Amid a sea of bad news for the wine industry, the white wine category is having a moment.

According to the 2025 SVB State of the U.S. Wine Industry report, white wine has positive growth rates by volume and now has better sales growth rates than red wine.

Similarly, data from WSWA’s SipSource revealed that, despite a broader market decline, multiple white wine categories demonstrated modest growth.

For a wine region like Paso Robles on California's Central Coast, where only 15% of the grapes planted are white, this is pertinent news.

But, despite the region being known for big, bombastic red wines, a quiet few are putting out quality white wines that are fresh, interesting, and challenging the status quo.

Going their own way

'When I started to make wine, people said to me that to succeed, you have to make red wine,' says Nancy Ulloa, owner and winemaker of Ulloa Cellars, a white wine-focused brand.

Fresh whites might not come to mind in Paso, which is notorious for its high temperatures.

This was especially apparent during the 2022 vintage, when a relentless 10-day heat spike over 40 degrees Celsius dominated the region at harvest time.

If grapes (especially white) were not picked before this spike, quality suffered. And, being so well-known for full-bodied red wines, there was historically little stylistic demand for white wines, let alone fresh ones.

Still, Paso producers are finding ways to craft wines of this style. It comes down to grape varieties, picking decisions, and winemaking technique.

Stephy Terrizzi, viticulturist and co-owner of Giornata, says: 'We make picking decisions for white grapes based more on pH than brix levels. Lower-pH grapes (meaning higher acidity) will have fresher qualities and be more zippy on the palate. In the cellar, we do not add malolactic bacteria and currently use only stainless steel and amphora for fermenting and ageing.'

Ulloa relies upon pick times, different vessels, lees stirring, and varying combinations of yeast per lot.

Working together

These approaches are leading to notable success with white wines in Paso. Giornata, with a focus on Italian varieties, is currently producing more white wines than red wines.

Dave McGee, winemaker at Monochrome, a white wine-only winery, says: 'Many customers come to our door because they are excited to try something different and new. They mention they have a stash of reds at home, but no whites.'

He also talks about Paso’s evolving culinary scene, which includes two Michelin-starred restaurants.

'White wines often pair better with the elegant, nuanced courses being offered by the top new restaurants than do the traditional big Paso reds,' he adds.

Rhône variety-focused Tablas Creek has been a pioneer in the 'lighter side' of Paso Robles since its inception in 1989, with its Patelin Blanc and Esprit Blanc consistently earning both critical acclaim and commercial success over the years.

Now, says Terrizzi: 'Paso Robles winemakers have put thought and energy into making more serious white wines that are complex and sometimes age-worthy, like Fiano and Chenin Blanc.'

McGee agrees that: 'More winemakers are now putting the same level of effort, passion, and attention to detail into their whites that they had previously reserved only for their top reds.'

And as consumer trends shift, this new-found focus is paying off.

10 fresh, summer white wines from Paso Robles

Related articles

By the time the Continental Congress formally approved the Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776, winemaking in North America already had a relatively long and uneven history.

The earliest attempts date back to the early decades of European settlement and involved experiments with native grape species.

Typically characterised by high acidity, lower sugar levels, and distinctive flavour profiles, these native grapes produced wines markedly different from their European counterparts, prompting repeated (and often unsuccessful) attempts to establish plantings of Vitis vinifera imported from the Old World.

One of the most notable of such attempts was undertaken by Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States and passionate wine enthusiast, who planted European grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot at his Monticello estate in Virginia.

Despite more than three decades of stubborn experimentation, Jefferson never succeeded in producing a reliable vintage from these vines.

Vitis vinifera’s failures in North America were long attributed to factors such as unfavourable climate, soil conditions, or poor vineyard practices, but a far more significant element at play was likely the presence of phylloxera.

This microscopic root-feeding pest native to North America that would later decimate European vineyards once inadvertently introduced there in the 19th century.

More substantial viticultural progress came with the arrival of Franciscan missionaries in the American southwest, who cultivated the Mission grape, a variety imported from Spain – via Mexico – and later identified as Listán Prieto.

This grape became the foundation of California’s early wine industry, demonstrating the region’s capacity for sustained viticulture.

Indeed, while wine production expanded across the United States, it was California that laid the groundwork for what would become the epicentre of American winemaking, driven in large part by European immigrants bringing both technical expertise and commercial ambition.

Among them were Agoston Haraszthy, a Hungarian who established Buena Vista in Sonoma in 1857, and German immigrant Charles Krug who founded his namesake winery in Napa Valley in 1861.

Prohibition: Time for a reset

As Europe grappled with the devastation of phylloxera towards the end of the 19th century, the United States was laying the groundwork for a constitutional alcohol ban.

Nationwide prohibition officially began in January 1920. Its impact on American wine was immediate and severe.

Most commercial wineries ceased operations altogether, bringing what had so far been a growing and increasingly ambitious industry to an abrupt halt.

Wine production, however, did not disappear entirely. Wineries such as Beaulieu Vineyard and Beringer were able to survive the dry years by producing sacramental wine for religious institutions.

At the same time, a legal loophole created a parallel informal economy centred around domestic winemaking, particularly in immigrant-heavy urban areas like New York, Chicago, and Boston.

By the time Prohibition was repealed in December 1933, only a small fraction of America’s wineries were still operational.

The industry’s entire commercial infrastructure – vineyards, distribution networks, oenological expertise, and consumer culture – had to be rebuilt almost from scratch.

California Chablis, jug wine and post-Prohibition rebirth

For much of post-Prohibition America, wine was primarily an inexpensive intoxicant, often sweet, and produced in ‘Port’ or ‘Sherry’-style expressions that bore little resemblance to their Old World counterparts.

Yet, beneath these high mass-market volumes, some producers began investing seriously in quality and in the long-term potential of American wine.

One of the most transformative moments came in 1938 with the arrival of Russian-born winemaker André Tchelistcheff at Napa’s Beaulieu Vineyard.

Widely regarded as one of the founding architects of modern Californian wine, Tchelistcheff introduced a new level of scientific rigour and technical precision to viticulture and winemaking, drawing heavily on European high standards while adapting practices to Californian conditions.

Through direct mentorship and broader industry influence, Tchelistcheff helped shape a new generation of winemakers, including figures such as Robert Mondavi, Warren Winiarski of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, and Miljenko ‘Mike’ Grgich of Grgich Hills, who would play defining roles in the rise of modern American wine.

Robert Mondavi, in particular, proved instrumental in reshaping the narrative surrounding Californian wine.

Rather than relying on (then common) European-inspired names such as ‘California Chablis’ or ‘Napa Burgundy’, he championed varietal labelling, placing grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay front and centre.

Mondavi also promoted wine as part of a broader cultural lifestyle connected to gastronomy, music, art, and conviviality, helping (re)position it as an aspirational product rather than a merely functional one.

By the 1970s, the United States was producing wines capable of competing with the world’s finest.

British wine merchant Steven Spurrier was sufficiently convinced of such progress that, in 1976, he organised a blind tasting in Paris pitting leading Californian wines against some of France’s most prestigious labels.

The outcome of what would become known as the Judgment of Paris stunned the audience, the jury, and the industry as a whole: Californian wines triumphed in both the white and red categories, defeating celebrated Burgundies and Bordeaux.

The tasting marked a watershed moment for American wine, securing its place on the global fine wine map and fundamentally altering international perceptions of what the country was capable of bottling.

Napa Cab and The Critics

In the years that followed this landmark moment, Californian winemaking increasingly shifted towards a style defined by power, ripeness, and opulence, producing wines marked by intense fruit concentration, elevated alcohol levels, deep extraction, and generous use of new French oak.

This evolution was strongly shaped by the rise of influential critic Robert Parker Jr, who tended to favour this bold, ripe stylistic approach, rewarding it with higher marks in his influential 100-point scoring system.

This philosophy gradually spread beyond California, in a phenomenon referred to, sometimes critically, as Parkerisation.

From Bordeaux to Tuscany and Rioja, producers increasingly embraced riper fruit, softer tannins, later harvesting, and more assertive oak regimes.

They often sought input from influential international consultants such as Michel Rolland, in pursuit of the high critic scores they felt could elevate reputation, demand, and revenues almost overnight.

As the 20th century drew to a close, the United States had entered an entirely new phase of its wine history.

No longer a country merely striving to prove its legitimacy to the global wine establishment, it had become one of the principal forces shaping its direction, aesthetics, and economic dynamics.

A multi-layered landscape

Modern American wine is a remarkably nuanced landscape, one that mirrors the equally complex history of the country itself and the multitude of cultures, migrations, and traditions that shaped its social fabric.

