Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points: “Moving to the Grand Vin 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon, red wine simply doesn’t get any better, and I never cease to be amazed at what winemaker Celia Welch accomplishes with this incredible terroir. Deep ruby/plum-hued, with a kaleidoscope-like array of cr me de cassis, jammy blackberries, spicy oak, graphite, and smoked tobacco, with a kiss of background chocolaty nuances, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a multi-dimensional, layered mouthfeel, ultra-fine tannins, and a flawlessly layered, concentrated, balanced profile that has to be tasted to be believed. Given its wealth of fruit and texture, as well as purity and balance, it already offers pleasure, yet smart money will give bottles 4-6 years in the cellar, count themselves lucky, and enjoy bottles over the following two decades.”

Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points: “The 2019 Pinot Noir Seabiscuit Zotovich Vineyard comes from the Sta. Rita Hills and was brought up in 65% new French oak. It shows the spicy, savory, salty style of the appellation, yet all with restraint, and it’s the purity of fruit that leads, with gorgeous ripe raspberries, cherries, and mulberries all front and center. More medium-bodied, elegant, and impeccably balanced, it’s already impossible to resist yet has a good 7-8 years of prime drinking ahead of it.”

Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points: “The 2018 Bossman is also Syrah-dominated (70%) yet is a more eclectic blend that includes 10% each of Viognier, Grenache, and Cabernet Franc. It saw roughly 30% stems and the standard, longer élevage favored by Matthias, spending 25 months in 35% new barrels. I love the purity of fruit here, and it has a perfumed bouquet of blueberries, cherries, violets, and ground pepper as well as this Côte Rôtie-like sense of minerality. Medium to full-bodied, pure, and layered, it has the class to drink well today yet also evolve for 10-15 years. It’s a stunning Santa Ynez Syrah blend.”

Jeb Dunnuck 97 Points: “Another Sta. Rita Hills release, the 2021 Pinot Noir Atticus John-Sebastiano Vineyard was destemmed and spent 16 months in 66% new French oak. It reveals a translucent ruby hue followed by an awesome bouquet of redcurrants, framboise, dried rose petals, and savory herbs. Medium-bodied, balanced, and elegant, it has incredible tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. Give bottles a year or two and enjoy over the following decade.”

Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points: “The 2019 Syrah Bien Nacido Vineyard comes from a great vineyard outside Santa Maria and is all Syrah that’s still sitting in 50% new barrels. Its dense purple color is followed by a classic Bien Nacido nose of red and blue fruits, cracked pepper, smoke game, and liquid violets. Rich and medium to full-bodied, it has both integrated acidity and gorgeous tannins as well as notable balance and a great finish. Yes, please.”

Jeb Dunnuck 96+ Points: “Another brilliant wine from this family, the 2021 Chardonnay comes all from the estate Pisoni Vineyard in the southern part of the Santa Lucia Highlands. Unfortunately, it’s made in tiny quantities, but I consistently think it ranks with the finest Chardonnay in California. Honeyed lemon, pear, flowers, crushed stone, and a beautiful kiss of toasted walnuts define the aromatics, and it’s medium-bodied, vibrant, and elegant, with a liquid rock-like sense of minerality on the finish. It plays in the more elegant, focused, lengthy style of the vintage and is slightly closed and tight at present. Give bottles another 2-3 years in the cellar and enjoy through 2031. It’s a beautiful Chardonnay.”

Vinous 97 Points: “The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Cimarossa Vineyard is such a classic Howell Mountain wine. Scorched earth, leather, licorice, tobacco, licorice and gravel lend striking aromatic nuance to this virile, potent Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2018 is a real stunner. Its breadth, power and resonance are thrilling.”

Robert Parker 98+ Points: “A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Farella Vineyard has a deep garnet-purple color and a powerful, expressive nose of baked plums, juicy blackberries and blackcurrant pastilles, plus touches of black olives, lavender and cinnamon stick, with a waft of fragrant earth. The full-bodied palate is seriously dense and muscular, featuring a rock-solid foundation of super ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with epic length and energy. A spectacular showing for Farella!”

James Suckling 95 Points: “A wine with a lot of back end, with dark fruits of blackberry and cherry. Ripe strawberry. Hints of toasted oak and smoke. It’s full and layered with very firm and polished tannins. Very serious and real, and shows the structure of the vintage. Some chocolate. Strawberry pie, too. Drinkable but two to three years of age will help it”

Vinous 97+ Points: The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is super-elegant and refined, but also somewhat closed following its bottling, which is not uncommon for mountain wines. That period of stubbornness seems to be part of the evolution here, as the wine tends to only blossom after a few years. Today, the 2019 is marked by its brilliant upper register, striking balance and vibrancy. It is another compelling wine from Cornell.”

96 points Jeb Dunnuck: “From the Russian River Valley, the 2019 Pinot Noir is layered with spice and a perfume of incense, five-spice, and kirsch. The palate is elegant, with beautiful concentration all the way through, and offering notes of raspberry leather, forest herbs, and cedar. Hold 2-4 years and drink over the next 10 or more years.”

Robert Parker 100 Points: “Tasted blind, in a lineup that included vintages back to 2010, a barrel sample of Spottswoode’s 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon stood out as being one of the most exciting efforts. Full-bodied, ripe, and rich without being overbearing, it delivers concentrated black cherry and cassis fruit framed by supple, velvety-textured tannins. It’s long on the finish, with an attractively soft, dusty-loamy texture and no overt signs of a fire-troubled Napa vintage.”