History
Steve and Glenda Castelli farm the ranch with their daughter and son-in-law, Sheri and Rob Knight. They planted it in 1997, and since 2001 Pax has farmed the site and taken the Syrah and Grenache, building one of his longest-running Syrah designations; Wind Gap, Armida and Overshine have also bottled the ranch.
The Site
Nine acres in the Russian River Valley, planted across rolling slopes of rock-filled, bright orange clay with little topsoil, a stressful, low-vigor bed. The slopes face north and northeast, holding the site cooler than its warm neighborhood.
Vines and Blocks
Syrah and Grenache anchor the Pax designations, with about four acres of Pinot Noir, including Dijon 115, that Armida and Overshine bottle.
The Wines
Pax's Castelli-Knight Ranch Syrah, bottled since 2002, shows the cool-slope paradox of the site: dark fruit with peppery lift and structure from clay-stressed vines.