California continues to dominate both production volume and the premium sector, but has become far more stylistically diverse than the blockbuster Cabernet stereotype often associated with it.

Powerful Napa Cab still occupies a central place in the state’s identity, yet California today produces an extraordinary range of styles, from refined coastal Pinot Noir and Chardonnay to Mediterranean varieties such as Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan, and Vermentino.

Zinfandel (arguably America’s most emblematic grape) is also being reinterpreted in more nuanced and site-specific ways.

Meanwhile, fellow West Coast states have, over the past few decades, firmly joined the race for quality wine production.

Oregon has established itself as a leading cool-climate region, particularly for elegant Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, while Washington State has earned acclaim for structured Cabernet Sauvignon, Rhône varieties, and vibrant Riesling.

On the East Coast, New York’s Finger Lakes region has steadily built a reputation for refined, high-acid, cool-climate wines, particularly Riesling and Cabernet Franc.

Centuries after Thomas Jefferson’s failed experiments, Virginia has also finally found its winemaking identity, acclaimed for Cabernet Franc and Viognier, grapes well suited to the state’s humid continental climate (though producers are successfully working across a wide range of styles and varieties).

Beyond these, quality wine is produced in almost every American state, from the Mediterranean varieties of Texas to the cool, fresh, and unexpectedly refined whites of Michigan.

Across the country, winemakers now express a striking diversity of approaches and philosophies, with an increasing emphasis on regional identity over homogenised stylistic consistency.

The story of American wine may have begun as a matter of trial and – significant – error, but in the span of a semiquincentennial it has morphed into a deliberate, confident, and increasingly self-assured expression of place, as diverse and expansive as the country itself.

Related pages

There's no shortage of great Pinot Noir in the world.

Obviously it all starts with Burgundy. But, equally, there are a lot more countries and regions getting their due now too.

Everywhere from New Zealand and Australia to Germany, South Africa – and the US, especially Oregon's Willamette Valley and Sonoma in California.

And as Burgundy is increasingly out of reach for most wine drinkers, these other sources of high-quality Pinot are really coming into their own.

There are exciting things happening all around, but I want to focus in particular on Sonoma.

And what I can tell you is that Sonoma not only delivers excellent Pinots but does so in a range of styles.

While this caters for many palates, it also makes Sonoma difficult to understand. But that’s precisely its appeal.

That Sonoma is large is hardly breaking news. Less obvious is how much more clearly its differences have come into focus over the past two decades, as a growing number of the county’s producers have become a lot more invested in showing just how little sense a one-size-fits-all idea of Pinot Noir makes at this scale.

Shifting styles

There has been a gradual move away from making wines that follow imported styles to a commitment to sustainable farming suited to each site.

In the cellar, there’s often a more deliberate touch, less interventionist in some cases.

The idea is not terribly complicated: a healthy, expressive vineyard plus less new oak and other manipulations means winemakers can be a lot more confident in letting the wines reflect where they come from.

Ensuring fruit is not picked overripe, and the increased use of whole bunches in fermentations to enhance freshness has also been a turning point.

Within the 19 AVAs of Sonoma, you’ll see anything from cold and fog-bound coastal vineyards to dramatic high-elevation mountain sites, warm inland pockets, windy corridors, and a remarkable variety of soils and geologic formations.

There are differences so nuanced they can sometimes be noticed just a mile apart by producers sharing the same fence line.

Which might explain the growing thirst for vineyard-designated Sonoma Pinot bottlings.

In the glass, Sonoma Pinot serves a palate looking for saline, savoury, and almost electrically tense wines, as well as generous, plush, and fruit-forward ones, through to darker and more structured versions, and a lot more in between.

Cast assumptions aside

In any case, long-held assumptions about what Sonoma Pinot Noir should taste like are worth revisiting, as the wine styles and identities are as diverse as the county is large.

That seems to serve an eclectic market quite well, with consumers always on the hunt for different things, making Pinot a ‘democratic’ grape in Sonoma.

The same region that produces wines to make collectors queue for allocations each season, also produces bottles that are just easy and delicious.

'West Sonoma Coast producers tend to draw wine collectors and more intellectually curious drinkers,' says Alex Sarovich, sommelier and wine educator.

'When it’s juicy, fruit-driven, and not overly tannic, Pinot Noir is a really good grape for easing people into the drier styles of wine,' she adds.

Trying to make a list in this context feels daunting. The wines selected here are excellent – among the best Sonoma has to offer right now – but they are not the full picture.

No list of 10 bottles could hope to capture a region this large, but together they offer a glimpse into what makes Sonoma such a compelling place to explore through Pinot Noir: a collection of exciting and often contrasting expressions.

10 Sonoma Pinot Noirs

Related articles

The final masterclass of the day at the 2026 Decanter Fine Wine Encounter New York began at 4pm.

Despite a full day of tasting already behind them, attendees packed the room for a retrospective look at Heitz Cellar hosted by Master Sommelier Carlton McCoy, president and CEO of Lawrence Wine Estates, which owns this benchmark Napa Valley winery, among others.

The lineup of wines spanned nearly five decades, and guests were encouraged to taste while McCoy and I discussed the history of this iconic producer.

One of the more interesting topics was how little the winemaking itself has changed over the decades.

McCoy explained that Heitz continues to ferment its Cabernet Sauvignons in large neutral wooden tanks, blocks malolactic fermentation in the reds, and ages wines in large oak foudres.

The objective, he said, is to preserve freshness and 'express site character above all'.

While some American oak was used in the first few decades of Heitz’s founding, today, it’s French.

Scroll down for notes and scores of the 10 Heitz Cellar wines at the DFWE NYC 2026 masterclass

Heitz Cellar, Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville 1979

Heitz Cellar, Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville 1985

Heitz Cellar, Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville 2010

Heitz Cellar, Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville 2021

Heitz Cellar, Trailside Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford 1999

Heitz Cellar, Trailside Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford 2013

Heitz Cellar, Trailside Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford 2021

Heitz Cellar, Linda Falls Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain 2015

Heitz Cellar, Linda Falls Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain 2016

Heitz Cellar, Linda Falls Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain 2021

Standouts from the line up

It was a rare opportunity for Masterclass attendees to experience mature and current Heitz releases side by side, including the 1979 and 1985 Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons.

I've tasted the 1979 Martha's Vineyard on three separate occasions, and it continues to impress for its freshness, complexity, and unmistakable aromatic profile.

The bay laurel, mint, and eucalyptus notes that have become synonymous with the wine remain remarkably vivid nearly 50 years after harvest.

Two of the three oldest wines stood out on the day: the aforementioned 1979 Martha's Vineyard as well as the 1999 Trailside Vineyard.

The 1985 Martha's Vineyard, poured from magnum, showed a touch of cellar funk on the nose, but broadened beautifully across the palate.

The younger wines were equally compelling, though still firmly in their developmental phase.

Martha's Vineyard

Located in Oakville, Martha's Vineyard remains one of Napa Valley's most famous Cabernet Sauvignon sites.

When founder Joe Heitz first put ‘Martha’s Vineyard’ on the label of his 1966 bottling, it was the first time in Napa that the name of a site appeared on a wine label.

Martha's Vineyard takes its name from Martha May, the wife of vineyard owner and grape-grower Tom May.

The Mays purchased the Oakville property in the early 1960s. The roughly 34-acre (13.7ha) vineyard is known for producing wines marked by freshness, structure, and the distinctive bay laurel and eucalyptus character that has become its hallmark (eucalyptus trees line the perimeter).

While the fruit from Martha’s was exclusively sold to Heitz for decades, McCoy revealed that, for the first time in the vineyard's history, Heitz will not purchase the entire crop from Martha's Vineyard.

'I'm excited to see what other producers do with this exceptional fruit,' he said.

Trailside Vineyard

Purchased by Heitz in 1984, Trailside Vineyard is planted to 85 acres (35.3ha) in the Rutherford AVA, divided into 16 distinct blocks, based on a diversity of soil types, of gravelly loam and clay-loam.

The site is farmed organically, with biodynamic inputs. Several Cabernet Sauvignon clones are planted, along with Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Musque clones.

Trailside often shows a rusticity and dusty mineral character of red fruits, plus notes of sage, dried herbs, and fine tannins.

The 1999 Trailside, from a small, concentrated crop, showed the power and intensity possible from the site. Judging the wine on colour alone, you would think it was produced in the last five years.

The flavours, though, were so profoundly layered with loamy earth and tobacco nuances, along with the site’s characteristic freshness, that, save for those emerging secondary notes, it was almost hard to believe the wine was 27 years old.

