On the palate, it reveals a fresh attack followed by an ample, structured, long-lasting finish. The wine unfurls in successive stages and ends with top-quality tannins produced by whole cluster fermentation. It features aromas and flavors of smoked ham, violet, graphite, graphite, and licorice.

Syrah, with its deep flavors and firm tannins, is a natural match for grilled or smoked meat and dishes featuring herbs, roasted mushrooms, and onions. Seared venison or beef with black pepper and thyme or a Moroccan tagine of pigeon or chicken are complimented by the spicy characteristic of Syrah.

Review:

This refined, graceful version is winey, offering steeped currant flecked with bacon fat, dried leaves, white pepper and mocha. Streaming and fluid in feel, with salty, mineral intensity building toward the long, elegant finish, which shows polished tannins. Though drinking beautifully now, this will benefit from time in bottle. Best from 2026 through 2038.

-Wine Spectator 94 Points

Textbook sources its 'Mise en Place' Cabernet from Oakville, one of Napa Valley's most prestigious appellations, prized for its deep, diverse soils. A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot, it delivers Oakville's hallmark of dark fruit, cedar and silky tannins at a price that over-delivers.

Review:

This wine succeeds from its sense of place: Oakville, with its diverse soils and reputation as being a premier location for grape-growing in Napa Valley. The wine, 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot, opens with daunting notes of charred cedar, blackberry, bittersweet dark chocolate, and umami. Silky tannins envelop the back of the palate, with cherrywood and fleshy purple fruit integrated into its powerful — yet luxurious — conformation.

The Tasting Panel 96 Points

Duorum was founded in the Douro Superior by two of Portugal's most celebrated winemakers — João Portugal Ramos and José Maria Soares Franco, the long-time hand behind Barca Velha. Their Vintage Port is a field blend from old, often centenarian vines and is declared only in the finest years. Powerful and built for the long haul, it is a classic expression of the Douro's greatest sites.

Review:

The 2017 Vintage Port, the first declared vintage here since the 2011, is a field blend from centenarian vines. It is equal parts Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca with 20% Tinta Roriz. This is round and luscious on opening. With some air, it becomes a very different wine, showing its class and its muscle. It shows far more power and pop as it airs out, becoming very persistent. It's always most notable, though, for the rich fruit and velvety texture. It should steadily improve for the next ten to 15 years and age effortlessly for some time after that.

Wine Advocate (Mark Squires) 95 Points

Ridge's Geyserville is one of California's iconic field-blend reds, drawn from century-old vines in Sonoma's Alexander Valley. Zinfandel-led, with Carignane and Petite Sirah, it is made in Ridge's signature natural-yeast, American-oak style — vivid, spicy and built to age.

Review:

Tasted from tank just prior to bottling, the 2024 Geyserville is one of the very best Geyservilles I've ever tasted. It's weightless and elegant but supremely concentrated and packed to the gills with intense flavor. Rich blue fruit, incense, crushed rocks and deeply pitched spice tones march with gravitas from open to close. What a sensational edition of this wine.

Vinous (Billy Norris) 97 Points

Yalumba, founded in 1849, is Australia's oldest family-owned winery. 'The Cigar' is its Coonawarra Cabernet, named for the region's famed cigar-shaped strip of terra rossa soil over limestone — the source of some of Australia's most elegant, structured Cabernets.

Review:

Excellent colour and core intensity with a bouquet of roasted plums and blackberry, cacao and baking spice, a whisp-of-mint, wood smoke and boot polish. Delicious on the palate with all scents reflected as flavours framed by an abundance of sine tannins and an acid line that delivers freshness and some power, concentration and style. Well made with best drinking from 2026 through 2031+.

Cameron Douglas MS 94 Points

Adelsheim is a Willamette Valley pioneer, founded in 1971 and long a standard-bearer for Oregon Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Staking Claim is its flagship Chardonnay — crisp, citrus-driven and energetic, made in a fresh, food-friendly style.

Review:

A great wine made in a tough vintage, the 2020 ‘Staking Claim’ Chardonnay was entirely sourced from the Chehalem Mountain AVA. Beautifully textured, this comes off very clean with fresh cut lime, vanilla cream, buttered French bread and shades of banana on the palate. Don’t serve too cold to take in the outstanding range of flavors.

Owen Bargreen 93 Points

Domaine de la Janasse has been in the Sabon family since 1967, today run by siblings Christophe and Isabelle. Their Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc — Roussanne-led, with Grenache Blanc and Clairette — is consistently one of the finest whites in the appellation, combining richness with purity and the ability to age for two decades.

