(65% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot, 10% cabernet franc and 5% petit verdot) Bright ruby-red. Black and blue fruits complicated by licorice, minerals and fresh herbs on the nose. Rich, broad, lush and full, even if it conveys less easy sweetness and personality today than the Muse (but then this is Seillan's Pauillac-style blend). Best today on the sensational back half, which features a major coating of suave tannins and an extremely long, aromatic finish that reverberates with subtle floral tones. Interestingly, this cabernet-based wine has a higher pH than the merlot-based Muse: 3.78 vs. 3.64.

Good bright ruby-red. Very ripe aromas of cassis, black cherry, graphite, iron, tobacco, menthol and spice cake. Lush and broad on entry, then sweeter and lusher in the middle palate than the Muse, with a captivating chocolatey quality and outstanding volume. As rich and full as this is, there's no sense of excess weight. Finishes long, dense and palate-saturating with major dusty tannins. This Pauillac is sweeter and deeper than Seillan's Pomerol, a comment on the comparative quality of cabernet sauvignon and merlot in California's North Coast.

Very pale yellow. Captivating nose combines exotic apricot, white plum, crushed rock, brown spices and a lavender high note. Intense and tactile on entry, then tightly coiled and penetrating in the middle, a step up over the foregoing wines in its impression of acid spine. Very powerful, youthfully aggressive, palate-staining wine that will need time in bottle to open and expand. Less thick and sweet at the same stage than the 2008, but at the same time more glycerol than the 2009 Gravel Bench. A great example of a California chardonnay, by which I mean that I would not mistake it for Burgundy in a blind tasting.

Based on 100% Chardonnay and aged six months in stainless steel vats, the 2024 Chardonnay
has a medium to light gold hue and offers exotic citrus, minty herbs, and subtle tropical flower
notes that all define this clean, crisp, remarkably pure Chardonnay. It puts on weight and richness
with time in the glass and is a terrific mix of both richness and freshness. This is a no-brainer
purchase for those who love Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, and I love its purity. Drink 2025-
2030.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Element is a beautifully finessed, polished wine. Sourced from a single block of 667 clone and aged in entirely neutral French oak, it's a seamless, polished wine with plush, ripe tannins and a good bit of dark-toned spice character to the dark berry fruit. A bitter tea leaf character accents the finish attractively. The Element impresses with its complexity.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Hapgood feels like it's wearing a beautiful ball gown—finesse for days. Graphite, tobacco and floral-tinged red fruit gain intensity as the 2023 releases its beguiling aromatics. A wine of suppleness and elegance, the Hapgood checks all the boxes, wrapped up on the close with an attractive bite of fine tannin.

The 2023 Pinot Noir 459 is a more overt wine within this range. Cheerful red
cherry fruit, spice and fresh berry tones stack up in a friendly, full-bodied
package without an iota of excess. Expressive and open-knit, this is a very
approachable o

The 2023 Chardonnay Machado offers more natural aromatic richness and expressiveness than the other Chardonnays in the range. Lifted notes of jasmine, tropical fruit, honeysuckle and apricot propel the perfumed, spice-laden finish. Precision, clarity and balance are, as expected, never called into question. Another excellent wine from Greg Brewer.

Spicy and tarry on the nose with nice brightness and a bit of earthy development. Old school palate is spicy and tarry with nice acidity, some spiciness and some softness on the mid-palate. Ripe, sweet blackcurrant fruit with some sweet cherry and strawberry notes. In a really nice place now, showing development.

Grippy and focused with sweet blackcurrant fruit and some appealing berry notes. Firmly structured with a hint of mint and some nice grippiness, with gravelly notes and tar and pepper savouriness on the finish. Still quite grippy.

Concentrated, dense and textural with sweet black cherry and blackberry fruit, showing some notes of tar, ash and spice. Real concentration here: rich, spicy, vivid and bold. There’s a real concentration to this wine, and a core of sweet fruit.

