Wine Reviews

McDougall Vineyard is a special site, perched on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Gualala River, on a south-facing ridge just off the California coast. Pretty idyllic, right? Similar in style to the Docker Hill bottling, it’s mineral-bright, with red cherry fruit notes, cedarwood spices, and velvety tannins imbued with a bit of the surrounding scrub-brush character, giving a subtle herbaceous undertow that is woodsy, earthy, and layered, supporting the fleshy berry fruit and warm spice through its medium-bodied and mineral-scented finish. 100% Pinot Noir. Abv. 14.1%.

Morelli Lane Vineyard is perched on the top of a ridge on the western reaches of the Russian River Valley, where this 1.8-acre site is planted to old Zinfandel vines planted around the turn of the last century. Head-trained and dry-farmed, the vines produced a spectacularly concentrated and intense Zin character of the ripest, purest strawberries ever, inching into delicious fruit leather with nice brown baking spice notes. Slightly grippy and chewy tannins have a chocolaty quality, and the intensity of the wine creates great persistence. 100% Zinfandel. Abv. 14.1%.

The 2023 Rued Vineyard Chardonnay, from vines planted in 1969 by Warren Dutton, comes from a hillside site and delivers a wine of beautiful richness, with terrific fruit density and weight balanced by exceptional acid tension. It’s lush and exotic, with sweet oak spices nicely integrated and baked orchard fruit that gives the sensation of biting into a rich apple or pear tart, lifted by the lightest, creamiest lemon blossom fragrance and saline mineral elegance. 100% Chardonnay. Abv. 14.1%.

This Snow Vineyard Pinot Noir comes from a site planted in the region’s classic Goldridge sandy loam soils and comprises Clone 943, a small clone with tiny berries; the fruit is exceptionally weighty and concentrated, balanced by the structural finesse of a bit of Calera Clone blended in. Together, there is great harmony in the ripe, delicious mixed berry compoted fruit, with this savory wild herb and tea-like tannin. The wine is graceful, polished, and suave with a full-bodied appeal. 100% Pinot Noir. Abv. 14.1%.

A full-bodied Cabernet with ripe red fruits, dusty minerals, and refined oak spices. Hefty on the palate with a silky-satiny texture and round tannins. Notes of graphite and earth with dark chocolate through the long finish. 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Abv. 14%

Fontecanese is a full-bodied Tuscan Cabernet with Old World soul. Blackberry and crème de cassis are seasoned with wild fennel, Chinese five-spice, and tobacco. A saline streak brightens its commanding frame. Powdery-fine tannins coat the palate without weighing it down. 14% ABV.

Dark and beautifully tailored, Maceone opens with an alluring perfume of mixed berry fruits, and currants accented by Tuscan herbs. Crushed stone forms a cool mineral foundation as tobacco spices and anise unfold across the palate. Juicy acidity lifts the powerful frame, while fine tea tannins build through the lengthy finish. Made entirely from the BBS11 Sangiovese clone and aged in T5 barriques. 15% ABV.

Explosive, high-toned red cherry fruit is joined by plum and red florals with rooibos tea notes. Crushed-stone minerality gives the wine a firm sense of place, while gentle fine tannins frame a long, mineral-rich finish of volcanic stone and dried herbs. 14% ABV.