| Winery | Special Designation | Vintage | Varietal | Rating | DateTasted | Notes | Buy Again? |
| Rutherford Hill | Cask Reserve, Napa Valley | 2013 | Merlot | 93 | 3/23/2026 | The nose is rich with tertiary notes, ripe berries spice. Do not walk, run to find some of this wine. For a lamb BBQ, roast chicken or even salmon, this wine is perfect. It really wants food, but can be easily imbibed alone -- as I am now.
The palate does not disappoint. The concentrated fruit, bottle aged flavors, lovely, firm tannins and long finish set this above. This is 13 years old and the tannins, acidity and fruit are still going strong. It has another 5-10 years of beauty. This is a lovely wine. | y |
| Rutherford Hill | Club Cuvee, Napa Valley | 2013 | Merlot | 91 | 3/23/2026 | Not that this is readily available, but my fried David who works for Rutherford Hill brought this over tonight. Oh my, talk about a Merlot based wine that is just ripe and full of balanced bottle age. It is a gentle giant, plush and soft with tertiary notes. A lovely wine to sip for an evening. | y |
| Tablas Creek Vineyard | Esprit de Tablas, Adelaida District of Paso Robles | 2013 | Merlot | 91 | 3/23/2026 | Bright raspberry, cherry, lime leaf notes. This is a real charmer of a wine on the nose. If you were familiar with Cotes du Rhone Villages wines and you tried this blind, you`d think that was from the Rhone valley. It is beautiful.
The palate is crisp with acidity, firm in tannins, concentrated and intense in fruitiness. The body is medium, as it the finish.
What is lovely taste this was. This is right up there with other Rhone blends like Holly`s Hill and Sans Liege. It is great that there are so many California wineries that are creating Rhone styles that are so close to the original. | y |
| Wrath Wines | Tondre Grapefield, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 98 | 3/23/2026 | This is absolutely beautiful wine. The nose is plush, concentrated, with tons of jammy, berry fruit. It has enough acidity to just balance the heck out of this wine.
The palate is nearly perfect, hence the 98 pt score. Someone else already gave this a 97. Totally agree here, but the perfection of this wine pushes it higher for us.
I`m gonna get more of this one. Wrath has knocked it out of the park with this one. It has scent and palate textures that are reminiscent of Pisoni, Rosellas and Sierra Mar - among others. Get some before I buy it all! | y |
| Wrath Wines | KW Ranch, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 94 | 3/22/2026 | We get raspberry, red cherry, kaffir lime, rose, turmeric, biscuit, jam and a hint of mint. It feels like it needs time to breathe.
The palate shows high acidity freshness. The concentration and tannins stick to the teeth like jam. But the finish seems to fade quickly. The high acid and intense jam are a nice contrast. The only thing holding this wine back is more cohesiveness.
But keep in mind this thing is YOUNG. Might be worth getting a half case and sitting on it for 3 years and then try it again. | y |
| Wrath Wines | Boekenoogen, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 96 | 3/22/2026 | Raspberry, strawberry, cranberry, cocoa and cherry tobacco. Toasted oak is prevalent, as are anise, cola, nutmeg, cardamom and dried herbs. What a combo of Pinot notes!
The palate is almost perfect with just a hint more acidity than it needs. But this wine is young. The concentration and intensity are great. The body and tannins are medium and the finish is long.
Wrath is so soulful. And they are knocking it out of the park with these 2023s. They are all so different and none of them are boring at all. They all have such interesting edges. (I keep vacillating between 95 and 96 on this one. It shows me different sides of itself. I tried it inside and outside in the cool of the night). The empty glass is ripe with strawberry jam. This wine is really cool!!! | y |
| Wrath Wines | McIntyre Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 96 | 3/21/2026 | Pale in color, rich on the nose. If there is a Santa Lucia Highlands fingerprint, this has it. The nose is floral, raspberry, strawberry jam, red cherry, baking spices and cranberry.
It has a serious palate with high acid balanced with rich, concentrated, intense fruit. The body and finish are amazing.
This wine is so young. It needs a few years to come to terms with itself. The fruit is massively intesnse and perfectly balanced. But, oh, if you like young Pinot, this is one of the best. And here again, we get a 2023 wine that is stellar. | y |
| Trader Joes | Platinim Reserve, Diamond Mountain District, Napa Valley, Lot #131 | 2022 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 94 | 3/20/2026 | Red and black cherry, raspberry and raspberry, a slight citrus note as in loquat, powdered cocoa and lilac.
The is wine has a very rich flavor of berries and cherries. The body is full, the finish is nearly long. The concentration is high and the intensity is nearly there as well. The tannins are silky and the acidity is high.
It is a well-balanced wine, and it is another really good effort from Trader Joes. Spring Mountain is sort of quiet power when it comes to the Napa AVAs. You dont see many wines coming out of Napa from this AVA. And at this price point, you are going to be pleased. This would go great with teriyaki, Greek food or even really well-made burgers. | y |
| Vinos Ce Acatl | Valle de Parras, Coahuila, Mexico | 2022 | Pinot Noir | 92 | 3/20/2026 | Well, when my friend told me he was bringing this over last night I was apprehensive. But I`m always willing to give a Pinot a chance. And it did not disappoint. Imagine classic raspberry, cherry and cranberry notes. Then add rose, passion fruit and sweet paprika. It is quite unique.