The second vintage of this cuvée from the Eola-Amity Hills, the 2022 Chardonnay Desiderium pours a bright straw hue and opens with flinty, matchstick reduction, citrus zest, lemon balm, and salted pineapple rind. Medium-bodied, it has refreshing acidity and subtle savory depth, with notes of almond and hints of beeswax. It’s well-balanced, with a clean, savory finish. Drink 2025-2033.

Preserved cherries, crushed violets, cedar, and rosemary emerge from the 2023 Pinot Noir Pas de Nom, which is a barrel selection and pours a ruby red color. Medium-bodied, it’s refined and expands across the palate, featuring velvety tannins, a refreshing spine of acidity, and a gently tapering finish. It's got fantastic potential to drink over the coming 15 or more years.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Estate Vineyard is forward and expressive, with bright, peppery spice jumping from the glass, followed by notes of wild raspberries, dusty earth, fresh flowers, and dried orange peel. The palate has lovely energy that propels this medium-bodied wine, with fine tannins and refreshing acidity. It's a total charmer now and should also improve over the next few years. Drink 2025-2040.

The 2022 Pinot Noir Upland is bright ruby and refined, with spiced cherry, dark stone, anise, and purple flowers. Refreshing and structured, it offers mouthwatering acidity and citrus notes layered with baked earth. Drink 2025-2040.

A darker red color, the 2022 Pinot Noir Gran Moraine Vineyard is ripe with brooding notes of licorice, black cherries, dark spices, and fresh sage. The palate offers a lovely contrast, with some red-fruited highlights shining through, along with medium to full-bodied richness, a silky, even texture, and refreshing underlying acidity to keep it light on its feet. It’s a very appealing wine to drink over the next decade.

Discreet spices and black fruits on the nose, traces of tar and ironstone rock. Firm and full-bodied with richness and generosity, the finish lasting a long time. Fine balance and still has quite a grip of tannin. 

Full-bodied and deeply structured but retains a sense of handsome elegance, with deep flavors of blackberry and cherry laced with mineral, cedar and orange peel notes as this builds richness and tension toward broad-shouldered tannins. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2027 through 2035

This 2023 Pinot Noir comes from a scenic site on the southern part of the appellation, set on rocky sand soils. The wine was stored in 40% new French oak for 14 months, this offers salty soils alongside bright guava and red currant fruit flavors with Mandarin orange zest. Drink 2025-2038

The 2023 ‘Skycrest’ is a hillside Vineyard that is set on a mountain hillside with southwestern aspect that delivers small berries. The Pinot Noir was stored in 20% new French oak for 14 months before bottling. Light tannins frame a really good core of bright red and dark fruits with damp/salty soil accents. Enjoy now and over the next ten plus years. Drink 2025-2038

The 2023 ‘Edmeades’ is the first vineyard planted in this region. Shades of dark truffle shavings and peat moss fill the nose alongside wild blackberry. The palate is soft and robust with refined tannins and beautiful damp earth tones. Enjoy now and over the next ten plus years. Drink 2025-2038

The 2023 ‘Grand Moraine’ comes from several clonal selections and was given a small amount of whole cluster fermentation. Stored in 30% new French oak for 14 months before bottling, this offers red currants and tobacco on the nose alongside stony minerals. This is marvelously salty stuff with loads of bright red fruits alongside compost and orange peel notes. Drink 2025-2040

Salted lime, yuzu and Meyer lemon flavors are fresh and focused on a crisp and smooth frame, with aromatic pops of green tea, wild fennel, lemon basil and lemon balm. The intensity crescendos on the long, mouthwatering finish. Drink now through 2039.—M.W.

Offers a wonderfully savory thread of dried lemon thyme, sweetgrass and shiso leaf, with a core of Key lime, orange sherbet and lemon curd. There’s plenty of acidity and a succulent texture, with concentration and generosity on the finish. Drink now.—M.W.

Sleek and handsomely structured, this Pinot’s vibrant energy highlights its raspberry, blueberry, crushed stone and savory briar notes as this builds detail toward refined tannins. Drink now through 2033.