Linda Falls Vineyard

Linda Falls represents Heitz's mountain-expression Cabernet Sauvignon.

Purchased and planted in 2002, at 1,500 feet (457m) elevation on Howell Mountain near the Linda Falls Preserve (a popular hiking destination with locals), only seven acres of the 42-acre (16.9ha) property are planted to vines.

The volcanic soils and higher elevation produce a markedly different profile from the valley-floor vineyards.

Dark fruit, conifer accents, crushed-stone minerality, and a firmer, more robust tannic structure define the wine, marked by the freshness so characteristic of Heitz and perfectly in place with the wines, thanks to the deft cellar work of winemaker Brittany Sherwood.

The library vintages across all three vineyard sites tasted in this Decanter Masterclass offered a compelling look at the longevity of Heitz Cellar’s iconic Cabernet Sauvignon wines.

Heitz Cellar masterclass: Five decades, back to 1979

Related articles

Winemakers are trained to think in grapes and, almost always, only grapes. Most will spend their entire careers relentlessly working within that single medium, fully aware that the craft is both exciting and unforgiving.

‘In wine, you get one harvest a year. Maybe 50 in a lifetime if you’re lucky,’ says Nick Gislason, winemaker at Screaming Eagle in Napa Valley’s Oakville AVA, who has taken on beer as another pillar of his creative outlet.

The built-in limits of winemaking, including the once-a-year window to make decisions in the cellar that will define an entire vintage, don’t exist in the same way in other beverage crafts.

Beer, for example, operates on an ongoing production cycle rather than a single seasonal window, with far more room to adjust and repeat in real time.

‘[Beer] makes you better at fermentation, because we’re working with yeast every single day,’ says Gislason. Even if the grains are harvested seasonally, like grapes, beer doesn’t unfold in a single moment. One batch is fermenting while another is being brewed.

An advantage over wine, he recognises, but one that makes it a complementary craft. ‘You learn how to manage air, temperature and timing in a more dynamic way. That absolutely feeds back into winemaking.’

From grape to grain: Hanabi Lager Co

Gislason created Hanabi, a small lager-focused beer label, around 2015.

For him, beer is not a side project, but another way of thinking through the same questions: how to grow grains for flavour, how to work with fermentation, how far one is willing to push risk in pursuit of something truly high quality.

Hanabi is an absurdly serious label. Unlike most brewers, Gislason is also a farmer, and he applies the same seriousness in viticulture as to grains, farming each variety differently, paying growers regardless of yield, going as far as reintroducing an ancient, almost extinct barley used in the first-ever Pilsners as Hanabi's flagship.

'For us, flavour is number one – even if the grain costs four times more or yields less,’ he says.

The label found its first audience among wine drinkers and sommeliers – The French Laundry and Single Thread, both Michelin-starred restaurants in northern California, were early placements – where Gislason's wine background likely carried weight.

These days, however, most of its consumers (it is distributed in six different states in the US and exported to Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Japan, Taiwan and China, about 25% of its total production) are serious beer drinkers who, as he notes, ‘often have no connection to wine’.

'Beer and wine, to me, are like different instruments. Like in music, you can play to people in a wider way if you use more than just one instrument.'

Reaching a wider audience

Dan Petroski of Massican, in Napa’s St Helena, also went on to play a whole new set of instruments to reach a wider audience.

Over the course of a decade, he explored making vermouth, beer and even gin alongside his wines, building by 2019 what he called 'world Massican': a universe he wanted to open to everybody, 'not just people who love white wine'.

The vermouth came to be almost as an accident, a result of wine barrels that didn't make the final blend: juice with nowhere to go. 'You cover the flaws. You aromatise it, sweeten it, fortify it,' Petroski says. His own version of ‘when life gives you lemons’…

'I then started to build this picture of myself as the guy who knew everything about aromatising alcohol beverages,' he says.

An earnest vision. But Petroski hadn't fully anticipated how separate the concert halls were. Wine, beer and spirits, it turns out, don't share the same road to the consumer.

At the time, managing three distribution networks proved one too many for a producer like Massican. The vermouth program ended in 2022. The beer and the gin did, too.

Since then, the brand has been acquired by Gallo (2023), and the infrastructure roadblock may no longer exist, so Petroski hasn't ruled out a return: 'I love the idea of doing it again,' he says – especially now, as 'the world is drinking slightly differently'.

Vermouth, however, remains very much alive at Matthiasson Wines in Napa Valley, where Steve and Jill Matthiasson have produced their farmhouse-style version since 2011 — now distributed across the US and exported to several countries, with Japan as its largest market.

While the couple had long been fascinated by apéritifs, their vermouth also began with a wine that fermented too far. Instead of discarding it, they transformed it using botanicals, fruit and bitters grown on their property.

In many ways, it feels connected to how they think about farming and wine — just another way of telling the same story.

Whiskey and wine

At Jackson Family Wines, which owns dozens of wineries and operates its own distribution channel, the infrastructure problem doesn't exist.

With Regal, one of California's largest wine distributors – an unusual position in a system designed to keep producers and distributors apart – the company operates on both tiers.

'Having the ability to represent high-quality spirits does serve a commercial or strategic purpose,' says Christopher Jackson of Stonestreet Wines in Healdsburg, Sonoma County, which produces Stonestreet Bourbon within the Jackson Family portfolio. 'I think it's smart to talk to the consumer across multiple different beverage platforms.'

The company released two bourbons in the past two years: Stonestreet, in 2024, which it sees as a more accessible whiskey, and Mt Brave in 2025: a cask-strength, vintage-dated expression made with collectors in mind.

For Mt Brave in Napa’s Mt Veeder, winemaker Chris Carpenter approaches whiskey blending the same way he does his wines.

‘A lot of the blending is layering flavours so none are lost, but they accentuate one another,’ Carpenter says.

‘When I'm matching different wine lots to the barrels, I’m thinking about how that barrel is going to contribute to the expression of wine. I'm thinking about those same things when I'm putting these whiskeys together.’

There's a longer game, by design, being played about how credibility travels in both directions here: a wine drinker who trusts Carpenter's palate has a reason to try the bourbon, while a bourbon drinker who respects the whiskey might feel compelled to try the wines.

Blurring boundaries

Tequila, too, has begun attracting the attention of prominent winemakers.

Bordelais consultant Philippe Melka recently released the first batch of a new tequila project, Felicente, in partnership with Vincent Garry, a veteran in the barrel business, after becoming fascinated by what he describes as a moment in the category that reminded him of California wine in the 1990s: smaller producers experimenting, challenging industrial styles, and trying to redefine quality.

Still in its early stages, the project focuses on organically farmed, high-elevation agave and uses winemaking techniques to produce three styles of tequila, currently distributed across Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, Texas, and California, with plans to expand starting next year.

It’s another sign of how fluid the boundaries between premium beverage categories have become.

Learning curves

But not every beyond-wine project is driven by commercial strategy. In a more modest way, Jamie Kutch added a new line to his Kutch Wines portfolio to address a byproduct problem: wine lees that, if dumped carelessly, could poison rivers and streams.

'It clogs up and kills the fish,' he says. 'This is a sustainable way to use them.'

Kutch distills a brandy from Pinot Noir lees, aged five years in neutral Chardonnay barrels. He makes just 90 bottles a year, sold out each release, including for at least one customer who has never bought his wine.

Winemakers usually don't set out to be anything other than winemakers, and most consumers don't turn to a winery looking for anything other than wine either.

But when something else appears, it often carries the same level of care – sometimes more – than most standalone products across other beverage categories.

Winemaking standards don't end with grapes. And it turns out the exchange goes both ways. 'Every time I'm in a new project, I learn something that I bring back to my primary project,' says Chris Carpenter.

Related articles

An opaque, intriguing history

America’s oldest vineyards are a sight to behold.

Marked by gnarled old vines planted in the 1880s, often by Italian immigrants, they provide a palpable sense of history in this so-called New World.

Many of them are field blends, the common practice at the time – a melange that may include Alicante Bouschet, Palomino, Carignan, Mataro, Syrah or Petite Sirah.

The Old Patch at Ridge’s Lytton Springs estate, first planted in 1882, includes 24 different grape varieties. The foundation, though, of these old sites is almost always Zinfandel.

‘The Dickerson vineyard in Napa was planted in the 1920s, and it’s 100% Zinfandel,’ Joel Peterson, ‘the Godfather of Zin’, tells me, while we’re standing in his old-vine Sonoma site, Bedrock vineyard.

‘The very old vineyards, like this one or Old Hill, are a mix of more than 20 varieties.

They were some of the first vineyards planted after phylloxera (both during the 1880s), so they really leaned on an old way of doing things.’

