2021 Heart Stone Vineyard

The 2021 Heart Stone Vineyard underwent a 22-month élevage in a mixture of new 300-l barrels, used foudre and concrete amphora. It opens with the most savory nose in the Saxum roster, showing aromas of black pepper, exotic spices, new leather and burning incense. The palate is suave and forward but also restrained, framed with mouth-watering acidity and concluding with powdery, grippy and persistent tannins. A beautiful, understated showing within a lineup of fairly massive wines, this should be a pleasure to drink over the coming decade and then some. It's a blend of 31% Grenache, 28% Syrah, 21% Graciano, 17% Mataro and 3% Petite Sirah.

A lush, sexy, forward beauty, the 2021 Heart Stone Vineyard is based on 31% Grenache, 28% Syrah, 21% Graciano, and the rest Mataro and Petite Sirah, with the blend shifting slightly due to replanting in the vineyard. As with all the ’21s here, it has a vivid purple hue as well as a great perfume of sweet red and blue fruits, spring flowers, ground pepper, and underbrush, but it’s on the palate where this beauty really shines. Layered, silky, and opulent, it’s not yet bottled, but my money is on this drinking nicely right out of the gate. The 2020s from Saxum are solid wines, although there are subtle signs of smoke in a few of the wines, and in general, the wines are narrower and more focused than normal, yet still nicely concentrated. At a high level, I think these are good to outstanding wines that will offer pleasure. Clearly the 2021s are a step up, and this is another brilliant vintage for winemaker Justin Smith.