The 2021 Jonata Todos Vineyard Red Blend delivers a smooth and inviting drinking experience, brimming with enticing aromas and flavours of pomegranate, cherry, red liquorice, vanilla, grilled herbs, and lilacs. Medium to...

Inky plum colour, medium to full intensity. Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot dominant for the first 10 minutes in the glass, with sleek silky tannins, bilberry, blackcurrant, cocoa bean, espresso, fennel, then as it...

95+Minty herbs come together with hints of mocha, then dried violets, stone dust and finally wild blueberries as the kaleidoscopic 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Patrimony reaches up from the glass. Cool and collected, this is a...

Deep ruby-purple, the 2017 True Believer Reserve features pure scents of red and black currants, potpourri, aniseed and exotic spices. The palate offers generous, graphite-laced fruits supported by abundant, pixelated...

Toasted almond, citrus pith and light dairy aromas show on the nose of this appellation cuvée. The palate picks up an earthier line, as chaparral rock and herb flavors meet with brighter lemon and dried pear elements. —...

Bold aromas of black cherry, dark plum and woody herb show on the nose of this block-designated bottling. The palate pops with acidic energy that bisects the dark fruit and rich woodspice flavors. MATT KETTMANN

The 2021 Pinot Noir Block M is scented of raspberry and blackberry preserves, blood orange, aniseed, tobacco and wildflowers with amaro-like undertones. The medium-bodied palate has a concentrated core of fragrant fruit...

Mouthwatering, intense and generous, with a core of citrus flavors including Sumo orange, lime zest and salted, preserved lemon, plus fresh ginger. Pretty, aromatic notes of orange blossoms and sweetgrass linger on the...

A beguiling blend of dusty violets, crushed stone, musky black currants and grilled herbs makes the 2020 Estate Cuvée impossible to ignore. Racy yet supple, this soothes with its ripe red and black fruits while also...

( 96+ points) My favorite of these recent releases from The Hilt is the 2023 Chardonnay Bentrock Vineyard, which perfectly encapsulates the maritime nature of the western Sta. Rita Hills. Dominated by crystalline aromas...

The 2022 Pinot Noir Soberanes Vineyard sees more whole clusters and less new oak than the other wines in the Pisoni range, a combination that affords it noticeably more clarity and balance. The nose opens with dehydrated...

Melville's Estate Pinot Noir combines 17 different Pinot Noir clones from its Sta. Rita Hills AVA estate. Nearly half of the fruit was fermented as whole clusters, with just over half de-stemmed into small open-top...

Leave it to this pioneering Central Coast producer to craft an appellation cuvée that tastes exactly like this region smells. Aromas of sagebrush, pepper, iron and red plum lead into a palate of juniper, bay leaf and...

Based on 100% Syrah fermented with 100% whole clusters and brought up in neutral oak, the 2022 Syrah Donna's Block is slightly deeper ruby/plum in hue and offers up blackberries, pepper, bouquet garni, orange blossom, and...

A dense and layered chardonnay with cooked apple, lemon rind and chalk. Full and layered with pretty density and length. Rounded. Old vine chardonnay. Drink or hold.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills is an attractive, ethereal wine. Sweet dried cherry, mint, tobacco and sage are some of the aromas and flavors that open in the glass. I would give this a few years in bottle to soften...

The 2022 Chardonnay Estate is an open-knit, creamy expression of the vintage energized by delicate accents of crushed stone and citrus blossoms. The palate is svelte, polished and amply concentrated before transitioning...

This is a lesson in white Rhône blends, utilizing the Roussanne and Grenache Blanc base with accents from Picpoul, Clairette, Picardan and Bourboulenc. Aromas of baked orange and almond dust make for a warm nose before...

The 2019 Relevant Cabernet Sauvignon matured for 20 months in new, once- and twice-filled French oak barrels. Deep ruby, it features pure aromas of cassis, grilled meats, warm chocolate, dried herbs, roasted peppers and...

Leading off the reds, the 2022 Pinot Noir Presqu'Ile Vineyard comes from a cool-climate site just outside of Santa Maria and was completely destemmed and brought up in barrel. Bright cherry, mulberries, forest floor, and...

(94 + points) The pale ruby-purple colored 2021 Pinot Noir Seabiscuit Zotovich Vineyard features alluring red currant jelly, lavender oil, and spearmint scents, leading to hints of red cherries and raspberry leaves, with...

For fans of bigger and more powerful Pinot Noir, the 2010 Bernardus Pinot Noir from their Sierra Mar Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands hits all the right notes. Visually opaque with a deep brick red hue, this wine is...

The 2018 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills Cuvee is bright, airy and wonderfully perfumed. Ethereal and gracious, the 2018 lifts out of the glass with striking aromatic presence to match its chiseled, mid-weight personality...

A generous white, with notes of mango, pineapple and ripe, salted melon. Offers accents of butterscotch, candied ginger and orange blossoms, along with accents of crunchy sea salt and apricot pastry, plus a fresh thread...

As with the regional Chardonnay bottling, the 2022 Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands punches well above its weight and offers a more slender, stylistically refreshing expression of Pinot Noir with less of a winemaking...

Lively white flower aromas of honeysuckle and gardenia meet with lemon verbena and guava on the fresh nose of this bottling. The palate is quite floral and tropical, offering coconut and guava cream flavors. — Matt Kettmann

Earthy aromas of riverbed and crushed stone open up into lemon blossom and citrus peel on the nose of this estate bottling. There's a lime pith grip to the palate, where ample citrus edges cut into the dried apple...

The 2020 Loner Chardonnay The Thirty-Five Sweet Goodbyes comes from the John Sebastiano vineyard and was matured for 26 months in used French oak and stainless steel. It opens with chalk and saline before revealing scents...

The 2022 Estate Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills is again centered around Radian, which forms just over half the blend, followed by almost equal parts of Bentrock and Sanford & Benedict. It opens with a darker-fruited profile...