Once thought to be native to the US, Zinfandel’s origins have long been muddied.

For many years, it was believed to be closely related to the Italian variety Primitivo, maybe hailing from Puglia.

However, DNA testing at the University of California, Davis, chased its origins across the Adriatic to the coast of Croatia.

It turns out that not only are California’s long-standing signature variety and Primitivo genetically identical, but both of those grapes are also genetically identical to Dalmatia’s Crljenak Kaštelanski (also known as Tribidrag).

Peaks and valleys

The notion of quality in Zinfandel has also had a tumultuous history, particularly recently. It was the original American fine wine.

Early California bottlings of Zinfandel were sold from trains on the east coast and they made waves at the Paris Exposition of 1889.

Over time, though, its reputation has waned, owing in many ways to the great commercial success of White Zinfandel (the inexpensive, typically not dry ‘blush’-style rosés) and a lingering reputation and perhaps unfair stereotyping as a one-dimensional wine of bombast, high alcohol and little else.

‘Somewhere in the 14%-15% range is where the variety hits its stride,’ Peterson instructs. ‘There it has acid, edge and spice without the unfortunate gloopy, overripe character.’

Through all of that, it remains California’s third most planted variety, behind Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

Joel’s son Morgan Twain-Peterson MW is at the forefront in efforts to preserve many of northern California’s old-vine sites.

His commitment to forward-thinking viticulture, regenerative and organic practices, and a fresh take on the wine his father made famous, are evident in the brilliance and site clarity of his Bedrock wines.

Thanks to folks such as Twain-Peterson, Tegan Passalacqua at Turley and the team at ArnotRoberts, old-vine Zinfandel is resurgent.

While America’s fine wine regions are often left referencing their Old World counterparts, Zinfandel offers something uniquely, historically American, in spite of its Adriatic origins.

Pursehouse's pick of America's most enticing Zinfandel

Related articles

Readers should bear in mind that the 2023 growing season offered Napa producers the luxury of time: a long, relatively mild growing season with extended hang time for grapes and above-average yields – the kind of year that’s being widely described as ‘the vintage of a lifetime’.

And while official narratives can be rhapsodic, a more straightforward description might be that 2023 represents the ideal Napa Valley vintage: a year when the vines had everything they needed without the pressure of damaging heat or rain.

Many 2023s will end up among the era’s greats, but a small percentage of wines bear surprising lightness, likely a result of overcropping and extraction choices that over-taxed the tannins, leading to dilution.

I’ll add that there is also a compelling argument that the denser, more inherently concentrated 2021s may give the 2023s a run for their money, even if only long-term cellaring will settle the matter.

Rain at the right time

Nevertheless, the stage was set for an exceptional vintage, with winter rains helping ensure the vines were in a really good place to kick off the year, with good moisture in the soil.

More than 457mm of rain fell across Napa Valley between October and December of 2022 – double the typical amount.

Another 324mm fell in January, 121mm in February, followed by 249mm in March, just before bud break.

Temperatures from December 2022 through the end of March 2023 hovered between 10°C and 18°C in the daytime, dipping to 2°-7°C at night.

That coolness held consistent from spring through summer and into harvest. Daytime highs ranged from the low to mid-20s°C from June through October, with only one day over 38°C in early July.

Peak highs reached about 36°C just a few times between August and October. Most notably, September was unusually cool, with no days above 32°C, meaning growers had to be extra patient, hopeful for an Indian summer with no rain.

Thankfully, nothing beyond a centimetre or so of rain fell in October.

Canopy management

Rombauer Vineyards’ Richie Allen recalls a cold spring, with bud burst quite delayed, which put back flowering and pushed harvest out several weeks into late October and early November.

‘It never got quite warm, and we thought it was going to be another 2010 or 2011, with tons of rain and everything not getting ripe,’ he says.

Instead, Mother Nature was kind. Orin Swift’s Dave Phinney said 2023 reminds him of 1997 in Napa when there was ‘no weather pressure or rush to free up fermentation tanks’.

Nickel & Nickel winemaker Joe Harden says: ‘It was a dream for winemakers. If you managed your canopy, kept enough leaves to the end to maintain dappled sunlight, you got polished, silky tannins and supreme elegance, and it was incredibly welcome after the hot, challenging 2022 vintage.’

‘Abundant’ and ‘friendly’ are the two words that describe the 2023 vintage for Dominus Estate owner Christian Moueix.

‘If you have good growth, you let the ends of the vines grow to get out excess growth and arrive at a certain balance in terms of the size of the canopy,’ he says.

‘In every berry, you have all of the universe of the vintage, and you want each berry to get over the finish line.’

Too much of a good thing

For some, bigger canopies are welcome and easier to maintain. ‘I knew early on that there was a decent amount of fruit,’ recalls Arkenstone’s Sam Kaplan, ‘and I saw cooler days, so crop adjustment was the storyline of the season.’

Consulting winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown agrees that mitigating crop load was essential to success.

‘If there’s a downside to 2023, it was a big crop year, and if you had a site that couldn’t handle that size of crop, there would be dilution in the wines if you didn’t thin,’ he says.

‘Berries never shrivelled in 2023,’ meaning fruit concentration couldn’t come from selective raisining – it was all about reducing the number of bunches appropriately.

Indeed, during the four months I spent visiting producers and eventually tasting more than 600 wines, I found that just 10% of wines or so felt somewhat diluted, lacking the structured, ripe tannins I’d expected to find in abundance across all wines.

And while certainly pleasant, they lacked the integrity of the vintage and resulted in my lowest-scoring wines (having said that, low scores were very rare, likely because of the calibre of producers who presented wines).

Marcus Notaro of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars says that as late as September, there were ‘some lingering green berries through veraison, so you needed extra-long hang time’.

He adds: ‘For us, we had a nice combination of ripe grapes – not super-sugar-loaded grapes, because of the coolness, but the length of time let us get the tannins to a nice, ripe level.’

Jonathan's wines of the vintage

• Kinsman Eades Anjea, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Yountville) (100)
• Dalla Valle Vineyards, MDV Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (100)
• O'Shaughnessy Estate Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (99)
• La Pelle Wines Reserve, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (100)
• Monsieur Etain (by Scarecrow) Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Rutherford) (98)
• Merryvale Profile Napa Valley (St Helena) (98)
• Robert Mondavi Winery 60th Anniversary Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (98)
• The Debate Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
• Bryant Estate Bryant Family Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (99)
• Freemark Abbey Sycamore Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Rutherford) (98)
• Cathiard Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (100)
• Facets Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (95)
• JCB Surrealist Napa Valley (97)
• Larkmead Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Calistoga) (96)
• Nickel & Nickel Winery, Element 28, Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon (99)

Back to the old ways

Over and over, during the many weeks I spent tasting at wineries, winemakers across the valley commented on the psychological shift required after 2022.

‘We felt deeply scarred by the 2022 vintage,’ said Brown. ‘We had a really wet winter, so there was plenty of groundwater, and we had a pretty big fruit set, and we just kept holding our breath for bad things to come, and they never came. You had to learn to be patient again. You had to pay attention to tannin maturity because if you harvested any grapes too early, you’d be harvesting unripe tannins.’

Jason Moulton, winemaker for Whitehall Lane, was reminded of 2016, when ‘the crop load was heavier, but you had perfect [flavour and tannin] extraction during fermentation, to the point that you’re not forcing a post-ferment protocol to extract more’.

Michael Scholz, vice president of winemaking and vineyards for St Supéry, noted that the moderate temperatures ‘allowed vines to keep working through the season without stopping for any heat spells’, thereby aiding both ‘flavour and phenolic development, giving us great flavours, ripe tannins that were not big and not so aggressive, and above all, vibrancy and freshness in the wines’.

‘We learned that tannins and colour are heat sensitive, and when we don’t have those issues, we have darker-coloured wines with beautifully fine-grained, resolved tannins,’ said Freemark Abbey winemaker Kristy Melton.

Cathiard Vineyard winemaker Justine Labbe echoed that sentiment, noting, ‘we had integrated tannins right after fermentation’, a structural factor that has clearly played out even with time in bottle.

For Sullivan Rutherford Estate winemaker Jeff Cole: ‘This vintage felt like the way Napa Valley operated years ago, when you weren’t thinking about picking Cabernet in September.’

Luc Morlet of Morlet Family Vineyards, was reminded of the excellent 2016s, which benefited from rains that finally ended the drought years of 2013-2015.

‘The wines have energy and freshness that will make them a true vanguard that we’ll be able to cellar for multiple decades.’

