This year’s blend is composed of 63% Bosche Vineyard and 27% Sycamore Vineyard, aged
for 20 months in 64% new French oak. The wine is especially generous in this vintage, with
tannins that carry a distinctly chocolatey quality—almost matching the darkness of the oak
itself. Cocoa notes wrap around a rich core of blueberry and blackberry fruit, mingling with
espresso bean and a deeply perfumed character on the palate. Ripe fig notes emerge and
carry through the long, polished finish.

Minerally and detailed, with wet stones, graphite, dark cherries, blackcurrants, licorice, cocoa and black olives on the nose. Compact and seamless on the palate, with firm tannins and a dusty texture that leaves a chalky, minerally impression. Focused and balanced. Drink or hold.

Attractive nose of beautiful fruit, earth, spices and a nutty edge. Medium- to full-bodied and intense. It’s not overpowering but laser-focused, with firm tannins pushing through the long, bright and layered finish. Complex and delicious. Drink or hold.

A darkly fruited, graceful wine with structured tannins. Aromas of plums and wild blackberry bush, with juicy flavors of earth and black cherries on the palate. The finish is dry with fine and lingering tannins. Medium-bodied. Drink or hold.

An elegant, complex, medium-bodied and dark-fruited wine. Plum skin, dried cranberries, blackberries and baking spices on the nose. The palate shows flavors of bitter cacao and minerals with silky tannins. Drink or hold.

A scorched apple wood note runs from start to finish along the flanks of a core of steeped blackberry and boysenberry fruit. Licorice snap and tar details pump underneath. Definitely on the toasty/extracted side stylistically, but this offers a rare display of balanced power, depth and definition in this vintage. Best from 2025 through 2036. —J.M.

Offering a dark profile of boysenberry and blackberry fruit, this is fleshy and focused, with anise and apple wood, plus a hint of fruitcake, underscoring the finish. Shows length as the fruit easily keeps pace through the finish thanks to a modest hand with the toast. - J.M.

This is fairly dense in feel, but with energy amid its core of dark boysenberry and blackberry compote. Pretty notes of iris and licorice snap fill in as a strong spine of roasted apple wood provides support, with a subtle twinge of balsam wood along the edges. A strong effort. Drink now through 2037. —J.M.

The estate’s first of two Gran Selezione is born in La Porta vineyard, planted in 1998 with nine different clones of Sangiovese. Poor stony soil is naturally low yielding, giving small, concentrated clusters and berries. True to its signature, the 2022 pours deep, dense ruby. It is just as intense in aroma, dispersing coffee, potting soil, mushroom and black currants. Vigorous and full yet ultimately balanced, the palate boasts a juicy core of toothsome blackberries, and its firm, stony tannins are well polished. Stylised and easy to understand without sacrificing complexity or a certain sense of place, it even evokes a wild dustiness.

The 2022 Merlot from Mt. Brave is a gorgeous Mount Veeder release that's 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 22 months in 74% new French oak. Juicy red and black berries, leafy herbs, resinous notes, leather, baking spice, and hints of chocolate all emerge from the glass. Rich and medium to full-bodied, it offers a round, lush mouthfeel with ample mid-palate depth, impressive purity, and finesse. This beautifully made Merlot will drink well for 15+ years.

The 2022 La Jota Merlot W.S. Keyes Vineyard is a brilliant Howell Mountain release that showcases
the power of mountain fruit paired with a notable sense of elegance and finesse. A blend of 80%
Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon aged 22 months in 77% new French oak, this full-bodied wine
delivers a gorgeous array of red plums, dark cherries, dark chocolate, scorched earth, and baking
spices. It's concentrated and rich on the palate, yet maintains a beautifully balanced, focused, and
elegant mouthfeel. There are plenty of tannins here, but they're matched by the wine's
concentration, richness, and texture. This impressive effort from winemaker Chris Carpenter will
benefit from 3-5 years of bottle age and drink beautifully over the following 15 years

Some California Sauvignons fall short by trying to be all things to all people, but this one deftly balances a grassy, citrus-driven style with riper melon flavors. Medium-bodied but still quite fresh without turning overly tart, it is equally well suited to stand-alone sipping or enjoyment at the table with relatively light foods.

The 2023 Chardonnay Sevens Bench Vineyard is a bright golden yellow hue and is another lifted wine on the nose. It has more sunniness in the glass, with hints of corn kernel, smoky wet stones, pineapple rind, honeycomb, and tangerine. Medium to full-bodied with a more elegant, weightless feel on the palate, it floats delicately on the finish with notes of sweet citrus and hints of vanilla. Drink 2025-2032.

