Savory notes of tilled earth and loam are perked up with a punch of red-cherry acidity and crunchy minerality. A very appealing umami core provides the spine against which brambly berries and cherries sing with woodsy spice. This widely available Pinot punches way above the weight its price tag might imply.
This white is kissed with 4% Semillon, and saw four months of aging in predominantly neutral French oak (30% rested instead in concrete egg and stainless steel). Vibrant flavors of quince, passionfruit, and yellow grapefruit are joined by mixed garden herbs, and all of it is lively with balanced acidity. At $20, this is a fantastic value.
Gluten-free and vegan, with aromas of peach and fresh linen. Tart green apple and a squeeze of lime exhibit a crisp, refreshing white.
Ripe, brambly berries are joined by cocoa powder and a nod in the direction of espresso beans. They all find a nice counterpoint in a subtle flavor sage. Aging in 20% new French and American oak has introduced a warm, toasted vanilla character, too.
Sub-$30 Sonoma Coast Pinot is a difficult trick to pull off, but this wine proves it’s possible to do so, and with style. It’s a sweetly spiced, plushly textured red flashed through with brambly berries, red and black cherries, tilled earth, humidor, and cracked peppercorns.
Seven Apart’s Stags Ridge vineyard sits 1,475 feet atop Atlas Peak. The soil is mostly red volcanic clay with little moisture and the vines date back to 1999, nothing has been replanted, it produces small berries rich in color and tannins. Chewy, meaty, and rich – this is a sumptuous, luxurious red. Dusty tannins line the mouth, adhering to dried violets, dark cocoa, and graphite. Well built, with backbone and finesse. Herbal notes cling to blackberry ganache and white-peppered cedar.
Named for an unincorporated community in Napa during the 1950s where 400 families built vessels with radical designs. We bow to the stern character of this red, its plush texture smoothing out on a deck of suede tannins. Brushy, with wild blueberry and espresso on mid-palate, its exacting acidity rising in waves. The wine exhibits a compact nature, washed in dried heather and new leather.
This producer’s practice of releasing wines into the market with at least one year’s worth of additional bottle age beyond the average pays excellent dividends in this case. Nutty, toasty, spicy barrel notes are now beautifully interwoven with the fruit flavors, which recall ripe peaches and baked apples. The sensory signals emitted by both the fruit and the high-class cooperage play off one another very well. Quite fairly priced in relation to its superb quality.