Chris Buggy

9.0

Fun and funky, stones and pear, hard to put a finger on. Would love to see this one again — a year ago

with Jennifer

Pete Carrico

9.1

Nice complexity, great tannin structure with a long, peppery finish. Very good red wine! — 7 years ago

Sara Bozich

9.0

"The *Real* American Grape!" 🍷🇺🇸 — 8 years ago

Chris DeBarr

9.5

My first encounter with Walter Scott's Pinot Noir's under Michael Alberty's provenance at Storyteller. All 2014s. Temperance Hill was lean, austere, still a tightly wound chrysalis brooding with tobacco & sandalwood. The Clos de Oiseaux has released more fragrance, and had moved beyond the meditative sandalwood phase toward dark cherry and oolong tea, wishing for time to cure and unfurl its powers. Dumb Ox is that brilliant, precocious child: transparently true & deep, expressing fruit and earth effortlessly. Makes me think of all the places all of these very fine Pinots will go with time and some hard-earned peace, but we took the Dumb Ox! — 8 years ago

David Kline

9.0

Chalky grape and balsa, blackberry, and plum nose with soft smoke and jasmine with a sweet petrol gloss. Soft mouthfeel turns bing cherry and underripe blueberries bordering green. Chewy. Big fruit tannins. A spicy pepper that always turns piquant-fruit. Young in every way, would love to see this chrysalis emerge.


#lajotavineyardco #laJotahowellmountainestate #lajota #howellmountain #merlot #napa #napavalley — a year ago

Kelley Raymond

8.9

Dry but fruity - lots of flavor and complexity, plus far more dry than your usual rose. — 4 years ago

Jeremy Autry

8.9

Surprisingly, may need a little more time in the bottle. Going to let it open up, but so far so good. 2010 — 7 years ago

Kelley Raymond

9.0

Really balanced and good oak notes — 3 years ago

Kelley Raymond

9.0

Really clean and flavorful — 3 years ago

Bill Bender

8.9

Shafer HS is an all time favorite of mine but I don't typically open a bottle within 10 years of release. This bottle illustrated why. It's still in its chrysalis--developing and building and gaining weight and shedding tannin. Just not ready even after hours in the decanter. — 7 years ago