2023 Aaron Sand And Stone Paso Robles Red

2023 Aaron Sand And Stone Paso Robles Red

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Aaron

Sand & Stone
Paso Robles Red 2023

2023 Aaron Sand And Stone Paso Robles Red

The 2023 Sand & Stone shows the raw side of western Paso Robles that Aaron Jackson refuses to polish away. Steep hillsides, limestone soils, dry-farmed vineyards, and constant coastal winds all leave their mark on this wine. With only 276 cases made, it carries a rare sense of focus and purpose. This is Paso Robles seen through the eyes of a winemaker who values identity far more than excess, and that approach earned the wine two separate 94-point scores.

Aaron Jackson blends with the patience of someone building structure instead of chasing impact. Grenache brings the drive and energy, Petite Sirah adds depth and backbone, Syrah layers in savory spice and texture, and Graciano sharpens the lift. Eighteen months in French oak puncheons lets everything settle gradually, preserving the mineral edge and freshness that the limestone soils naturally supply.

The name Sand & Stone is more than clever branding. It is the very blueprint for the wine. Paso’s sandy soils keep the brightness and aromatic lift alive, while the rocky limestone hillsides give the blend its structure and mineral core. Jackson works directly with that contrast, letting the vineyards shape the wine far more than the cellar does. That honest connection to place is what makes this 2023 vintage feel so complete, with every element perfectly balanced.

Aaron
Sand & Stone
Paso Robles Red 2023
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“Deep purple-hued, the 2023 Sand & Stone reveals meaty red, blue, and black fruits intermixed with asphalt, graphite, and peppery herbs. Based on 40% Grenache, 27% Syrah, 21% Petite Sirah, and 14% Graciano aged 18 months in 35% new French oak puncheons, it’s medium to full-bodied, broad, layered, and seamless on the palate, with ripe tannins and a beautiful finish. This is a ripe, sexy, opulent blend to drink over the coming 7-8 years. Drink 2025-2033.”

94 Points

2023 Hawk and Horse Cabernet Franc Red Hills Lake County

2023 Hawk and Horse Cabernet Franc Red Hills Lake County

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Hawk & Horse

Cabernet Franc 2023
Red Hills Estate

2023 Hawk and Horse Cabernet Franc Red Hills Lake County

Dick Peterson helped shape Napa Valley history, which is part of what makes Hawk & Horse so compelling. Instead of chasing modern trends, the estate remains committed to something increasingly rare: site-driven wines built around farming, measured winemaking, and longevity. Sourced entirely from organically and biodynamically farmed volcanic vineyards in the Red Hills AVA, the 2023 Hawk & Horse Cabernet Franc delivers remarkable depth while preserving the freshness, precision, and aromatic lift that make great Cabernet Franc so captivating.

What stands out most is how unapologetically authentic the wine feels. Nothing here seems engineered toward trends or critic formulas. The structure feels natural. The freshness feels earned. Volcanic minerality, crushed herbs, dark fruit, and floral notes are allowed to speak clearly rather than being polished into sameness. In a market crowded with interchangeable luxury reds, this wine still feels deeply connected to a vineyard, a farming philosophy, and the people behind it.

Very few wines at this price point put together a resume like this. Estate grown. Biodynamically farmed. Volcanic soils. Dick Peterson and Scott Harvey are behind the winemaking. A 96-point score from Tasting Panel. Yet none of those details would matter if the wine itself did not deliver emotionally, and this absolutely does. The 2023 Hawk & Horse Cabernet Franc carries the kind of energy and personality that makes you stop after the first sip and immediately go back for another.

Hawk & Horse
Cabernet Franc 2023
Red Hills Estate
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“Cab Franc grown on rocky soils at an elevation of 2,200 feet has quite the impact. Focused, with melting dark chocolate cherries, roasted coffee, blackberries, layered with candied violets. The palate is long, with exquisitely balanced tannins and a fine mineral tonality on the clean finish.”

