Wind Gap Soif 2014
Wind Gap’s newest and just released wine is a winner. Meant for chilling and gulping with a large number of friends, there is nevertheless a serious backbone to this carbonic-macerated blend of Valdiguie, Negroamaro, Syrah, Dolcetto, and Mourvedre. That seriousness manifests in the significant tannin structure that gives the crunchy, bright fruit texture and a broader range of food pairing possibilities.
Carbonically macerated wines became somewhat of a fad amongst the natural wine crew. I must admit that I never fully adhered to this fad as I found many, if not most, of the wines belonged to an extremely narrow spectrum of flavours that often eviscerated any sense of place.
Pax Mahle’s Soif is a nice reminder that with the appropriate skill Carbonic Maceration can both produce easily-drinkable wine and retain a sense of place and varietal character. Ageing is in neutral oak, concrete eggs and steel, the combination of which I think provides brilliant structure, texture and freshness.
To top off the wonderful chuggable juicy fruit qualities of this wine – it is 11.5% ABV and so much more amenable to large glasses than your typical 14%+ California red.
Very Good+ to Excellent
$30 USD at the winery
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