Cristaldi’s pick of the top 2023 Napa Cabernets to buy – and to keep

The wines below includes a representative selection scored between 93-100 points. For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

Related articles

Buying a fantastic bottle of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon from an exceptional vintage, while ‘on a budget’, may require a bit of a mental recalibration.

Most of us think of budget-buys as great bottles under $30 or $40 per bottle.

And while those exist, certainly in supermarkets and many retail shops, for most high-end producers of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, you have to approach buying on a budget with the mindset that somewhere between $50 and $100 is more the norm.

Here are a few reasons why: The cost of grapes alone is formidable.

The California Grape Crush Report cites a 2023 weighted average of over $8,770 per ton of Napa County Cabernet Sauvignon, before barrels, bottle, labour, and sales even enter the frame.

Bear in mind that one ton of grapes amounts to roughly 150 gallons of wine, or about 60 cases (720 bottles).

Factoring in additional production costs means that you’re looking at a per-bottle price of around $85 and up.

But The Valley’s best grapes cost winemakers between $15,000-$60,000, per ton. And these costs trickle down to the bottle price, which has been steadily trickling up since the early 2010s.

Meanwhile, broader Napa Valley pricetags have climbed too – the average basic tasting fee ranges between $40 and $100+ per person.

Tightening the lens

So, here’s the practical takeaway from my 2023 Napa Cabernet taste-through.

While the median price per bottle of all the Napa Cabs I tasted is around $150, a solid value-play would steer us into the under‑$100 lane.

So, I tightened the lens again to $85‑and‑under (around 70 wines total), and then chose the best bottles on quality, not just thrift.

What emerges is a consistent pattern: the best values tend to be broadly sourced Napa Valley blends rather than single-vineyard wines or those bearing a single appellation on the label.

They come from largely tried and true producers who have extensive holdings or long-term grape contracts that allow them to source from multiple sites throughout the valley to create harmonious blends that, simply put, don’t break the Napa Valley bank.

20 featured 2023 Napa Cabernets at $85 and under

1. St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (91, $63)
2. Black Stallion Estate Winery Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (92, $35)
3. Argot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (93, $75)
4. The Vice, The House, Cabernet Sauvignon, Batch #181, Napa Valley (94, $36 )
5. Charles Krug, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $40)
6. Raymond Vineyards, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $50)
7. Force & Grace, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $55)
8. Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (94, $55)
9. Ashes & Diamonds, Cabernet Sauvignon, No. 2, Napa Valley (97, $70)
10. Materra, Cunat Family Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $72)
11. Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $75)
12. Cliff Lede, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $80)
13. Rombauer, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $80)
14. Jax Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville, Napa Valley, (94, $80)
15. Merryvale, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $82)
16. Mi Sueño Winery Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (94, $85)
17. Burgess, Contadina Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (95, $50)
18. Blackbird Vineyards, Arise Red Wine Napa Valley (95, $60)
19. Pott Wine Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (95, $80)
20. Louis M. Martini, The Gryphon Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (97, $85)

For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

More from this report

For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 100-points

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 99-points

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 98-points

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 97-points

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 96-points

Napa Valley 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons: 95-points

More from this report

Spend enough time outside the wine industry and a curious pattern emerges: almost no one thinks about buying wine to open decades from now.

Among the parents of my daughter’s friends and most people I meet outside professional wine circles, the idea rarely even comes up.

Wine is something to drink tonight, maybe this weekend, perhaps next year – but 20 or 30 years down the road? That seems almost unimaginable.

Part of the hesitation is practical. Many people assume that aging wine requires a wine cellar.

In reality, all it takes is a thoughtful purchase and a cool, dark place to store a bottle properly. If you want to make the effort truly worthwhile, look for wines in large formats – magnums, double magnums, or even larger.

These bottles age more gracefully because the ullage (volume of air to liquid) is so small, making oxidation even slower, while the flavors and textures evolve more slowly and beautifully over time.

Buy a bottle from the birth year of your grandchild, store it carefully, and hold onto it for two decades or more.

But don’t wait 20 years to tell the story. When your grandchild is eight or nine years old, show them the bottle and explain why you bought it.

Tell them about the people who grew the grapes and the place where the wine was made.

Explain that wine is simply fermented grape juice that – if all goes well – transforms with time into something extraordinary.

The joy of old bottles

One day, perhaps at a wedding, an anniversary, the purchase of a first home, or another milestone worth celebrating, that bottle will be opened.

The cork will ease out, the wine will swirl in the glass, and the aromas will rise: savory, expressive, captivating. The flavours will be layered and complex, the textures deep and hauntingly delicious.

That is the gift of aged wine—the taste of something remarkable shared at a moment that matters.

I would not have understood this myself had it not been for the family I married into.

My wife’s parents quietly held onto special bottles for decades, keeping them at proper cellar temperature until the right occasions arrived.

When we married, they brought some of those bottles out, and the experience added a certain magic to the evening.

I can still remember one in particular: a bottle of 1982 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Carte Or Brut we enjoyed over dinner at Gary Danko in San Francisco in 2008 (a 26-year-old Champagne!).

The wine had turned a deep golden hue, the bubbles were fine and persistent, and the aromas exploded from the glass – toasted hazelnuts, truffle, and something wonderfully savoury and complex.

I remember the elegance of my soon-to-be bride, her joy and joie de vivre, and the pride her mother took in sharing a bottle she had patiently saved for years.

That is what a well-chosen bottle can do. It captures time, preserves a story, and waits quietly for a moment when life deserves to be celebrated.

I hope you consider creating that kind of memory for your children or grandchildren.

To help you get started, here are a few 2023 vintage wines worth buying – ideally in large format – and setting aside for the future.

18 Napa Valley 2023 Cabernets to cellar

1. Dalla Valle Vineyards, MDV Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley (100)
2. Harlan Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
3. Lokoya Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Spring Mountain) (100)
4. The Debate Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
5. Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
6. Ad Vivum Sleeping Lady Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Yountville) (99)
7. Bond Pluribus Red Wine Napa Valley (99)
8. Cliff Lede Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (99)
9. Colgin Cellars IX Estate Red Napa Valley (99)
10. Louis M. Martini Bruadair Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (99)
11. O'Shaughnessy Estate Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (99)
12. Annulus Cellars Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (99)
13. Stony Hill Côte Rouge Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Spring Mountain) (99)
14. Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (98)
15. Corison Winery Sunbasket Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (98)
16. William Selyem Beckstoffer Vineyard To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
17. Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (98)
18. Impensata Las Posadas Vineyard Proprietary Red Napa Valley (Howell Mountain) (97)

For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

More from this report

In past vintage reports, we have published separate features highlighting select Napa Valley sub-appellations – often eight or so of the valley’s 17 nested AVAs – typically focusing on those regions that submitted enough wines to warrant deeper exploration.

This year, with the 2023s, we are taking a slightly different approach, highlighting the 'Stars of the AVAs' in a single list, again guided by the regions with the strongest representation in submissions.

These are wines worth seeking out because they capture, in crisp detail, the defining characteristics of their respective appellations.

Top Coombsville 2023 Cabernets

Coombsville is situated at the southern end of Napa Valley, and among the coolest of the sub-AVAs, strongly influenced by marine air and fog drifting in from San Pablo Bay.

The best Cabernet examples tend to be dark-fruited yet bright and energetic, with lifted aromatics, ultra-fine tannins, and a sense of tension and length that distinguishes the wines of this windswept corner of the valley.

• Favia Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• La Pelle Wines Ceniza Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Paul Hobbs Nathan Coombs Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Rewa Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• AXR Bennett Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (97)

Top Stags Leap District 2023 Cabernets

Vines in the Stags Leap District AVA are planted from near valley floor elevations up to about 123 metres, with the craggy, exposed palisades of Stags Leap rising dramatically above the region.

The wines are often defined by finely sculpted tannins with a polished, fine-grained texture, supported by a typically volcanic mineral edge alongside red-fruit notes and warm spice nuances.

• Cliff Lede Poetry Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Stag's Leap Wine Cellars SLV Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Robert Mondavi Winery WH Vineyard, The Estates Cabernet Sauvignon (96)
• Chimney Rock Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (94)
• Lithology Steltzner Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (96)

Top Oakville 2023 Cabernets

Cabernet Sauvignons from Oakville characteristically deliver concentration and depth, layered with complex aromas, flavours, and textures.

The best examples combine muscular structure with a sense of poise and refinement, achieving a balance between power and perfumed elegance that has made the AVA synonymous with some of Napa Valley’s most celebrated wines.

• Amici Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (100)
• Harbison Estate Horseshoe Cabernet Sauvignon (100)
• Harlan Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (100)
• Dalla Valle Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (99)
• TOR Wines Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (99)

Top Rutherford 2023 Cabernets

Cabernet Sauvignon grown on the benchlands and ancient riverbeds of Rutherford often expresses the hallmark 'Rutherford dust', a quality evident both aromatically and on the palate.