96 Points

2022 Domaine du Chancelier Bourgogne Cote d'Or

2022 Domaine du Chancelier Bourgogne Cote d’Or

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Domaine du Chancelier 

Bourgogne Côte d’Or “
En Coulezain” Vieilles Vignes 2022

2022 Domaine du Chancelier Bourgogne Cote d'Or

Domaine du Chancelier’s “En Coulezain” Vieilles Vignes shows exactly why Bourgogne Côte d’Or has become so compelling lately. Sourced entirely from the region’s classic vineyards and drawn from old Pinot Noir vines, it delivers a level of depth and definition that feels a clear step above what you usually find at this price.

The “En Coulezain” site does most of the heavy lifting. Old vines naturally limit yields, building concentration and structure from the start, while the Côte d’Or soils add concentration and a fine mineral line. In the cellar, the approach stays refreshingly straightforward: preserve that natural balance and simply let the wine hold its shape.

In the glass, it all comes together beautifully. Bright red fruit, subtle earth, and a delicate mineral edge flow through with fresh acidity and a steady, composed structure. It is balanced and precise right away, opening quickly yet continuing to unfold with time in the glass.

Domaine du Chancelier 
Bourgogne Côte d’Or ”
En Coulezain” Vieilles Vignes 2022
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“The 2022 Domaine du Chancelier Bourgogne Côte d’Or “En Coulezain” Vieilles Vignes offers aromas of cherry cola intermixed with wild and exotic mushrooms, freshly turned earth, light wood spice, and crushed stone. On the palate, this linear-styled wine displays crunchy red fruits and red berries backed by saline minerality. It features focused, penetrating fruit, lively, mouth-quenching acidity, and vivid freshness. Elegant and complex, it is worthy of your attention and cellar.”

94 Points

2022 Saddleback Zinfandel Calistoga Napa Valley

2022 Saddleback Zinfandel Calistoga Napa Valley

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Saddleback

Zinfandel 2022
Calistoga, Napa Valley

2022 Saddleback Zinfandel Calistoga Napa Valley

Calistoga Zinfandel takes on a deeper, more resonant voice in the 2022 Saddleback Cellars offering, where old vines translate warmth and intensity into depth and composure. The fruit arrives with presence, carried by a steady sense of control that shapes power into structure, revealing a wine defined by precision, balance, and composed authority.

The foundation lies in carefully selected old-vine sites in Calistoga, where smaller yields concentrate flavor while preserving energy. These mature vines bring layered depth, capturing both the warmth of the valley floor and the lift that defines the region at its best. This interplay gives the wine its sense of movement, where richness and freshness exist in seamless alignment.

What emerges is a Zinfandel of striking precision, its structure holding firm from the first impression through a long, composed finish. That control reflects the influence of Nils Venge, who has spent decades shaping wines that balance power with poise. That legacy comes through in every detail in this release, directing intensity into a form that feels both enduring and complete.

Saddleback
Zinfandel 2022
Calistoga, Napa Valley
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“Plump and brooding, with deep and ripe blackberry, cassis, licorice and toasty spice flavors that finish with briary tannins. Drink now through 2032. 782 cases made.”

92 Points

2022 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

2022 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

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Ponzi Vineyard

Pinot Noir 2022
Laurelwood District
Willamette Valley

2022 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

Founded in 1970 by Dick and Nancy Ponzi, Ponzi Vineyards helped define modern Oregon wine. Long before the Willamette Valley earned global acclaim for Pinot Noir, the Ponzis believed in its potential. The 2022 Laurelwood District Pinot Noir carries that conviction forward with five decades devoted to place, precision, and an unwavering faith in Oregon’s promise.

Ponzi sources this wine predominantly from its estate vineyards Avellana, Aurora, and Linda Vista, all within the Laurelwood District. Beneath the vines lies fractured basalt capped by layers of windblown loess, soils that shape architecture as much as flavor. The wine delivers a fine mineral tension that speaks directly to its origin.

The cellar work sharpens that expression. Ten percent whole-cluster fermentation adds aromatic lift, while ten months in French oak refines the tannins and adds polish. Bottled by gravity to preserve purity, the wine finishes with focus and persistence, carrying Laurelwood’s signature tension from first impression to final note.

