| Winery | Special Designation | Vintage | Varietal | Rating | DateTasted | Notes | Buy Again? |
| Auteur | Russian River Valley | 2021 | Pinot Noir | 92 | 12/16/2025 | Classic red cherry, raspberry, cranberry notes with wet soil, biscuit, soft oak and baking spice.
Nice long finish, med body, high acid, med+ intensity and concentration. Overall, for a regional blend, this rocks. Auteur always puts out great Pinot Noir, but it is always prudent to try their regional blends. We have found that they can be the slow burning winners as opposed to the single vineyard vines. | y |
| Beringer | Single Vineyard, Marston Vineyard, Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley | 2018 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 94 | 12/15/2025 | This is a great single vineyard wine from Marston Vineyard up on Spring Mountain. It has lovely notes of blackberry, nectarine pit, raspberry, brioche, black plum, cocoa, cranberry and pomegranate.
The tannins are big but silky. The acid is high, concentration, body, intensity and finish are all high.
For a 7 year old Cabernet Sauv, this is showing no age. The tannins are still firm, there is very little bottle aged tertiary notes. This wine is going to hold for a long time. It is a wine to try for sure if you can get a hold of a bottle. It is an education. | y |
| Trader Joes | Grand Reserve, Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County Lot# 144 | 2023 | Cabernet Franc | 91 | 12/15/2025 | Back from a short trip and ready to get back to tastings. This wine from Sonoma Valley has some nice components. It has a medium+ intensity nose of blackberry, blueberry, cocoa, coffee, honeysuckle and red plum.
The acidity is nicely high, the tannins almost sizzle, the body is med+ as is the intensity, concentration and finish. It has a nice fullness in the mouth with plenty of flavor. | y |
| Trader Joes | Diamond Reserve, Rutherford, Napa Valley Lot# 11 | 2023 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 93 | 12/15/2025 | This opens up really tight. Very little nose showing. Gave it some time. And after a half hour it takes off. We got blackberry, raspberry, black plum, brioche, cream cheese, cassis and cocoa.
This has a lot of flavor with a predominance of brioche and berries. It has high acidity, med+ body, high concentration of flavors, med+ intensity and long finish. It has silky but firm tannins that leave a layer of berry flavors on the teeth. Really pleasant wine. | y |
| Lecole No 41 | Frenchtown, Columbia Valley | 2023 | Blend (Red Blend) | 90 | 12/13/2025 | For wine under $20 this is a steal. It has blackberry, cocoa, coffee, blueberry and Burnt sugar. It has teeth coating tannins, high acidity, long finish, med+ concentration and body. | y |
| Les Pallieres | Terrasse du Diable, Gigondas | 2022 | Rhone Blend | 97 | 12/12/2025 | Like the wine just below, this wine has a gorgeous, rich nose of blackberry, kirsch cherry, roasted game, dried herbs, raspberry jam and soil. Almost the same profile.
The palate has full tannins, high acid, full body, concentration and intensity. The finish is long.
Wow! Thats all we have to say.
The wine is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Clairette. We purchased this on Wine.com. | y |
| Raen | Royal St Robert Cuvee, Sonoma Coast | 2022 | Pinot Noir | 97 | 12/12/2025 | This is not just a pinot noir to sip with dinner or by itself, absent mindedly doing other things. No, this wine is an experience. We run into wines like this once in a while. The second you smell this one, you know you?re in for a treat. This wine demands attention.
The raspberry, blueberry and red cherry are so intense, bright and vibrant. There are spices, floral notes and citrus. It all balances so nicely. The palate is almost perfect.
As you smell it, you?re aware you?ve found a work of art. | y |
| Raen | Royal St Robert Cuvee, Sonoma Coast | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 96 | 12/12/2025 | A lovely, vibrant nose of raspberry, cherry, eucalyptus and lime leaf. With a few minutes of O2, however, it fades a bit. It begins to deconstruct, losing some of the immediate intensity. What is left is very good wine that seems a little fractured. Just a little.
The palate has a long finish, full body, high acid and great concentration. However, on the palate it has a few harsh notes. The berries on the nose don?t translate to the palate well.
Still, if you want to spend $80 dollars on a really interesting, lovely Pinot Noir, do so. You will not be disappointed. See below, for a slightly better wine, just a year older. | y |
| Rutherford Hill | Wine Makers Blend | 2022 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 95 | 12/12/2025 | Just picked this up from a Rutherford Hill employee who said we needed to try this. Very glad they did! This is lovely wine. You get notes of blackberry, kirsch cherry, cocoa, cassis, licorice, coffee and black currant.
The body, intensity and concentration are full. The acidity is med+, the finish long and the tannins med+.
The nose on this thing is opulent! The flavors are very nicely balanced. And this is a $68 dollar wine at the tasting room in Rutherford. | y |
| Les Pallieres | Racines, Gigondas | 2022 | Gigondas | 90 | 12/10/2025 | This wine has a gorgeous, rich nose of blackberry, kirsch cherry, roasted game, dried herbs, raspberry jam and soil.
The palate has full tannins, high acid, med+ body, concentration and intensity. The finish is medium.
The flavors are good but covered up by the tannins which actually have a mild bitterness to them. The nose gets a 96pts score, but the palate bitterness brings that score down quite a bit.
