the Pax wines and Arpy rates them high but they do nothing for me. Sorry to have two bottles of this one left. I'm going to sell my remaining Pax wines at auction that's for sure.

2003 vintage

Dark ruby color. Nose filled the room with rich fruit; blackberry, cherry, lavender, and pepper. Large scaled with plenty of traction, and a medium long finish. Plenty of tannin left for a handful more years, but drinking nicely now.

2003 vintage

Excellent syrah. Black fruit nose with smoked meat notes. The palate resonates the black fruit profile and meaty flavors combined with a strong olive profile. Super dark and briney. Tannins still provide texture but are calming a bit. I'll hold my next (last) bottle for 4 or 5 more years.

2007 vintage

deep and dark with a surprisingly strong acidiity that kept the wine from being heavy...large party only a small taste

2003 vintage

Not to go all Edward Bulwar-Lytton, but this was a dark and stormy wine. Inky purple color. A somewhat floral nose met with a wild melange of black raspberries, cassis, earth, briar, meat, spice and menthol (the first sip had an old-fashioned flavor of Nyquil). Chewy, very concentrated, still very tannic, and the tannins were coase. Nonetheless, it was not heavy. A wine to brood over on a dark night.

2003 vintage

The nose is a real stunner, very floral and quite unexpected given the purple-black color. On the palate, dense, resiny, and frankly coarse -- a disappointment given the promise of the aroma. I should note that others at the table liked it more than I did, and it certainly does not lack for concentration. A bit more polish, a little less alcohol, and this could have been a home run. Instead, in my book, it ended up being a long …

2003 vintage

This wine ended up being the perfect offering to pair with our Peking duck and other Chinese dishes at Sun Wah (da best). Blue fruit bursts from the glass - blueberry pancake syrup, a little bit of chocolate, a dash of cured meat and pink peppercorns. The palate sports more black and blue fruit, dark only slightly bitter chocolate. There was a dark liqueur quality, but the viscosity didn't match - which was nice. The finish had some heat going …

2003 vintage

Tim's 40th Birthday Pax Tasting (Issaquah, Washington) : Deep red and blue fruits were present on the nose followed by a sweet spice. The palate showed black cherry fruit, sweet spice, wild boar juices, stringy game and firm tannins. This was another very nice wine with lots of complex flavors. There some of the same flavors in this wine as all the others, however I found this one to be much more balanced than the others.

2003 vintage

we'll see if the cedar nose goes away with some air... a bit distracting in the first 45 minutes (opened, not decanted)

2003 vintage

Just had a 07 Walker, which was more approachable at this stage. I love this wine, but needs more time and/or more decanting.

2007 vintage

Inky. Blackberry, blueberry, bacon, ans smoke. This is just starting to open up but has plenty of life ahead.

2007 vintage

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Pax, Syrah Cuvee Keltie, Napa Valley

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