Review:

Based on 70% Roussanne and 15% each Grenache Blanc and Clairette and aged 12 months in 20% new French oak with the balance in used barrels and concrete. It has a medium gold hue and delivers remarkable intensity in its ripe stone fruits, fresh croissant, honeyed flowers, and orange blossom nuances. It's medium to full-bodied, has a pure, seamless, layered mouthfeel, beautiful balance, and a fabulous finish that will evolve for 20+ years if well stored. Drink 2025-2045.

Jeb Dunnuck 98 Points

Reynvaan The Contender Syrah is made from 97% Syrah and 3% Marsanne. 

From cult Walla Walla producer Reynvaan Family Vineyards, The Contender is an estate Syrah of extraordinary depth and perfume. The 2021 — co-fermented with a touch of Marsanne and raised partly in new puncheons — is a benchmark for the sheer quality coming out of Washington's Rocks District.

Review:

The 2021 Syrah The Contender is 97% Syrah and 3% Marsanne that was fermented with 30% stems and raised in 25% new puncheons and barrels. Its deeper plum/purple hue is followed by a wild nose of red plums, blueberries, ground pepper, lavender, and violets. With medium to full-bodied richness, a seamless, layered, beautifully balanced mouthfeel, and polished tannins, it's another sensational 2021 that will benefit from just a handful of years in the cellar.

Jeb Dunnuck 98 Points

Reynvaan Family Vineyards is a cult Walla Walla estate whose vines in the cobblestone-strewn Rocks District produce some of Washington's most sought-after Syrah. Stonessence draws on the estate's In the Rocks fruit for a wild, perfumed, savory style that rivals the great Syrahs of the Northern Rhône.

Review:

Sourced from the estate's In the Rocks vineyard, this penetrating Syrah displays the haunting perfume of the Rocks District. Undulating blackberry and blueberry flavours are tinged with blood, iodine and ash. Powerful yet focused, freshly balanced with a finish that lingers on the bitter edges of quinine and olive pit. Made with 15% whole clusters vinified in stainless steel and matured for 18 months in both new puncheons and neutral oak.

Decanter World Wine Awards 98 Points

Pine Ridge Vineyards has farmed the Stags Leap District since 1978, and its estate Cabernet is a benchmark for the appellation's signature of plush fruit framed by silky, fine-grained tannins. The 2023 comes from the warm volcanic benchland that makes Stags Leap one of Napa's most prized Cabernet sites.

Review:

Super silky, refined and relaxed, opulent, almost sweet, rich in dark chocolate and macerated cherry flavors. Made from clone 337, which is known for its luscious ripeness. Full-bodied yet elegant in texture due to super-fine powdery tannins. Long in the finish. Drink or hold.

James Suckling 97 Points

Dow's is one of the historic houses of the Symington family and a benchmark name in Vintage Port, known for a drier, more structured style built around its Quinta do Bomfim and Quinta da Senhora da Ribeira vineyards. The 2024 is a classically declared vintage — precise, firm and built to age for decades.

Review:

Precise, with a pretty, grainy texture and incisive character. Medium- to full-bodied, long and dimensional. The grainy texture turns saline. Very stimulating to taste. A blend of 38% touriga franca, 34% old vines, 17% touriga nacional and 11% sousao. Drink or hold.

James Suckling 98 Points

Capanna is one of Montalcino's historic family estates, farming vineyards on the cooler north side of the hill since the early 20th century. Their Brunello is a classically styled Sangiovese — perfumed, structured and age-worthy — and the 2021 is a standout in a celebrated vintage.

Review:

Aromas of ripe and racy red berry fruit with touches of white pepper, hazelnuts and graphite. Very pure and structured. There's brightness from lovely acidity and verticality from its tannins, giving it a slightly austere edge. Long, tight finish. This will be better in two to three years.

James Suckling 96 Points

Merryvale Sonoma Coast Chardonnay is made from Chardonnay.

Merryvale Vineyards works out of a historic 1933 stone cellar in St. Helena — the first winery built in Napa Valley after Prohibition, and where the Mondavi brothers made their earliest wines. Owned by the Swiss Schlatter family since 1996, Merryvale draws on prized vineyard sites across Napa and Sonoma. This Sonoma Coast Chardonnay — barrel fermented and aged roughly ten months in about 30% new French oak — is the first Merryvale has sourced across cool-climate Sonoma Coast sites. It is bright and energetic, with layers of lemon and lime zest, apricot and white peach leading to a long, mineral-driven finish.