The wine is a blend of Grenache, Syra, Cinsault and Clairette. We purchased this on Wine.com. | y |
| Testarossa | Pisoni Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands Single Vineyard Series | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 93 | 12/9/2025 | Pie cherry, strawberry, lime freeze, wood stain, vanilla, brioche.
High acid, long finish, medium body, med+ tannins and medium concentration/intensity.
Yet again, another rather tart 2023 wine from Testarossa. But This one has more concentration than the two below. It is rather pretty, and the fruit almost holds up to the lime tartness of this wine. | n |
| Mark Anthony Wine & Spirits | St Hubert`s The Stag Paso Robles | 2022 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 90 | 12/8/2025 | This wine has a blackberry/blue berry nose with a hint of clove and fresh apple cider. You get cassis, baking spice and flint.
The palate is high acid, medium body and tannins, long finish, med+ concentration and intensity.
This is a great find for a holiday party. Impressive wine for under $30. It would go well with shawarma, curry, tandoori chicken and grilled lamb. | n |
| Testarossa | Fogstone, Santa Lucia Highlands Single Vineyard Series | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 90 | 12/8/2025 | Strawberry, sour cherry, raspberry, lime leaf and cranberry.
The acidity on this is really high, making this wine rather tart. The berry flavor concentration has trouble keeping up with that. The Finish, concentration and intensity are medium. The body is light.
Yah, a rather tart wine. But it has a nice concentration of fruit. Being this young, give this wine a few years for it to mature. | n |
| Testarossa | Tondre Grapefield, Santa Lucia Highlands Single Vineyard Series | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 91 | 12/8/2025 | Strawberry, cherry, raspberry, seasalt, brioche, green herbs, pine and tart lime leaf.
High acidity, light tannins, medium body, long finish, medium concentration and intensity.
This is a big, mouth-filling, tart wine. The tartness overpowers the fruit, unfortunately. But, like the Fogstone below, this wine is very young. It needs time. And thinking back on 2023, the year was so cool that it might have made getting the fruit perfectly ripe difficult down in Santa Lucia Highlands with the ocean so near. This will be interesting to try in a few years. | y |
| Wente Family Vineyards | Sandstone, Central Coast | 2022 | Merlot | 92 | 12/8/2025 | The Wente winery goes way back. They worked with George de Latour back in the early 1900s to produce communion wine for the Catholic church, and consequently, were both able to stay in the wine biz during prohibition. This one will be fun!
The nose is deep blue and red berry, very well integrated and intense. There is a hint of marzapane, cocoa, fresh hop flower and nectarine pit.
The body is med+. The finish is long. The concentration is high. The tannins are med-. The acidity is med+.
Wow, this merlot is really nice for the sub-$20 dollar price. It has lovely intensity and concentration of fruit. We would sip this after dinner. Forget about taking this one to a party to share! It would love grilled chicken though or pasta salad. It could handle some vinegar. | y |
| Daou | Paso Robles | 2023 | Sauvignon Blanc | 89 | 12/7/2025 | Not the most complex of noses. Citric lemon peel, Casaba melon, toasted caramel, pear and green weeds.
The body is medium, the intensity and length are med+. Complexity is medium. Acidity is high.
Daou shows up on the radar a lot lately. Their wines can be average to excellent. This one starts out more on the simple side and seems rather tight. But oddly, it needs time. It wakes up after really doing a mouth rinse with it, running it back and forth through your teeth. It really comes to life after that. And the caramel and melon really shine. | n |
| Dry Creek Valley | Sonoma County | 2023 | Fume Blanc | 89 | 12/7/2025 | Good minerality, apple, light lemon peel acidity, melon and pear.
The acidity on the palate is high, the concentration and intensity are medium as is the body. The finish is med+.
For an under $30 dollar Fume you get a lot for the money. A great wine to grab for heading off to a party or having at home with oysters, lobster or crab. | n |
| McIlroy | Reserve Vines & Roses Vineyard, Russian River Valley | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 88 | 12/7/2025 | This has a simple nose of classic strawberry, cherry, floral notes and dried herbs.
The palate shows medium body, intensity and concentration. The acidity is high and the finish is med+. There are dried herb notes with baking spices around a moderately intense berry palate. | n |
| Moret-Brealynn | Lakeview Vineyard, Russian River Valley Sonoma Coast | 2024 | Pinot Noir | 94 | 12/7/2025 | Lovely raspberry, strawberry, Ranier Cherry, cedar, clove, dried honeysuckle flower, pomegranate and cranberry.
The concentration of fruit on this wine is intense. The body is med+, the finish is long, the tannins are med+ and the acidity is high.
The nose is very nice, but the palate holds a special treat with its concentrated mouthful of fruit. There is a ton of fruit, spice, acidity and dried flowers all balanced beautifully. But this wine is very young. We can only imagine what this is going to taste like once it settles down. | y |
| Trader Joes | Grand Reserve, Estate, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County Lot# 138 | 2024 | Pinot Noir | 89 | 12/7/2025 | This wine has a bright cherry, carrot, strawberry, juniper, flinty and lime nose.
The palate is fairly intense with med+ concentration of fruits. The body is medium, acid high and med finish.
The flavors are pretty nice with high acid like lime leaf. It has a firm flavor of strawberry Jello. And though the flavors are good, it seems to lack a little cohesiveness on the palate. All said, it is another nice effort by TJs. | n |
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