Ponzi Vineyard
Pinot Noir 2022
Laurelwood District
Willamette Valley
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“The 2022 bottling of the Ponzi entry-level Pinot Noir punches well above its weight class. The savoury and earth-driven elements buoy the dark fruits that predominate on the wine’s finish. Rich soil notes and dried violets introduce the effusively aromatic wine, with hints of smoky clove and freshly turned soil. The palate offers redolent muddled blackberries with mint, whisps of graphite mineral tones and a finish of warm spices.”

94 Points

2020 La Rasina Brunello di Montalcino Tuscany Italy

2020 La Rasina Brunello di Montalcino Tuscany Italy

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La Rasina

Brunello di Montalcino
Tuscany, Italy, 2020

2020 La Rasina Brunello di Montalcino Tuscany Italy

The 2020 La Rasina Brunello di Montalcino reflects precision under pressure. In a year that challenged even the most experienced growers, this wine emerged not through excess or generosity, but through balance achieved by careful decisions at every stage. Its poise reveals a producer deeply attuned to vineyard and vintage, crafting a Brunello that favors brilliance, elegance, and authenticity over overt power.

La Rasina’s vineyards, positioned on the northeastern slopes of Montalcino, played a critical role in navigating the season. Higher elevation, cooler nights, and steady air movement helped moderate the warmth of 2020, preserving freshness and structure. Farmed organically, these vines benefit from a philosophy that prioritizes observation and patience, allowing the vineyard’s natural balance to assert itself.

Aging for more than two years in traditional large oak casks, the wine settles into a rhythm defined by balance and clarity. The wood frames the fruit without dominating it, preserving the wine’s natural tension and energy. What emerges is a Brunello of regal confidence, layered and precise, offering immediate appeal alongside the promise of long-term reward.

La Rasina
Brunello di Montalcino
Tuscany, Italy, 2020
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“Some complexity here with smoky-woodland and licorice-root notes. Lead pencil is mixed with blood orange. The attack is tense and firm with crisp acidity and tight, chalky tannins. Yet, it’s ripe on the finish and quite warming. This will improve with age. Drink from 2025.”

93 Points

2016 The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard Calistoga

2016 The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard Calistoga

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The Grade

Cabernet Sauvignon
Winfield Vineyard
Calistoga 2016

2016 The Grade Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard Calistoga

Nearly a decade has passed since the fruit for this wine came in, and time has only sharpened its voice. The Grade’s 2016 Winfield Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is a composed, confident expression of Calistoga, shaped by an exceptional vintage and the measured hand of Thomas Rivers Brown. It is a wine that has fully grown into itself, revealing structure and authority.

Winfield Vineyard occupies a rare position in Calistoga, offering a level of definition and consistency more often associated with Napa’s most celebrated sites. Its interplay of elevation, parcel diversity, and natural balance gives the vineyard a pedigree that seasoned Cabernet drinkers immediately recognize and respect.

The 2016 Winfield Vineyard Cabernet now enters a compelling window, where maturity and vitality converge. Its structure remains intact, its energy undiminished, and its expression unmistakably clear. For those who value Cabernet at this stage, it offers the pleasure of readiness today alongside the promise of graceful evolution ahead.

The Grade
Cabernet Sauvignon
Winfield Vineyard
Calistoga 2016
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“Coming from the Winfield Vineyard in Calistoga, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon is another brilliant wine from the hands of winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown. This deep purple-colored effort boasts tons of blueberry and jammy blackberry fruits as well a medium to full-bodied, concentrated, yet elegant style on the palate. It has the purity of fruit that’s the hallmark of the vintage, ripe, sweet tannins, and no hard edges, and is already hard to resist.”

94 Points

2022 Duckhorn Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2022 Duckhorn Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

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Duckhorn

Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley 2022

2022 Duckhorn Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

From its earliest days, Duckhorn Vineyards has approached Napa Valley Cabernet not as a showpiece, but as a discipline. The 2022 vintage carries that philosophy forward, shaped by decades of experience and a conviction that greatness lies in proportion. Its strength comes from a deliberate balance of mountain and valley-floor fruit, yielding a wine that feels assured, composed, and unmistakably rooted in place.