Review:

"This marks the first Chardonnay Merryvale has sourced from excellent sites across the Sonoma Coast. The wine is barrel fermented and aged for 10 months in approximately 30% new French oak. It is expressive and energetic and showcases elegant layers that build on its medium-bodied richness and refined minerality. Bright notes of lemon and lime zest are complemented by apricot, crunchy white peach, and grapefruit zest, leading to a long, mineral-rich finish. This beautifully balanced and vibrant Chardonnay offers complexity and freshness with every sip."

- Jonathan Cristaldi, Wine Enthusiast, 93 Points

DuMOL 'Isobel' Charles Heintz Vineyard Sonoma Coast Chardonnay is made from Chardonnay.

Founded in 1996, DuMOL is one of the Russian River Valley's benchmark producers of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah, built on meticulous, small-lot winemaking under longtime winegrower Andy Smith. "Isobel" is DuMOL's bottling from the legendary Charles Heintz Vineyard, planted high on a ridge above Occidental on the far Sonoma Coast — some of California's oldest and most coveted Chardonnay vines, now more than forty years old. Fermented and aged in cigar-shaped French oak barrels, the 2023 captures the site's signature oily texture and breadth alongside crystalline, mineral energy.

Review:

"The 2023 Chardonnay Isobel Charles Heintz Vineyard was brought in on October 12 and 14, very late by historical standards. It captures all the magic of this site in its oily texture and breadth. Citrus confit, white pepper, flowers and crushed rocks are all beautifully delineated. For readers who want to know what Charles Heintz Chardonnay is all about, this is it!"

- Antonio Galloni, Vinous, 96 Points

Double Diamond by Schrader Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc is made from Sauvignon Blanc.

Schrader Cellars, founded by Fred Schrader, is one of Napa Valley's most sought-after names, famed for its cult Cabernets from the Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard. Double Diamond is Schrader's more approachable label, and this Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc carries that same attention to detail into a bright, aromatic white. Expect vivid citrus, white peach and melon, a crisp line of acidity, and a clean, mineral finish. Vinted and bottled by Schrader Cellars.

Merryvale Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast 2022 is made from Pinot Noir.

From the cool, fog-swept vineyards of the Sonoma Coast — including fruit from the celebrated Durell and Sunchase sites — this is Merryvale's elegant, Burgundian-minded take on California Pinot Noir. A mix of Dijon and heritage clones (667, Pommard, 777 and 828) was largely destemmed, fermented with native yeasts, and aged about ten months in roughly 40% new French oak — restraint that lets the fruit lead. Expect a perfumed, silky glass: black cherry, raspberry and dark berry lifted by forest floor, cola spice and a whisper of graham cracker, with bright acidity and fine, polished tannins carrying a long finish. Lovely now and over the next decade.

Winery Info: Merryvale Vineyards was founded in 1983 and makes its home in the historic Sunny St. Helena winery on Main Street — a stone landmark built in 1933 as the first winery raised in the Napa Valley after Prohibition, and the cellar where Robert and Peter Mondavi first made wine with their father, Cesare. The Schlatter family has owned and run Merryvale since the 1990s, today led by René Schlatter. At its heart lies the Historic Cask Room, where two stories of century-old 2,000-gallon oak casks line the walls. Four decades on, Merryvale remains a quintessential St. Helena house.

Review:

A wonderful interplay of brightness and savoriness captures the elegance of wines from the Sonoma Coast. Aromas of crushed red raspberries, sauteed mushrooms and wild blackberries. On the palate there’s red fruit and black pepper, with bright, crunchy acidity and taut tannins. The finish is long, with umami flavors. Medium-bodied. Drink or hold.

-James Suckling 94 Points

Clos du Val Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 is made from Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Wine

This is Clos du Val's Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon — the house's classically styled, broadly sourced Cabernet drawn from vineyards across the valley floor and surrounding benches. The 2023 is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec and 4% Petit Verdot. It pours a deep ruby and opens with pure cassis and black cherry lifted by graphite, tobacco leaf, sweet brown spice and a whisper of cured herbs. Medium- to full-bodied and beautifully balanced, it is firm without ever turning hard, with fine-grained tannins, bright acidity and a long, silky, cocoa-dusted finish. A polished, food-friendly Napa Cabernet that drinks wonderfully now and will hold comfortably into the early 2030s — and, at this price, one of the genuine values in classic Napa Valley Cabernet.

Winery Info

Clos du Val was founded in 1972 in the Stags Leap District of Napa Valley by French-born winemaker Bernard Portet and American proprietor John Goelet. Portet grew up at Château Lafite-Rothschild, where his father was technical director, and he set out to make Napa wines in a restrained, ageworthy Bordeaux idiom rather than the bigger, riper California style of the day. The bet paid off almost at once: at the legendary 1976 Judgment of Paris, Clos du Val's debut 1972 Cabernet was one of only a handful of California reds chosen to stand against first-growth Bordeaux — and in the celebrated ten-year rematch of that tasting, it finished first of all the wines. More than fifty years on, Clos du Val remains one of Napa's benchmark houses, its wines prized for elegance, balance and a graceful capacity to age. The engraving of the Three Graces on the label is a nod to the harmony the family has always chased in the glass.

