2023 California Wine

As the winery writes, Andrew Murray has been singularly and nearly maniacally focused on crafting Syrah for 25 years. His Everyday (in French Syrah “Tous les Jours”) Syrah from Santa Ynez gives you a good idea of how... Read More

Vinous says this is “positively stellar” and we agree! From old vine sites like Bedrock, Lazy Dog, Monte Rosso and Montecillo, this pairs terrific concentration and fruit with outstanding energy and freshness. As Wine... Read More

Natural winemaker Chris Brockway and importer Tim Elenteny created Brea to bring low-intervention winemaking to traditional Cabernet grapes, making something authentic (but not weird!). They crush it with this Cabernet from a... Read More

Brick & Mortar is really a California sparkling house, meaning they grow a lot of cool-climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. When Pinot gets a bit too ripe for fizz, it’s perfect for elegant, pure, juicy still wines like this... Read More

Lower ABV We’re not even going to try to explain the premise behind Curt Schalchlin and Andrew Jones’s “Fable” approach to naming wines. But the wine in the bottle here is very good Chardonnay indeed, loaded... Read More

Hartford Court is easily one of the top “traditional” California Chard houses working today in the <$100 price point and this “village” bottling shows off their skill and ethic to a “T”.... Read More

From Napa’s great – soon to be legendary – 2023 vintage and a vineyard on Atlas Peak, this one-time bottling is built to enjoy tonight – 2030 or so. It’s 94% Cabernet Sauvignon with 3% each Petit... Read More

Organic/Bio Lower ABV Some varietal grapefruit and lemon citrus notes peek out here, but it’s the crunchy Granny Smith, crisp Golden Delicious and Honeydew melon aromas and flavors that hold center stage here. Nicely light... Read More

A collaboration between Master Sommelier Sara Floyd and the Pisoni Family, gives a nicely ripe and stylish Napa Cab that will shine at table. Plenty of concentration black cherry/berry fruit, and touches of clove, vanilla and... Read More

Another great release of this, our all-time best-selling premium California Chardonnay. As always, it blends fruit from across the Sonoma Coast AVA including Carneros, the southern Russian River and cooler sites to the west. As... Read More

Doug Margerum's flagship wine is a stunner in 2023! The 5 is for the Rhone grapes in the blend: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, and Counoise. The Vinous 94 point rave sums it up nicely: The 2023 Red Blend M5 is... Read More

Lower ABV Steve and Jill Klein Matthiasson make elegant, restrained, wines that still let you know they're from California. Like here in vibrant, generously ripe, Chardonnay from just outside Oak Knoll in Napa. Done in old... Read More

Organic/Bio Lower ABV This is seriously good California Chardonnay in a fun style from the very serious guys at Model Farm. The fruit is all from sites 1,000 feet or higher elevation, farmed organically, fermented with native... Read More

One of America's most popular premium Chardonnays is, as usual, a perfect blend of satisfying richness and food-friendly verve. It's a blend of fruit from cool Carneros and warmer St Helena fermented and aged in steel... Read More

Poppy Cabernet Paso Robles has been a customer favorite in the great value California Cab segment for years. And every time we pit it against a more expensive Cabernet in a blind tasting (one where tasters don’t know which... Read More

This wine is stupid good. The blend of ripeness, finesse, purity and flavor intensity would be expected in a great $50 Pinot Noir. For less than half that, the value here is nuts. As Vinous says in their 90 point write-up, this... Read More

Lower ABV Daniel Callan’s mission is to highlight the terroir of the Central Coast through the lens of old-vine field blends, like this wild combination of Valdiguié, Cinsault, Négrette, Zinfandel and Cabernet... Read More

Organic/Bio Intentionally mirroring the best of white Cotes du Rhone, this blend of 34% Viognier, 31% Marsanne, 20% Grenache Blanc, 13% Roussanne and 2% Clairette Blanche delivers energy and ripeness. As Wine Advocate said in... Read More

With only 800 cases produced and plenty of customer demand, we’re not sure why a wine that tastes so expensive is still available at such a great value price. But we’re certainly glad that’s the case! It’s... Read More

Yes, really. Classic, very high-quality, robust, Howell Mountain Cabernet at this price (vs. the $100+ usually). How? Neil Koch used his job as a Napa grape/wine broker to build great relationships with some of Napa’s top... Read More

The guys behind The Dude do it again, this time with a very well-crafted Cabernet from Stags Leap that sells for a LOT less than you'd expect once you taste it. The signature plushness and richness of Stags Leap is here along... Read More

Lower ABV No one is sure how this native grape from eastern France’s Jura region reached the USA, but it was once widely planted (if equally widely mis-identified) across California. Today the sole source for Trousseau Gris... Read More