This signature character can appear as dusty earth, dried rose petal, or unsweetened cocoa powder, lending savoury nuance to wines that typically show generous fruit and structured tannins.

• Scarecrow Cabernet Sauvignon (99)
• Dana Estates Helms Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon (99)
• J.H. Wheeler Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon (97)
• St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery Rutheford Estate Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (96)
• Whitehall Lane Winery Millennium MM Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (96)

Top Mount Veeder 2023 Cabernets

High on the western Mayacamas range, Mount Veeder’s steep slopes and rugged terrain produce some of Napa Valley’s most structured mountain Cabernets.

The wines typically display powerful, muscular tannins and a deep forest-berry profile, underscored by earthy woodland notes and a spectrum of blue- to black-fruited intensity.

A distinctive graphite-like minerality often runs through the best examples, giving the wines both gravity and lift.

• Pott Wine Incubo Cabernet Sauvignon (99)
• Lokoya Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Mt. Brave Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Pilcrow Archer & Byrd Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Hess Collection 'The Lion' Cabernet Sauvignon (97)

Top St. Helena 2023 Cabernets

Situated near the narrow 'hourglass' point of Napa Valley, the St. Helena AVA tends to experience warmer daytime temperatures and relatively limited wind flow.

The resulting wines often show a ripe, dense fruit profile with generous texture, yet without angular tannins, offering a plush, approachable expression of Cabernet Sauvignon.

• B Cellars Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (100)
• Stewart Cellars NOMAD Beckstoffer Georges III Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (97)
• Rombauer Stice Lane Cabernet Sauvignon (96)
• Patria A. Price Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (96)
• Whitehall Lane Winery Leonardini Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (95)

Top Howell Mountain 2023 Cabernets

Perched above the fog line, Howell Mountain encompasses an array of slopes, rolling hills, and diverse microclimates.

Its well-draining, rocky soils encourage small berries and concentrated fruit.

The wines are known for their formidable tannic structure, often presenting a broad, textured mid-palate supported by excellent fruit concentration and a distinctive mineral elegance.

• Arkenstone Estate Red (100)
• Salty Goats Wine Co. Cabernet Sauvignon (99)
• La Jota Vineyard Co Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Sylvan Lake Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Moone Tsai Wines Hillside Blend Red Wine (97)

Top Calistoga 2023 Cabernets

At the northernmost end of Napa Valley, Calistoga sits at the foot of Mount St. Helena, nestled between the Mayacamas and Vaca mountain ranges.

The AVA is typically warmer during the summer months than most other parts of the valley, allowing tannins to ripen fully.

The best wines offer ample mouthfeel and complexity while maintaining balance, delivering richness without excessive heaviness or over-concentration.

• Hourglass Bluelne Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (97)
• Donelan Cabernet Sauvignon (97)
• Venge Vineyards Igneous Cabernet Sauvignon (96)
• Baldacci Family Vineyards Stella Knight Vineyard (94)
• Davies Vineyards Oliven Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (94)

For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

More from this report

The wines for short-term pleasure

For the most part, the 2023 Cabernets are built for a long life.

However, they are also immensely joyful, easy to drink, and expressive in their youth, thanks to the long growing season, which produced refined tannins that are already well integrated at this early stage.

I combed through my notes to find those wines that speak most clearly of pure deliciousness—the kind that are very hard to put down.

This short list highlights some of my easy-drinking, enjoy-now favourites, though they should drink beautifully over the next three to seven years.

• Schrader Cellars Old Sparky To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
• Argot Sage Ridge Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (97)
• To Kalon Vineyard Company HWC Napa Valley (Oakville) (98)
• Tres Perlas Barber Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (98)
• Fait-Main Wines Beckstoffer Missouri Hopper Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (97)
• Castello di Amorosa Manley Lane Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Rutherford) (93)
• B Cellars Star Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Rutherford)
• Clos du Val Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Stags Leap District) (94)
• Desiree Wine Company Out of Sight Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (93)
• Coronet Wines Lady Liberty Vineyard, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (95)

The wines with mid-term appeal

We’re moving into wines you may be tempted to drink right away, but which will benefit from additional time in bottle.

So when that shipment arrives, do your best to hold off – or buy enough that you can pop a cork now and hold the rest for a few more years before diving in.

These wines possess immensely powerful, chewy tannins, and while they soften with a solid four to six hours of decanting, you really owe it to yourself to tuck them away until the tannins integrate further and the drinking experience becomes pure enjoyment.

• Morlet Family Vineyards Cœur de Vallée Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
• Nickel & Nickel Winery Element 28, Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (99)
• Paul Hobbs Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (99)
• Pott Wine Incubo Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (99)
• Rudd Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (99)
• Venge Vineyards DLCV Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (99)
• Bure Family Wines Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (98)
• Burgess Quartz Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (98)
• Dominus Napa Valley (98)
• Vine Hill Ranch VHR, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (98)

The wines for long-term reward

And now we arrive at the pièce de résistance – the moment de vérité. The wines that follow are the true heavyweights of the vintage: deep, structured, and destined for long lives in the cellar.

Even where there is surprising early charm, these wines possess the structural hallmarks of longevity: a firm tannic backbone, a vibrant spine of acidity, judicious use of oak, and layers of flavours and spice that unfold with complexity and precision.

Not all the usual Napa icons appear here, either—several newcomers have earned their place, signalling brands to watch and collect over the coming years.

And because the 2023 vintage produced such a wealth of cellar-worthy Cabernets, be sure to see the section on wines to buy for your grandchildren for additional long-haul candidates.

• Pahlmeyer Pièce de Résistance Napa Valley (100)
• AXR AxR1 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (100)
• Harbison Estate Horseshoe Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
• Keplinger Wines Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (100)
• CADE Winery Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Howell Mountain) (99)
• Cardinale Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (99)
• Pilcrow Granite Lake Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Howell Mountain) (99)
• Estate 8 Iconic AVA Mt Veeder, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Mt Veeder) (99)
• Favia Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (99)
• Simon Family Estate Reserve, Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (100)
• Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve, Cabernet Sauvignon (98)
• Freemark Abbey Sycamore Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Rutherford) (98)
• Julien Fayard Wines Sleeping Lady Vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon (Yountville) (97)
• Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (St Helena) (98)
• Gamble Estates Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley (Oakville) (99)

For all of Jonathan Cristaldi's scores from the vintage, click here.

More from this report

A visit to the Opus One website reveals the slogan: ‘Two families. One Vision’.

Which somewhat reminds one of the opening lyrics to Queen’s 1986 hit, It’s a kind of Magic:

‘One dream, one soul

‘One prize, one goal

‘One golden glance of what should be

‘It's a kind of magic’

Joking aside, Opus One was very much a pioneer in its fusion of classic Bordeaux and upstart Napa Valley winemaking heritage.

Born of a collaboration between Baron Philip de Rothschild of Château Mouton Rothschild and Robert Mondavi, it was meant to harness the potential of the ‘New World’ with the know-how of the ‘Old’.

Furthermore, it was based around not just the Bordeaux blend but also the idea of the Bordeaux estate, a winery surrounded by its own vines in a single appellation/American Viticultural Area (AVA).

This was unlike a common model used in Napa Valley, both then and now, of buying grapes from across multiple sites/AVAs.

The pair had begun discussing the project in the early 1970s after a meeting in Hawaii. The first wine, the 1979 vintage, was released in 1984 and a dedicated winery in Oakville was opened in 1991.

The wine was priced high right from the start, and quickly became a marker of the swelling tide of ‘icon’ and ‘cult’ wines beginning to emerge from various corners of North and South America in this period.

With its French connections, however, Opus One was one of the rare few to have widespread distribution beyond the US.

As such, it remains one of the Napa Valley labels most non-American fine wine enthusiasts will know best.

Secondary market overview

Looking back over the winery’s last 10 releases, it’s worth pointing out the glaring omission of the 2020 vintage.

This is not an error! After the devastating forest fires in the region in 2020, Opus One decided not to release any wines from that vintage due to smoke taint issues.

The winery’s output in terms of both scores and prices remain incredibly consistent. A case of 12 bottles costs just under £3,000 on average, with an average score from Decanter of 97-points.

This compares favourably with some of the leading Bordeaux estates that have been examined so far.

The average score is the same as Château Cheval Blanc and Château Haut-Brion, and it’s considerably cheaper on average than all of the First Growths and Cheval Blanc.

Fine wine marketplace Liv-ex includes Opus One in its ‘California 50’ index. Like so many other indices, it is far from the peak it attained in 2022.

