David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

Bruce Phillips and his wife were pouring their 2021. Talked w/ him at length. Very nice couple.

The 2021 showed well young with room for improving with 10-25 years in bottle and beyond. It showed some evolution, wasn’t all primary. Elegant, very well balanced with excellent structure and finish. Drink 2033-45 properly stored.

The general Napa consensus on 2022 vintage will be a story of did you pick before or after the 6 days of extreme heat during the harvest window. One producer told me his would add 5% of 2023 to some of his 2022’s, which is allowed. He mentioned that he was going to add 15%. But, I think he just misspoke? Get ready for an amazing 2023 vintage from Napa. It was a cooler, not hot-hot, which was a near perfect growing season for long slow even ripening. Some say a vintage of a lifetime and others would only say exceptional.

The Saturday-Sunday Pavilion tasting at Pebble Beach Food & Wine is an excellent four hours to taste a lot wine, taste curated dishes from chefs from all over the country and meet the people behind the bottle. These short ribs were one of the top two or three things I tasted at the Pavilion Saturday. — 18 days ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.2

For $25.00 okay.
But on sale for $13.00, no brainer. Buy a case


Winemaker's Notes: "Hopkins River Ranch is located in the heart of the Russian River Valley southeast of the town of Windsor. We harvest Sauvignon Blanc from two different blocks of the vineyard. The first pick comes from a 40-year-old block of an unknown clone, some of the oldest Sauv Blanc vines in Sonoma County. The second pick is from a valley floor block nestled between Eastside Rd. and the banks of the Russian River itself. Like the rest of the North Coast, the 2018 harvest was bountiful at Hopkins Ranch. Picking started 3-4 weeks later than it had in recent years. Ripening was slow and we saw full flavor maturity in the grapes with more tropical fruit flavors than the greener grassy notes that Sauvignon Blanc can be known for. As usual, we fermented the two blocks in a combination of older oak barrels and stainless steel tanks. The wine was aged in 2/3 oak and 1/3 stainless for four months before bottling. — 3 years ago

Amy

9.3

Delightful! The lingering flavor is so rich.🤩😘🤩 — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.4

This was served during my annual WWC hosting. Typical format of sparkler, three whites, four reds, one dessert, all served blind.

My goal was to compare this 2003 next to the 2003 Pichon Baron. I’ve had the 2002 Mondavi VHR a few times and have been floored how good they’ve been. Read a review from WA and it said the 2002 was a spitting image of the 2002 Pichon Baron, so I figured I’d see if the 2003 was worthy of the same comparison.

Decanted an hour. Whoa! Much more Bordeaux like than the ‘02, and a touch lighter. Mushroom, pipe tobacco and fig, with mineral/graphite note on the nose too. Mocha dusted red and black berries, currant, herbs and saddle leather. At the end of the lunch, this eventually turned to a more resolved (and deeper core of fruit) with the tannins integrating beautifully. Really enjoyable. Pop and enjoy. — 9 months ago

"Odedi"

9.2

Light golden in color.

On the nose ripe lemons, yellow apples, oak, light butter, citrus, vanilla, Indian spices, light honeysuckle and light tangerines.

Full bodied, creamy and bold, with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with red apples, oak, vanilla, citrus, spices, sea salt, white pepper and light earth.

Nice length on the finish with lemons and almonds.

This is a very tasty Chardonnay from Russian River Valley. Showing nice complexity, especially on the nose. I really enjoyed the nose more than the palate.

This four year old is drinking very nicely now with lots of oak and vanilla notes. Still very fresh.

Good right out of the bottle, and much better after 30 minutes of airtime.

This Single Vineyard Chardonnay is a good quality wine, that will continue to age nicely in the next five years. I've had this vintage a year ago, and it is much better now.

Nicely balanced with a great mouth feel. Buttery and creamy, and better when not very cold.

Aged in French oak barrels. A small production of only 350 cases.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$90. — 3 years ago

Jack Badavas

8.9

Devil’s Thumb Ranch - first trip as a family of four. And Billie came too! — 4 years ago

with Alex

David Walser

9.3

Opened this wine two nights ago and really enjoyed. Had a little leftover and it’s not as good tonight. Arrived in New Zealand today on Crystal Symphony after four days at sea. — 5 years ago

Jay Kline

9.3

From magnum. No formal notes. The fill was top-shoulder. Underneath the capsule, the top of the cork looked nasty which I wiped down as best I could. About four hours before service, using a Durand (which is almost essential with old bottles) I was able to pull the cork completely intact and decant for sediment. The cork was completely saturated but appeared to have done its job! At this stage in its life, the 1990 Chateau Mouton Rothschild pours a garnet color but it doesn’t appear particularly tired and the nose supports that. While it’s certainly a vinous wine, there is a lot to like: a mix of red and black cassis, rip and desiccated cherries, tobacco leaf, cedar box, old leather, damp earth, some mushrooms and baking spices. The structure is still sound and while the tannins have integrated and the acid is keeping this very much alive. In fact, this seemed to brighten with air and almost get a second wind! As I find with all great Bordeaux wines once they enter this stage, they seem to live forever. This was a lovely pairing with a Prime, Niman Ranch porterhouse served with corn, squash and porcini. This is squarely in the “drink now” window, not that it will be falling off a cliff anytime soon. Decant for sediment and enjoy through 2030+ — 9 months ago

Mark Flesher

9.3

This is the last one of these. It's been 4 years since opening the last one as I thought this could use some time. Man, the time has really done this one well. I am actually a fan of this producer with regard to their budget pinot. 20 bucks and you get a good crowd-pleaser. Although I don't know if I would buy this since my palate has changed since purchasing these, I have to respect this for being a great higher end pinot that does showcase Carneros pinot very well. Still has a lot of robust, sweet raspberry fruit almost like a raspberry tea Graham cracker. A very rounded front. Just about as full-bodied as traditional Pinot gets. A little bit of mint, herbs. Finishes with very good acidity but the acidic nature is starting to fade. This was consumed all by itself, so it actually was a very nice characteristic as it allowed the raspberry to fade out a bit and not end so abruptly. I wouldn't trust this one to really drink so well three or four years from now. But it is really good now! — 4 years ago

Jay Kline

9.1

Let me start with a disclaimer: I’m a massive fan of Chateau Musar and a big fan of Tegan’s work with his Sandlands wines. I’m a buyer for both each and every year. So when I learned that he had modeled the 2018 “Red Table Wine” after the wines from Musar, I was like, “Abso-effing-lutely”!! A few nights ago, I couldn’t resist pulling the cork on one to give it the old college try (it is so young after all). I’m happy to report that the wine is tasty and does remind me a bit of Musar, even though the blend uses Zinfandel instead of Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s quite reticent at this stage and it evolved at a glacial pace over four days. A mix of dark and red fruits with exotic spices, red rope licorice and coffee. As typical of Sandlands wines, this gained weight with air and the higher acid gives it a lot of energy. Today, I think these drink best with a meal. I intend to hold my remaining bottle for at least a few years. Equal parts Cinsault (Bechthold Vineyard 1886), Carignane (Spenker Ranch 1900) and Zinfandel (Kirschenmann Vineyard 1915). — 4 years ago