California Wines

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A fresh, linear, eye-opening young wine that’s delicious and appetizing, and will develop more complexity and nuance with time in the bottle. Stunning aromas of black cherries, vibrant raspberries and cedary spices lead to mouthwatering red cherry, cranberry, star anise and mineral flavors that expand on the palate. Drinkable now and best from 2030.James Suckling | 98 JSI tasted the 2023 Pinot Noir Le Caprice as a sample just before it was bottled. It has slowly unfolding aromas of cranberry, red cherry, tea leaves and mint, becoming more floral as it airs in the glass. The palate is layered and concentrated with woodsy, earthy flavors evocative of a forest. It’s structured by silky tannins and vibrant acidity and boasts a flourish of spicy accents on the long finish. A total of 979 cases were made, and the wine will be released in April of 2025.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RP

Black cherries, currants, leather, savory herbs, and a beautiful sense of minerality all emerge from the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Tierra Rioja Vineyard. I love its remarkable purity and freshness, and on the palate, it’s full-bodied with flawless overall balance, building ripe tannins, plenty of mid-palate depth, and a great finish. It’s an incredibly structured, layered, impressive beauty that deserves 4-5 years of bottle age. Drink 2029-2049.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JD

Named after the owner’s first daughter, the 2023 Chardonnay Paige Cuvée is absolutely stunning and shows the incredible quality this site can achieve. Based on 100% Chardonnay and aged 16 months in 45% new French oak, it offers ripe orchard fruits, orange zest, mint, and white flowers in its incredibly impressive, complex, nuanced profile. It’s medium-bodied, with a concentrated, layered mouthfeel, integrated oak, and a salty finish. This is magical stuff that should evolve beautifully over the coming decade. Drink 2025-2035.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDLarry and MaryAnn Moone began producing this wine in 2015. The site is defined by its fabulous Goldridge soils and excellent drainage. The fruit is whole-cluster pressed, cold settled, and fermented and aged in Burgundy-style French oak barrels for roughly 16 months, with 45% new French oak and extended ageing sur lie. No malolactic fermentation is carried out. The wine is wonderfully expressive and focused, driven by a saline acid tension and a mineral profile of white pepper and white ash. Loads of citrus fruit and zest unfurl alongside lemon curd, with subtle tropical notes of underripe pineapple and white peach, framed by delicate white-floral tones. The finish is long, juicy and vibrantly expressive.Decanter Magazine | 95 DECThe 2023 Chardonnay Paige Cuvée Ritchie Vineyard is rich, ample and effusive. Tropical fruit, apricot, white flowers and tangerine peel give the 2023 its decidedly exotic feel. Although quite rich in its flavor profile, the 2023 is relatively light on its feet texturally. This fruit was picked on October 4. Stylistically, it’s a pretty rich Chardonnay. Time in the glass tempers some of that richness as the acids emerge.Vinous Media | 94 VM

This wine is truly excellent, showing a mineral-edged nose with pure energy and tension. Aromas of struck match, citrus blossoms, crushed stones and salted nuts. The palate is taut, with no hard edges and driving acidity that keeps you salivating for minutes. Closing in on perfection. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2023 Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard is airy, gracious and understated. It’s a wine of restraint, even for this house. Seamless and elegant in the glass, the Hyde is exquisitely finessed. Today, the 2023 is rather quiet, but time in bottle should help this really blossom. Aeration brings out the wine’s mid-palate oiliness and texture. The Hyde was aged 70% in barrel, 20% in foudre and 10% in concrete. The precision here is unreal.Vinous Media | 96 VMAn impressive white, with toasted fennel seed, honeysuckle, Opal apple and white peach flavors that are generous and plump, plus a drizzle of clover honey, salted toffee, lemon meringue and salted, toasted brioche. The fruit flavors take over on the finish, expanding in different directions with plenty of oomph and intensity. Drink now through 2036. 2,700 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

The 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Vixen Block Wildfoote Vineyard represents the last vintage Bevan received fruit from the site, following the purchase of the property by Shafer Vineyards. It’s a fitting send-off, delivering seamless, complex swirls of purple raspberries, fine suede and lovely floral notes. Full-bodied yet silky, it’s framed by fine-grained tannins, which wash gently across the long, generous finish. The wine neatly captures the complexity and textures of the Stags Leap District, wrapping the tannins in an elegant final bow.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPMore blue fruits, crème de cassis, liquid violets, and scorched earth, as well as a beautiful floral character, define the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Wildfoote Vineyard Vixen Block. It’s a full-bodied Cabernet with fine, polished tannins, flawless overall balance, and a blockbuster of a finish. This ripe, sexy wine still plays in the fresher, focused style of the vintage and is good for 20-25 years of prime drinking. Drink 2025-2050.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThe 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Wildfoote Vineyard Vixen Block is inky, deep and pliant. Rich blue fruit, licorice, spice, menthol and lavender are all dialed up in this unctuous, full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon from Russell Bevan. This is classic Stags Leap, done in a decidedly extroverted style. Sweet floral notes explode on the captivating finish.Vinous Media | 97 VM