However, among all the other wines in the index (Harlan, Screaming Eagle, Ridge Monte Bello and Dominus), it is the vintages of Opus One that have seen the most gains over the past year.

Opus One vintages

For any buyer looking to add Opus One to their collection, an obvious starting point would be the 2022 vintage.

A solid 97-points from two Decanter critics – Georgie Hindle and Jonathan Cristaldi – it is also the cheapest vintage currently available, with a Market Price of £2,590 (12x75) according to Liv-ex.

Two older vintages may also be of interest. The trio of 2018, 2019 and 2021 yielded three vintages Decanter rated 98-points across the board.

However, the 2018 is currently available at a discount of around £100 per dozen versus the other two, a neat little discount for a wine called ‘striking, elegant and precise’ by Hindle.

Curious buyers may want to not hang around. The wine recently gained 4.2% month-on-month according to Liv-ex. Maybe others have spotted the gap too?

It feels odd to say that there’s a 2013 vintage rated 100-points. But while that particular vintage was rather less than legendary in Bordeaux, it was one of the all-time greats in Napa.

Opus One’s 2013 is striking enough to have earned it a triple-digit score from Jane Anson.

At a tasting in 2019 when she described it thus: ‘Dark deep rosemary spice and black olive paste deepens the flavours through the mid-palate and you just have to hang on as this goes spiralling through, drawing the flavours out to a lengthy finish.’

And at £3,050 per dozen, it does not command a serious premium over other available vintages either.

The 2012 vintage was equally famous and, of the two, is currently the more expensive (though its Decanter score is only 97-points).

Like the 2018 though, the 2013 gained 4.2% MoM according to Liv-ex, meaning it may be a vintage drawing attention again.

And finally, it will be interesting to see the price of Opus One 2023 when it's released through La Place de Bordeaux this autumn.

Rated 98-points by Jonathan Cristaldi in his recent review of the vintage, a price equal to or even below that of the 2022 would surely make it an attractive proposition?

Opus One: Selected tasting notes

Related articles

The buzz for Napa Valley’s 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon wines began circulating during the 2025 Premiere Napa Valley Barrel Auction.

I recall several producers belting the phrase ‘over the moon ecstatic,’ and gushing over the ‘plentiful tannins’ and ‘bright, grippy acidity’ that seemed to mark the wines in their early maturing phase.

Hardly anyone I spoke to had harvested Cabernet grapes in September—certainly unusual if we look back over historical picking dates from the last decade.

In 2023, most began harvesting in October and continued well into November.

Early on, the Napa Valley Vintners promoted 2023 as ‘the Vintage of a Lifetime.’

My own verdict, after tasting more than 600 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons from the year, is that the phrase, while catchy, may not quite capture the deeper truth of the season.

A more accurate description might be that 2023 represents the ideal Napa Valley vintage: a year when the vines had everything they needed – including time itself, without the pressure of damaging heat or rain.

Heavy winter rains replenished soils depleted by several drought years, placing vines in a strong physiological position as the growing season began.

Soils rich in moisture and microbial life provided vines with the resources to produce healthy canopies and excellent fruit set.

Once the season began, Napa Valley experienced something increasingly rare – stability in the weather, with moderate temperatures throughout spring and summer, and well into harvest time.

As Michael Scholz, Vice President of Winemaking and Vineyards of St. Supéry, observed, these moderate conditions allowed flavour and phenolic development to progress together, yielding wines with, ‘great flavours, ripe tannins, and above all vibrancy and freshness'.

The finished wines possess deep crimson colours, yet striking luminosity, layered fruit purity, and silky, finely structured tannins supported by vibrant acids and graphite-tinged minerality.

Managing yields

If there is any criticism of Mother Nature in 2023, it is that September might have benefited from a handful of warmer days.

A brief stretch of additional heat could have accelerated ripening by roughly a week or ten days and pushed the vintage into truly historic territory.

Even so, growers across the valley widely described the year as a dream scenario.

Nickel & Nickel winemaker Joe Harden called it ‘a dream for winemakers,’ noting that careful canopy management yielded polished, silky tannins and remarkable elegance in the finished wines.

Of course, a great growing season does not guarantee great wine. What winemakers do with the fruit ultimately determines whether a vintage lives up to its potential.

In 2023, vineyard management was critical. The abundant water and healthy canopies led to generous yields, meaning producers who failed to thin crops risked dilution in the finished wines.

As I tasted through hundreds of wines, only a small percentage showed signs of that kind of lightness.

The overwhelming majority displayed the structure, freshness, and depth expected of a great Napa year.

What is perhaps most exciting is how 2023 will sit alongside the extraordinary 2021 vintage.

A compelling duo

The wines of 2021 are dense, inky, and powerfully structured – born of a shorter growing season with reduced yields and vines combating hydric stress.

By contrast, the 2023s lean towards a brighter, fresher profile, are almost relaxed, yet framed by equally powerful tannins that are so extremely fine-grained they are already seamlessly integrated, making for incredibly easy enjoyment.

For collectors and traders of high-end Napa Cabernet, that pairing is particularly intriguing.

The muscular grandeur of 2021 and the poised elegance of 2023 will likely age on parallel trajectories for decades.

If the wines evolve as expected, the coming years may see these two vintages spoken of together as defining benchmarks of the modern Napa Valley era.

Together, they may form one of Napa Valley’s most compelling back-to-back collector vintages.

Related articles

Sonoma County is huge - more than 4,000km2, stretching from the Pacific coast to the mountains. It’s twice the size of its next-door neighbour Napa Valley, and larger than the state of Rhode Island.

You would think that such a wide geographical range would translate into diversity in its wines. And it does.

Yet the conversation about Chardonnay here keeps recycling the same two talking points: the buttery-oaky California stereotype and austere, overly restrained wines.

Ironically, given this duopoly of opinion, Chardonnay is considered by winemakers to be a ‘blank canvas’ – malleable enough to be shaped in the cellar, but capable of deeply expressing terroir.

A Chardonnay that tastes saline and sharp on the West Sonoma Coast turns richer and rounder 15km inland in Russian River.

Mountain sites add structure due to the elevation and tension from rocky soils, while wines from San Pablo Bay-cooled Los Carneros tend toward softer textures and freshness.

With more than 20 sub-appellations in the county, that’s not even close to the full picture.

Listening to the terroir

But expressing such a range hasn’t always been the focus. ‘There’s been a shift in the last 10 years,’ says Kristina Shideler, winemaker at Stonestreet Wines in Healdsburg.

The change isn’t just technical – less oak, lower alcohol, more restraint – it’s philosophical.

‘There is now a willingness among Sonoma County producers to let their sites dictate the style,’ says Jasmine Hirsch of Hirsch Vineyards.

This meaningful change has brought a sharper focus on single vineyards, the incredible diversity of the region’s soils and farming practices that are more attuned to the land.

‘We have more soil types than all of France, plus an extreme variety of microclimates,’ says Hirsch.

Has the message broken through? ‘I still hear people say, “I don’t like California Chardonnay, but I like yours”,’ Hirsch admits.

Even if some of the stigma lingers, Sonoma’s diversity has never been clearer. And the wines have never tasted better.

Shideler is confident: ‘Get over everything that you think about Sonoma Chardonnay. We’re in a new wave.’

Sonoma Chardonnay: 20 top picks to explore today

Related articles

Arguably, no wine region – not Bordeaux, not Burgundy, not even Champagne – has pursued luxury as deliberately as Napa Valley.

When winemaker Ivo Jeramaz arrived from Croatia in 1986 to work alongside his uncle, Miljenko ‘Mike’ Grgich, Napa was a quieter, humbler and unmistakably agrarian place.

In the decades that followed, the region was transformed, he recalls.

An influx of outside capital ushered in showpiece wineries with chandeliered tasting rooms. The hot pursuit of 100-point scores introduced cult wines and tightly held allocations.

‘Napa became a very exclusive place,’ says Jeramaz – a region, and wines, defined by luxury, polish and power.

The model worked for a while, he says, but today it’s clear that it’s under strain.

Inflexion point

Signs pointing to an unprecedented market correction are unavoidable across Napa Valley.

Wine sales have slowed, leaving excess inventory in their wake. Layoffs and facility closures have become regular and climate volatility is an operational constant.

Confidence levels at Napa wineries are among the lowest of any major US wine region, according to a recent survey by Silicon Valley Bank.

At every turn, there’s talk of a reset – a new era for Napa framed in terms such as authenticity and accessibility.

Wineries are leaning into storytelling and digital outreach. Wine tastings are being recast as wellness experiences.

But beneath the tactical adjustments, there are signs of a deeper, more structural shift emerging, too.

