It comes in at 14.8 percent abv, but thanks to an old-world style acidity, notes of persimmon and pomegranate light up with an inherent freshness. The airy nature of the liquid seemingly floats above the tongue with an angelic grace. A pinch of salinity enters mid-point, with a rub of dried roses, peony, and red tea.
Ripe cherries soaked in clove perfume the glass. Raspberry liqueur in an earthy frame circle around dried rose petals, orange peel, and red beets. Juicy and taut, with a cinnamon cedar finish.
Aromas: Lime, lychee & apricot
Classic notes of lychee, with apricot nectar, orange peel, and ginger root. Focused minerality is a key factor for this stunner.
Aromas: Orange blossom and watermelon
Juicy cantaloupe and spring garden flowers are entwined in raspberry and wet stone. Slick, with powdered roses on the dry finish.
Aromas: Honeysuckle, mango, caramel
Unctuous mouthfeel, with crème fraiche, lemon batter, melted white chocolate, and elderflower. There’s a subtle spice on the back of the throat, tempered by an apple-banana finish. 12% abv.
Aromas: Honeyed pears, white flowers, green apples
This 100% Cortese is as austere as it is fresh tasting. Lemon tart, Italian herbs, and lime sorbet reach the palate with scintillating acidity and a linear mineral component. Acacia and green apple are fine partners for a burst of flavor from mid-point to finish.
This is highly exciting Cabernet offered at a price that won’t boost your blood pressure. Made from fruit grown in volcanic soils on hillside sites ranging in elevation from 2,700 to 3,100 feet (reportedly the highest elevation Cabernet Sauvignon plantings in Northern California), this is packed with pure blackberry fruit accented with a lip-smacking streak of saline minerality. Already quite complex in its youth, this will only improve for another five years.
Sourced from six Chardonnay blocks ranging from 2,400 to 2,700 feet in elevation on estate vineyards planted in volcanic soil, this is intriguing on those grounds even before the wine hits the bottom of one’s glass. Medium-bodied, it displays very pure fruit notes of Golden apples and orchard fruits, fresh acidity, and a nice suggestion of saline minerality that one rarely finds in California Chardonnay.