About the California wine region
Though less than half a century old, and remarkably young compared to its European counterparts, the wine industry in California has managed to enchant the country’s wine buying public as well as receive accolades from “across the pond.” This may be because of two realities. First is the undeniable quality of the wines—remarkably fruity, full and satisfying, rarely too austere or tannic to be savored from the first day. The second is the “buy American” angle. A very high number of American wine buyers simply prefer domestic to foreign wines.
The state plays host to an enormous range of microclimates and soils as well as a lot of sunshine, hot summer days and dry harvests. All these factors contribute to healthy ripe fruits that make European producers, in less dependable climates, green with envy. More than three out of every four years, California’s best sites produces excellent wines.
The U.S. is not protectionist when it comes to taxing imported wines compared to many other countries, but the California wine industry is inherently protected because of consumers wanting to buy American.
To most people, the Napa Valley is the home of California wine, and Cabernet is the clear king in Napa. Burgundy varieties like Chardonnay and Pinot Noir have moved to cooler areas, for the most part closer to the Pacific. This includes the western stretches of Sonoma County, the Anderson Valley in Mendocino County, and the Santa Maria and Santa Ynez valleys of Santa Barbara County. In regions as contrasting as Mendocino County, the Sonoma coast, Carneros, Paso Robles, and Santa Maria Valley, Syrah vines have yielded interesting wines. Excellent Zinfandel is also produced all over the state and may be the only California wine emulated abroad.
Breathtaking. Exceptional integration of super ripe blackberries and the very finest oak. The tannins build up beautifully, forming wave upon wave as the wine flows across the palate. Then the wave breaks on your palate...
This wine vastly overdelivers on its price point—a rarity in its category and peers. Made from grapes throughout the appellation, the majority from St. Helena, it blends in small amounts of Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec...
Deep, glistening ruby. Hugely perfumed cherry, blackcurrant and vanilla scents show outstanding clarity and pick up smoky mineral and floral nuances and strong suggestion of baking spices with air. Juicy and seamless in...
The 2016 Ingenuity is blended of 54% Syrah, 20% Petite Sirah, 16% Mourvèdre and 10% Grenache. It was made using 10% whole cluster and aged 19 months in 75% new French oak barrels and puncheons. It has a deep ruby-purple...
Pretty cassis and blackberry fruits as well as notes of cedar pencil, spicy oak, and tobacco emerge from the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville. Medium-bodied, it has a balanced, elegant texture, moderate tannins, and a...
Lastly, the 2016 Prince of Hearts Red is based on 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot, all aged 18 months in 50% new French oak. It’s another seamless, elegant wine from the...
A lush plum nose precedes a rich and dense palate with lovely plum, cherry, and toasty oak. It’s clear that the fruit was skillfully vinified, resulting in a very special and classic wine that’s succulent, balanced, long...
This is the debut vintage of this wine from the esteemed Bordeaux owner, Alfred Tesseron, who bought the property in the Napa mountains in 2016. Aromas of plums, wet earth, fresh herbs and tobacco. Some green olives...
Very polished and refined with plum, light chocolate, coffee and mahogany aromas. Medium-bodied with medium tannins and a savory and juicy finish. Hard not to drink now. Will improve with age. Drink now or hold.
The 2016 Signature Mountain Blend is a Merlot-dominated blend and includes 24% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Petit Verdot. It's a powerful yet supple and seamless blend that gives up plenty of red and black fruits, toasted...
Pale to medium ruby, the 2016 Pinot Noir Cleary Ranch The Settler has a nose of granite dust, tobacco leaf, crunchy cranberry and Bing cherry with soft potpourri touches. Light to medium-bodied, it's earthy and minerally...
A soft and juicy red with a lovely freshness and brightness. Medium-bodied, balanced and subtlety structured with a long and flavorful finish. Fun blend of cab, merlot, sangiovese and nebbiolo. Drink or hold.
Dense plum and blackcurrant nose. Sumptuous fruit on the attack with volume and concentration, fine depth of flavour and polished tannins.
The 2016 Proprietary Red Paradise Hills Vineyard is magnificent. Deep and expressive on the palate, the 2016 possesses tremendous intensity but delivered in an understated voice. Dark cherry, plum, mocha, new leather and...
The 2016 Alesia Pinot Noir Anderson Valley is unabashedly delicious, bursting with fragrant aromas of dried flowers, raspberries, wild plums and sweet forest floor. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, supple and...
Just about as close to perfection as a wine can get, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon from winemaker Chris Carpenter comes mostly from mountain vineyards and is 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot. This full-bodied, rounded...
So much tile and brick character, highlighting the cherries and currants. Dark chocolate too. Hints of fresh herbs. Full body, soft, chewy tannins and such beautiful currant, coffee and chocolate flavors. Very long. 2020...
The 2016 Syrah Bien Nacido Vineyard is fabulous and also shows just how well suited parts of this site are to Syrah. Dense and pliant, with tremendous character, the 2016 has so much to say. Inky dark fruit, leather...
A blend of 65% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2016 Red Blend Right Bank Reserve comes sashaying out of the glass with the most gorgeous perfume of...
Features black currant, blackberry and boysenberry reduction flavors that are tightly coiled for now, carried by well-embedded acidity and racy graphite notes. The long finish pumps out fruit, with extra anise and sweet...
94+ Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate needs a little coaxing to reveal slowly emerging scents of wild blueberries, blackcurrant cordial and warm black plums with touches of sandal wood...
Exotic aromas of dried fruit, flowers, bark, sandalwood and dried flowers. Pine cone, too. Full-bodied with wonderful, refined tannins with riper tannins that show softness and pretty length. Harmonious. Just a hint of...
Made by the incredibly talented Celia Welch, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon comes from a rocky site located just above Odette, in the Stags Leap District. It’s an ethereal, elegant expression of Cabernet Sauvignon and boasts...
One of the more expressive wines in the range, the 2016 Pinot Noir de Villiers Vineyard is soft, open knit and gracious, with an attractive combination of dark red cherry/plum fruit and the more floral/savory notes that...
96+ The first release for this cuvée made from two separate blocks of the estate vineyard, the 2016 Proprietary Red Blend is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, but the cuvée will move more toward a Bordeaux blend as more fruit...
Another of the highlights in this range, the 2016 Red Blend Mernet Reserve is wonderfully dense and fleshy in the glass. Succulent red cherry and pomegranate fruit fill out as this succulent, racy blend shows off its...
Pale to medium ruby, the 2016 Pinot Noir Estate opens with notes of warm earth, tree bark, saline and smoke, giving way to wild blackberries, oolong tea leaves, citrus peel, crushed stone and a core of savory red and...
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon has a slightly broody nose to begin, offering glimpses at damp earth, charcoal and underbrush scents over a core of warm cassis, blackberry pie and black...
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- Leah R., February 2019 “I had such a great experience here, and so appreciate the professional, courteous, and personal support offered by Noah H. that this is my new go-to for wine orders. This model offers the same level of care you receive when you join a wine club, but without limiting you to the wines made by that particular vineyard”.
“I had such a great experience here, and so appreciate the professional, courteous, and personal support offered by Noah H. that this is my new go-to for wine orders. This model offers the same level of care you receive when you join a wine club, but without limiting you to the wines made by that particular vineyard”.
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