Wines

#20 on The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2024!

93 pts Wine Spectator
Dynamic yet sleekly elegant, with rich strawberry and apple flavors that are accented by spiced cinnamon and yeast roll as this dances toward the vibrant finish. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Drink now through 2026.

The Riserva Ducale is an intense ruby red color. This complex wine is characterized by sweet cherry and red berry fruit notes with delicately spiced hints of tobacco, leather, cedar, white pepper and a touch of flint. Tasting profile: Riserva Ducale Chianti Classico Riserva is well balanced on the palate, with velvety tannins, firm acidity, and a lingering finish of rosemary and figs.

#24 On The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines Of 2024!

93 points Wine Spectator
Offers cherry and plum fruit framed by earth, mineral and wild herb flavors. Poised between elegance and power, this red is beautifully balanced. Dusty tannins support the fruit on the long finish. Best from 2026 through 2042.

Winemaker Notes:
The wine is dry with intense aromas and appealing flavors of Golden Delicious apples and citrus with a long, multi-layered finish. Excellent as an aperitif and with a medium body that makes it versatile to pair with everything from salads to chicken or grilled fish. Wonderful pairing ideas include butter lettuce with apples, walnuts, and pomegranate seeds, pizza topped with prosciutto and arugula, scallops, with tarragon cream, or tagliatelle with Italian olive oil, lemon zest and pine nuts.

Third Place finisher in our 2022 Wine Of The Year Taste-Off!

A sensational California red blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Malbec.Old Soul is a little different with every vintage?€?translating the story of Mendocino County?€?s unique terroir straight to your glass. In winemaker Alex?€?s words, the 2019 vintage was ?€?a dream,?€? with early replenishing rains and a long, even growing season. Look for savory wild herbs and blackberry cobbler notes on the nose. The palate is rich but not too dense, with ripe tannins that wrap around a core of blue and black fruits which linger on the long, slightly toasty finish.

Saracina is located along the Upper Russian River in northern California's wine country. The 250-acre ranch which includes a winery and sustainably farmed vineyards, is also home to a 140-year-old olive trees, vegetable gardens, beehives, and local birds and wildlife. The handcrafted, limited production Saracina wines reflect a conscious sense of this beautiful place in Mendocino County. Founded by husband and wife team John Fetzer and Patty Rock in 2001, Saracina has always been defined by a strong sense of family. In 2018, Marc Taub took on stewardship of Saracina, upholding the spirit of family ownership that has defined this iconic Mendocino County winery since its inception.

The Zinfandel hails from the certified-organic Chapman Vineyard (head-pruned vines on an alluvial bench in Redwood Valley) and the Sawyer Vineyard (perched at 1,000 feet overlooking Lake Mendocino and planted with head-pruned vines on St. George rootstock). The Malbec is estate grown in vineyards rich in black clay/gravel at the base of the foothills. The Petite Sirah is from our own steep hillside vineyards and the Niemi Vineyard (20 year-old vines which have been dry-farmed for 15 years).

The wine was aged in both Burgundian and American four-year-seasoned oak (10% new) for 18 months, which included five months of native malolactic fermentation.

Organic

The review is on the previous vintage.
92 points Wine Advocate
The 2021 Chardonnay Vino de los Ranchos, matured for 19 months and sulfured only for bottling, takes some time to reveal scents of lemon peel, beeswax, gravel dust and herbal undertones. The light-bodied palate is bursting with crunchy citrus flavors reminiscent of Chablis. It has stony mineral character, a razor-like spine of acidity, and a touch of textural breadth lends an expansive feel that extends the finish.

Organic

Review is on the previous vintage.
94 points Wine Advocate
The 2022 Pinot Noir Vino de los Ranchos comes from two vineyards, one planted in the 1970s and one in the 1990s, and was vinified using 30% whole clusters. Stone and gravel dust give way to raspberry and cranberry on the nose, plus accents of dried herbs and Earl Grey tea leaves. The light-bodied palate is finely chalky and super fresh, with notable concentration, complexity and spiciness, and it has a long, ethereal finish.

A laser show of acidity and focus finishing dry. A food friendly Riesling from one of the best to ever do it.

The Wine Spectator's Top Value Wine Of 2024!

93 points Wine Spectator
Vivacious and briary, this Zin is generous with personality, offering blackberry, licorice and orange peel accents that zip along the zesty finish. Drink now through 2032.

The history of Seghesio dates back more than a century. The winery planted its first vineyard in Sonoma County in 1895 and endured both Prohibition and the Great Depression, staking its reputation on good-value reds. The brand went upscale in the mid-1990s, transforming itself from a jug-wine factory into an elite Zinfandel specialist. The Seghesio family sold the winery in 2011, yet quality remains stellar. This bottling is not only a bargain, but also a tribute to old-school Zin-based field blends, with winemaker Andy Robinson culling from vineyards in Sonoma, Russian River, Alexander Valley and Dry Creek Valley, including juice that didn’t make it into single-vineyard wines like Home Ranch and Montafi.