That balance is established well before the cellar. By drawing from both mountain and valley-floor vineyards, the blend captures Napa Valley’s natural balance between structure and generosity. Mountain fruit brings linear intensity and aromatic lift, while valley-floor sites contribute breadth and texture. Together, they form a cohesive expression that feels layered and dimensional.

In the glass, the wine offers both immediacy and promise. Its structure and harmony invite enjoyment now, while its depth and freshness point to a long, measured evolution in the cellar. Every element feels deliberate, resulting in a wine that is authentic, grounded, and deeply satisfying from first impression through the finish.

Duckhorn
Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley 2022
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“Bright and refined with aromas of blackberries, cassis, fresh tobacco, crushed stones and dark chocolate. The palate is full-bodied and polished with fine tannins and vibrant fruit. Defined and balanced with a touch of minerality. Drink or hold.” 

92 Points

2022 Clos du Mont-Olivet Chateauneuf-du-Pape France

2022 Clos du Mont-Olivet Chateauneuf-du-Pape France

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Clos du Mont-Olivet

Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Rhone Valley, France 2022

2022 Clos du Mont-Olivet Chateauneuf-du-Pape France

Clos du Mont-Olivet tells a vivid story of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Founded in 1932, the estate has long pursued a holistic vision, assembling vineyard holdings across multiple lieux-dits to express the region’s full breadth in a single wine. The 2022 vintage carries this philosophy forward, offering a composed, layered portrait shaped by the collective voice of the region, where complexity emerges from diversity, balance, and an understanding of the terroir.

 

That vision is grounded in decades of thoughtful vineyard acquisitions, guided by traditional farming practices. By working parcels across the appellation, Clos du Mont-Olivet has built a living archive of Châteauneuf-du-Pape’s soils and exposures, allowing each site to contribute its own nuance. The result is a style defined by continuity and clarity, one that privileges harmony over immediacy.

A standout at our recent tasting, the 2022 Clos du Mont-Olivet Châteauneuf-du-Pape distinguished itself through balance and composure. Built around Grenache and supported by a full spectrum of traditional Rhône varieties, it carries depth without heaviness, unfolding with measured structure and confident authority.

Clos du Mont-Olivet
Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Rhone Valley, France 2022

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“The effusive nose of ripe raspberries and sour cherries pulls you into this concentrated and well-structured Chateauneuf. Firm core with plenty of licorice, black olives and spices, and a long, complex finish that’s beautifully supported by the expertly crafted tannins. A cuvee based on grenache made since 1932. Drinkable now, but best from 2025.”

94 Points

2022 Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2022 Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

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Post & Beam

Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley 2022

2022 Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

For generations, Far Niente has set a benchmark for Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, defined by precision, balance, and enduring quality. Post & Beam emerges from this celebrated lineage with a clear purpose, offering a refined yet accessible expression of Far Niente’s winemaking philosophy, rooted in measured experience.

The name Post & Beam draws inspiration from the historic barns at Nickel & Nickel, where lasting craftsmanship has long defined the Far Niente family’s approach to winegrowing. That same sense of strength and simplicity carries over into the 2022 vintage, which brings together fruit from multiple Napa Valley AVAs to form a Cabernet Sauvignon that speaks to both the region’s diversity and harmony.

The hallmark of the 2022 Post & Beam Cabernet Sauvignon is its texture. Ten months in French oak lend gentle structure and polish, allowing supple tannins and layers of dark fruit to unfold with ease. It offers immediate pleasure while retaining the structure and depth that define truly memorable Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

Post & Beam
Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley 2022
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“Richly appointed, with dark blue and purple fruit and a plush mouthfeel. Notes of plum liqueur and fresh roasted coffee grace the palate. Dark chocolate and anise entwine in the wine’s well-defined structure and satin-lined tannins. Spiced red tea and sandalwood engage with chocolate notes on the finish.”

95 Points