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The August 2026 Auction: Part 4
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1 / 2Lot 1450
Estimate: $140
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Collection name
Reviews
97JD
"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."
Region
White
Country
Score
"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."
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The fourth-largest wine producer in the world, led by California. American fine wine is defined by ripe, expressive fruit and a spirit of innovation, with Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon among the most sought-after wines globally.
A versatile Loire white of high acidity, making dry, sweet and sparkling wines of honey, quince and remarkable longevity.