Review:

Refined and earth-driven, showing tightly wound black-fruit aromas. The palate is focused and pure with finely tuned tannins and a generous yet precise palate. A lovely wine to drink now or cellar.

James Suckling, 94 Points

Pago de los Capellanes Reserva is made from 100% Tempranillo.

After carefully monitoring the vineyards, the harvest date is set by the maturity of the grapes, which are collected and fermented separately. They are given a six-day pre-fermentation cold maceration below 14ºC, then about 30 days of alcoholic fermentation at a controlled 28ºC, after which the wine is drawn off without pressing the skins; malolactic fermentation is slow and relaxed at 20ºC. The wine is aged 18 months in new French oak barrels, racked into fresh barrels every six months, then blended and bottled without filtration, clarification or cold treatment.

Ruby red with pure, intense garnet tones. The bouquet has fine complexity, with ripe fruit — especially cherry, blueberry and blackcurrant — in harmony with good wood, spice (vanilla and coconut) and a liquorice undertone. The palate shows great balance: pleasing, sweet-tannined from ripe fruit and exuberant on a pleasant level of acidity. Clay and chalk soils; 100% French oak, medium toast. Uncork and decant one hour before serving at 16–18ºC.

Review:

This is poised and polished, with fine acidity and a lingering mineral note grounding the rich blackberry, cassis, and dried cherry fruit. It's framed out by scents of violets, tobacco, incense, and coffee-toffee. It'll make for a beautiful wine at the table over the next 7-10 years.

- Wine Enthusiast 93 Points

Fresh blackberries with a herbal undertone. The palate is fleshy with firm fine-grained tannins and a savory touch. Drink or hold.

- James Suckling 91 Points

Pago de los Capellanes El Nogal is made from 100% Tempranillo.

A single-vineyard wine from the “El Nogal” parcel in the town of Mambrilla de Castrejón, grown at 850 meters (2,750 feet) above sea level. A hillside of tinto fino vines a short distance from the winery, with uninterrupted views of the Duero and the wind stirring the airy branches of the great walnut tree that guards the vineyard. Its sandy, stony soils, a sense of harmony and a special microclimate all seem to enhance the talent of its surroundings.

We have vinified the evocative grapes of this plot for the past several years to produce an endlessly charming wine — overwhelming, powerful and exquisite, with a vitalising force.

Review:

Walnuts, chocolate and dark fruit with a touch of thyme. The palate is full-bodied, with a luscious expression of fruit and fine-grained tannins, all retaining a broad sense of harmony. Drink or hold.

- James Suckling 94 Points

Pago de los Capellanes El Picon is made from 100% Tempranillo.

There are afternoons with indigo skies when we approach one of the oldest plots of the estate. Our stroll from the winery follows a line of cypress trees to the corner of a path, and this angle gives its name to our most exceptional vineyard. El Picón is the great symbol and the most profound reality — the sum of enigmas in a beautiful, pure fruit.

The grapes come from the El Picón plot, one of the oldest at the Pago de los Capellanes estate in Pedrosa de Duero: 1.6 hectares of clay-loam soil with surface gravel, very poor fertility and very low yields. The wine is aged 22 months in 225-litre, extra-fine-grain French oak barrels dried over 60 months.

Review:

Built in a classical long-aging style, the 2021 Parcela El Picón is 100% Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero, aged 22 months in 225-liter extra-fine grain French oak barrels. Oak dominates the aromatic profile, emphasizing balsamic herbs such as bay leaf and menthol, vermouth-like tones and black fruit. Concentrated yet not tight on the palate, it combines flexible tannins, chalky texture and juicy freshness. Still very young, it promises greater nuance with time. Best approached no earlier than five years from now.

- Vinous (Joaquín Hidalgo) 96 Points

Really seductive, elegant nose with parma violet and almond blossom mingling among sage, cherry leaf and potpourri. Extremely well built, with a firm yet juicy core of plum, cherry, red apple and pomegranate. Cherry leaf poached in tea with smoky allure. Very persistent, with a long, beautiful tail of oregano, thyme, tarragon and saffron.

- Decanter 95 Points

Fresh blackberries with plums, a touch of graphite and fig undertones. The palate is focused, medium- to full-bodied, with fine-grained tannins and a clean thread of fruit to complement it. Drink or hold.

- James Suckling 94 Points