Another appellation wine, the 2023 Chardonnay Russian River Valley is a bright golden yellow color and offers notes of poached yellow apples, toasted spice, almond, chamomile, and lemon curd. The palate is full-bodied and elegant, as is characteristic of this vintage, and has an even and floating feel on the finish. It’s ripe and has a more pithy texture, but it’s well-detailed and more immediate. Well-suited for restaurants, it should drink well now or over the coming 5-6 years.

Another Oregon wine from the Eola-Amity Hills in the Willamette Valley, the 2023 Pinot Noir Warrior Princess is a bright ruby hue with a light watery rim. The nose opens to focused and mineral-inflected aromas of wet stones, petrichor, wild raspberries, fresh spices, and floral perfume. The palate is taut and focused, with finely coiled tannins, mouthwatering acidity, and a clean, tapering finish. Drink 2025-2033.

A bright ruby/magenta color, the 2023 Zinfandel Jolene's Vineyard is fresh with notes of wild berries, hints of blue and red fruits, and vanilla spice. The palate is more medium-bodied, with bright acidity and a refreshing feel. Drink 2025-2033.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Seascape Vineyard from the West Sonoma Coast pours a vivid red hue and is focused and bright on the nose with notes of cinnamon, bright cranberries, compact redcurrants, fresh herbs, and briny saline. Medium-bodied, it has great tension and a bright spine of acidity that is so refreshing in this vintage. A very pretty wine, it has a lot to offer now or over the coming 10-12 years.

From the Russian River Valley, the 2023 Pinot Noir Parsons Vineyard comes from the first vineyard picked and pours a jeweled ruby color. The nose delivers notes of cherry cordial, fresh, sappy forest herbs, fresh pine, and pressed flowers. It fills the palate with a more saturating feel, with a rounded midpalate, broader, ripe tannins, and a clean, fruity finish. It’s juicy and inviting but has some rich structure as well with a more forested feel. Drink 2025-2037.

The 2023 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench Vineyard comes from Knights Valley and displays a slightly deeper yellow/straw hue. It has a bit more of a sunny feel on the nose, with notes of fresh peach, melon, grapefruit, and beeswax. The palate has a more rounded and silky texture but remains medium-bodied, with hints of wet river rock on the finish. It’s a supple Sauvignon but very fresh and pretty. Drink 2025-2032.

The 2023 Chardonnay Kelli Ann Vineyard comes from a site in the Russian River Valley with gravelly soils and vines averaging 30 to 40 years old. The nose lifts with more flinty reduction, which I find adds a spice that I love to the wine. Offering notes of pure green apples, fresh flowers, citrus blossoms, and lime cordial, it should drink well over the next 810 years.

From the town of Annapolis in the West Sonoma Coast region, the 2022 Pinot Noir Sealift is a saturated red hue and is deep on the nose with notes of raspberry liqueur, deep, sappy herbs, dark stones, and hints of pepper spice. It fills the palate but also retains freshness, and it has a long, savory feel on the midpalate and finish that speaks to its coastal origins. Drink 2025-2032.

The 2022 Chardonnay Nine Barrel is from the top barrels of the vintage. A bright yellow color, this wine is meant to showcase a more hedonistic, opulent style, offering vast notes of grilled pineapple, apricot, smoky earth, custard, frangipane, and marmalade. The palate is full and decadent, with a full-bodied feel, a lush, ripe texture of golden fruits, and a ripe f inish. Drink 2025-2032.

Blackberry, blueberry, iodine and salty things, black olive, some lavender and dried herb. It’s medium-bodied, kind of dry and full of black olive and beef stock, the tannin is of excellent quality, ferrous and tightly knit, density of fruit is something, with some dried raspberry sweetness, offering a finish of excellent length. I like the structure and oomph of the wine, though it’s perhaps too saline for something that I’d go for more than a glass of. Just me maybe. Still, good win

The 2022 Chardonnay Bear Point is a straw/yellow hue and packs in more intensity on the nose, revealing notes of smoky wet stones, ripe peach, lemon oils, and salted pineapple. It’s fruity and ripe on the palate, with a full-bodied feel, and it has a kiss of sweet fruit through the finish. It has good definition and never feels cloying. Drink 2025-2035.

Mineral- and saline-edged aromas of flint, sliced lemon, grapefruit and lime zest. The palate is mid-weighted with bright acidity and a high-tension mouthfeel that finishes with underlying notes of yoghurt, orchard fruit and hazelnuts. A nicely balanced and focused chardonnay. Drink or hold.