The 2023 Chardonnay Sugar Shack needs a little shaking and coaxing to bring out delicate notes of Golden Delicious apples, lemon curd, lime jelly, and candle wax, plus nuances of baking bread and chopped almonds. The medium to full-bodied palate is creamy textured with soft acidity and bags of apple and citrus-inspired flavors, finishing with a zesty lift.The Wine Independent | 98 TWIThe 2023 Chardonnay Sugar Shack is redolent of apricot, chamomile, floral-infused honey, marzipan and dried flowers. Brisk acids lend energy. There’s a ton of phenolic depth and savory intensity here. This builds beautifully with time in the glass. Superb.Vinous Media | 96 VMBright and juicy, with wonderful purity to the core of mango puree, grilled lemon, Sumo citrus and tangerine flavors. Shows accents of ripe peach, dried pineapple, crème brûlée and bergamot, along with fresh lemon and lime zest. There’s a touch of sesame candy crunch on the finish. Drink now through 2037. 780 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

Crème de cassis, lead pencil, graphite, spice, and floral notes all emerge from the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard, which comes from two parcels in To Kalon and spent 22 months in 85% new French oak. Made by Jennifer Williams, this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon is full-bodied, deep, and layered, with a seamless profile, stunning mid-palate depth, and extraordinary length. It is a virtually perfect wine that already delivers incredible purity and richness yet has the structure to evolve gracefully for at least two decades. Drink 2030-2055.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThis is about as good as cabernet sauvignon gets in a cool, refined vintage from the famed To Kalon Vineyard. There is so much depth and intensity, yet no fat whatsoever. Aromas of black and blue fruit with spices, dried flowers, earth, wet stones, licorice, bay laurel and cedar. The palate is taut and focused, with a silky mouthfeel and tannins that melt on the palate. An exceptional bottling of New World cab that can rival the very best. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 99 JSFrom Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard, this wine combines Clone 4 (older block) and Clone 7 (vines roughly 10 years old), picked 10 days apart. Fermentation took place in stainless steel, followed by 22 months of ageing in 85% new French oak. Kudos to winemaker Jennifer Williams for her meticulous work alongside the Beckstoffer Vineyard crew – she is in the vineyard weekly, and every couple of days during harvest. This is a top-shelf wine. It is beautifully coiled, compact, and structured, showing a mix of red and black fruit, deep dark-berry character, and ironstone-laced minerality. The tannins soar – pixelated, expansive, broad, and endlessly building into an everlasting finish. Dynamic and refined, this is a striking expression of To Kalon. Porembski has mastered how to work this site, from vineyard to barrel program, and the result is a wine that thrills on release yet has the freshness and structure to cellar for deCades. Steve and Seanne Contursi purchased Tony Soter’s Little Creek Vineyard (about 2.4 hectares) in Coombsville in 2007, establishing Arrow&Branch in 2008.Decanter Magazine | 98 DECThe 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon is fabulous. Aromatic and transparent, with striking finesse, the To Kalon dazzles from start to finish. Deceptively medium in body, the 2023 is seriously impressive. Cool blue/purplish-toned fruit, lavender, licorice, spice and gravel soar from the glass. What a wine!Vinous Media | 97 VM

The 2024 Pinot Noir Sea Field is powerful and tightly wound. Dark-toned fruit, leather, cedar, spice, incense and dried rose petal infuse the 2024 with tons of complexity. This potent, deep Pinot Noir packs a tremendous punch. There’s a lot of wine here, but this needs time to soften and for the mid-palate to emerge. There’s a striking, crystalline purity here.Vinous Media | 95 VM

Spellbinding aromas of rose petals, strawberries, citrus and bark, with hints of lemongrass. Medium-bodied, tight and structured, this offers a captivating combination of linear intensity and calmness, so classy and sophisticated. A continued benchmark for American pinot noir. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2024 Pinot Noir Royal St. Robert is fabulous. Deeply pitched spice notes, blood orange, new leather, cedar and sweet pipe tobacco meld into a core of sweet red cherry fruit, mint, spice and cedar. This is one of the finest vintages of the Royal St. Robert I have ever tasted, going all the way back to Raen’s early days.Vinous Media | 94 VM