The palate is fairly intense with sweet paprika flavor. The acidity is not high and leaves this a tad flabby, but it has a lot to offer. Plus, I`m told that this is $22 bucks at Back Room Wines in Napa. | y |
| Wrath Wines | San Saba Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 94 | 3/20/2026 | The nose is similar the McIntyre below. This one is lovely with notes of raspberry, strawberry and more of a Rainier Cherry. This wine has a touch of forest floor already, cedar spice and cheese danish. It is really pleasing.
The tannins are a bit firm, body full, finish long, long, long. The flavors are a bit unbalanced but only in that they are all very unique and don`t quite fit altogether as a coherent whole. But don`t let that throw you off. The fruit is so intense and the acidity cutting.
2023 again. Lovely stuff. A buff wine with muscles. Concentration all over the place. | y |
| Wrath Wines | Clone 115/667 | 2023 | Pinot Noir | 95 | 3/20/2026 | Raspberry, strawberry, Rainier cherry, cedar, cinnamon.
The nose is good, but the flavors are incredible. The palate is full body, intense, concentrated flavors with high acid and medium tannins. And this finish goes on and on.
You cant get a better pinot for $39 with this kind of concentration. This is the ultimate 2023 everyday drinking wine. It is stellar. | y |
| Covale Cellars | Quintessence Vineyard, Red Mountain | 2022 | Merlot | 97 | 3/19/2026 | The nose on this is just plush. It is packed with blackberry, blueberry, baked brioche, concentrated violets, green pepper, cotton candy, cedar, cocoa and toasted oak.
The palate is mature with concentrated, intense flavors, full body, long finish, silky tannins and balanced acidity. This is an experience, a merlot to grapple with. And as it opens, it just gets better. There are just loads of cocoa notes, berries and raised donuts. Its delicious.
If you dont know this winery, you need to check them out. Winemaker, Marv Crum, learned his trade from Al Golitzen (founder of Quilceda Creek) and his uncle Andre Tchelistcheff (the Maestro of Napa Valley -- the guy that put Napa Valley on the damn map!) He learned from the best. And this wine shows it. | y |
| Beringer | Q Napa Valley | 2020 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 92 | 3/7/2026 | Notes of spicy wood, blackest blackberry, black cherry, very dry herbs and cocoa.
Wow, this wine packs a tannic punch. It hits you in the back teeth and tongue. The concentration of fruit is high, the body full, the finish forever, acid high.
This wine is dark in flavors that it repels light! Just kidding. But it is dark. The tannins are robust, but the dark fruit on the palate is intense and black. On the back of the tongue you get a burnt blackberry sugar. All in all, this is really great intense, concentrated wine if not for the huge tannins. | y |
| Maison Barboulot | France IGP | 2024 | Cabernet-Syrah | 90 | 3/6/2026 | Trader Joes located a really beautiful wine here. It has black cherry, red currant, raspberry, green veg and quite a bit of wood.
The acid is high, tannins are med+, finish is medium, concentration is high and intensity is med+.
The nose is elusive even after being open for 45 minutes. But have no fear -- the palate is pretty concentrated. This one is like someone took a fairly simple wine and supercharged it. It is a steal at this price and well worth getting a few bottles for taking to parties when you need a bottle in a pinch. It is an 88 on the nose, but 92 on the palate. | y |
| Margerum | Santa Barbara County | 2023 | Rhone Blend | 95 | 3/6/2026 | Having drunk plenty of Rhone wines and blends, this really comes across as a proper southern Rhone blend. The nose is redolent with raspberry, strawberry, wet soil, sweet pea flower, dried herbs, cedar and Phressia scent.
The palate is very plush, rich concentration of flavors, high intensity, medium tannins, high acid, full body and long finish. The finish has trouble stopping, that`s how long it is.
This wine is lovely and gets better as it breathes. Drink it slowly. Don`t drink it with food. It is lovely by itself. I mean, do what you want, but just sayin. This thing is stunning. | y |
| Hollys Hill | Fenaughty Vineyard, El Dorado County | 2024 | Syrah | 91 | 3/5/2026 | This is a nice wine with a great price-point (under $30). It has amazing fruit, far fruiter than many high-end Syrahs. There is much to be said for the floral notes mixed with blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, raspberry, soil, yellow cake and mocha notes.
The acid is high, body full, finish long, concentration, tannins and intensity are all medium.
If you have not tried Holly`s Hill wines, you really must. They do such a great job with their Rhone varietals. They tend toward the fruitier end, but are never cloying. | y |
| Jarvis Estate Winery | Finch Hollow | 2021 | Chardonnay | 96 | 3/4/2026 | | y |
| Jarvis Estate Winery | Dancing Flowers Glass Cuvee | 2020 | Blend (Red Wine) | 97 | 3/4/2026 | | y |
| Jarvis Estate Winery | Vintage Selection | 2019 | Merlot | 97 | 3/4/2026 | | y |
| Jarvis Estate Winery | | 2019 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 97 | 3/4/2026 | | y |
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