In a region that has largely exhausted conventional markers of luxury, a more durable expression of prestige may lie in the vineyard itself.

Prestige reconsidered

For many growers, this recalibration begins with a correction of the narrative.

Annie Favia, the viticulturist and co-owner of Favia Wines, recoils slightly when I suggest that Napa can, at times, resemble a Disneyland for wine lovers.

‘Napa has this very shiny veneer,’ she says, ‘but underneath it, it’s always been about farming.’

The valley’s agricultural core, she argues, may have been overshadowed by a commercially sexier narrative of luxury, but its backbone, built on family-run estates and generational stewardship, never disappeared.

For Favia and her husband, winemaker Andy Erickson (of Screaming Eagle and Dalla Valle fame), farming has always come first.

Since 2012, they’ve produced wine from organic vineyards certified by California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF), incorporating biodynamic and regenerative principles.

‘We’ve had our heads down, working towards this goal for over three decades,’ Favia says.

What feels different now, Erickson suggests, is the growing momentum around those principles. ‘[Now] we have a chance to be a voice in a new chapter for Napa,’ he says.

At Vine Hill Ranch, a heritage estate situated on the slopes of the Mayacamas mountain range in Oakville, Bruce Phillips (pictured, above) – whose family has grown wine grapes there since the late 1950s – poses the idea similarly. What if Napa’s new luxury was rooted in a grower movement?

It’s a question that points to Champagne as a reference – a reorientation of currency away from grandes maisons and brand marketing, and toward wines crafted by growers, site expression and generational stewardship of land and community.

These recalibrations align with broader cultural currents. The rise of quiet luxury in fashion, for example, displaced logos and overt displays of wealth with a renewed reverence for craft, origin and sustainability.

In Napa, sustainability has similarly emerged as a marker of changing value systems.

Translating that impulse into a cohesive movement, however, hasn’t been easy.

A greener Napa

Among many wine-growers, there’s a shared conviction – if any wine region should take the lead on stewardship, why not Napa?

It’s one of the world’s most prestigious wine regions, with some of the highest land prices and operating budgets in the world, explains Jeramaz.

‘And yet, we’ve pretended that what we put in the soil has no bearing on wine quality,’ he says.

Grgich Hills, along with pioneers such as Neal Family Vineyards and Spottswoode Winery, were among Napa’s earliest adopters of organic viticulture and the trio are the only estates in the valley to hold silver-level Regenerative Organic Certified status, a standard that extends beyond organic regulations to include things such as soil health metrics, biodiversity benchmarks and labour protections.

Jeramaz argues that Napa should be further along, with stronger commitments to organic certification, wider adoption of regenerative practices and a full ban on synthetic herbicides, pesticides and fertilisers.

Organic certification, often considered a baseline standard for meaningful sustainability, has grown in Napa, especially in recent years.

According to CCOF data, about 12.5% of Napa Valley’s vineyard acreage is certified organic.

The Napa County Department of Agriculture reports that there were 138 certified organic wine grape growers in Napa Valley in 2024.

Yet even those numbers may understate actual practice. Napa Valley Grapegrowers estimates that the number of organic grapegrowers would double if uncertified farms practising organic methods were included.

Long-term benefits

The pursuit of sustainability rarely follows a single blueprint in Napa. Cathy Corison (pictured, above) of Corison Winery farmed organically for nearly three decades before obtaining CCOF certification in 2023, prompted largely by her daughter Grace.

‘I started farming organically long before it was fashionable,’ explains Corison, recalling a time when the label could even be viewed as a liability.

Cost and administrative burdens delayed the decision, but her daughter’s influence helped Corison to understand the greater value and recognition that certification carries, particularly for the next generation.

Also, she says, a growing sense of greenwashing in the industry – when companies use terminology related to sustainability to make misleading, vague or exaggerated claims about the supposed environmental benefits of their own operations – made the decision feel timely.

Indeed, the idea of sustainability is increasingly central to Napa’s messaging, but it’s a notoriously elastic term lacking a consistent definition or standards.

As environmental virtue begins to function as prestige currency, the absence of cohesion leaves consumers navigating a wide spectrum of approaches, often with varying shades of greenwashing.

On one hand, certifications provide invaluable benchmarks for assessing and communicating farming practices, but on the other, debate persists over which standards carry the most weight, and how much legitimacy should be afforded to vineyards operating outside formal certification.

The sheer number of certifications and competing claims from wineries can be difficult for consumers to parse, acknowledges Caleb Mosley, the executive director of Napa Valley Grapegrowers.

Yet if the shared objective is the long-term health of soils, vines and the people who work the land, ‘the certification conversation might become a little more ancillary’, he suggests.

It’s possible that even imperfect or incremental moves toward sustainability, which are often dismissed as greenwashing, may still signal a shift in values.

Long-term view

If farming is indeed becoming the new marker of luxury in Napa, Joseph Phelps Vineyards offers one of its clearest expressions.

Following its sale to luxury group LVMH’s Moët Hennessy division in 2022, the estate launched one of the valley’s most ambitious regenerative projects to date.

Unveiled in 2024, the Borgo Project represents a sweeping redesign of vineyard systems around agroecology principles.

The initiative incorporates everything from an intensive study of soil health to hydrological mapping and the creation of ecological corridors to restore biodiversity.

The plan operates on a capital-heavy, nine-year horizon before wines even reach the market.

CEO David Pearson describes the Borgo Project as ‘a new paradigm and a new basis for agriculture in Napa’, a model he hopes others in the region will follow.

Pearson is candid that he doesn’t intend to pursue third-party certification. The goal of the project, he says, was always to produce the best possible wines.

Certifications, he argues, neither guarantee that outcome nor necessarily align with the estate’s specific needs.

Building resilience

The Borgo Project underscores a reality many growers face – cost remains a significant barrier to structural change.

Regenerative certification, for example, requires paying all workers, including seasonal grape pickers, a set living wage – a minimum in Napa of roughly $36 an hour, instead of the more typical $20-$25, explains Aron Weinkauf, winemaker and vineyard manager at Spottswoode.

The upfront costs are high, acknowledges Spottswoode’s president and CEO Beth Novak (pictured, above).

‘[But] we look at it as an optimisation of profit rather than a maximisation,’ she says.

Over time, those investments amount to business resilience, Novak explains – a healthier environment, as well as longer-lived vines that require fewer inputs, less labour and ultimately, lower operating costs.

‘You make those investments because you intend to be here decades from now,’ she says.

Napa is in a tough place right now, Napa Valley Grapegrowers’ Mosley acknowledges, but it’s a reset that has offered clarity, ‘recalibrating toward people making not only positive business decisions, but positive viticultural and land-use decisions, too’.

Approaches to a greener, more resilient future for Napa will vary, as will the metrics used to assess them.

Ideally, what will endure is a fundamental shift in values and a return to farming as the region’s most credible expression of identity.

Related articles

At the table with Katie Vogt

Katie Vogt will be attending Decanter's Fine Wine Encounter in New York on 6 June, along with top Pahlmeyer wines.

Travel tips: New York to Napa

Food and wine

Join Katie Vogt and taste top Pahlmeyer wines at the Decanter Fine Wine Encounter New York 2026 on 6 June.

The general consensus holds that Californian Chardonnay is at its best in those areas where cooler climes and Pacific Ocean breezes temper hot days.

And there’s no shortage of winemakers who baulk at the idea of Napa-grown Chardonnay, seeing it as too warm.

The reality, however, is that it can be done. And done well.

Chardonnay is a variety that bears little tolerance for excess heat, and it can easily tip into the realm of plush, soft, full-bodied white wine lacking in tension.

Grown in the right sites in Napa Valley, and in the right hands, the results can be as riveting as top white Burgundy – as pleasure-packed, as contemplative, and as potentially ageworthy.

Yes, I said it, but can I back it up?

Looking back over the 8,000+ wines I’ve reviewed for Decanter in the last five years, I’ve given some pretty high scores to a handful of Chardonnays that defy expectations.

And here’s their little secret: Location, location, location.

A reliable source

Los Carneros, a sub-appellation spanning Napa and Sonoma counties, south-west of the city of Napa, remains the most reliable source of world-class Chardonnay in Napa Valley.

Here, the cooling influence of San Pablo Bay draws fog and wind deep into the southern reaches of the valley, slowing ripening and preserving natural acidity.

It is no coincidence that some of my top scorers below originate from the Hyde and Hudson vineyards, sites that have proven capable of producing Chardonnay with both richness and tension.

David Ramey’s Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay shows the site’s classic profile: layered orchard fruit, citrus oil, and a firm acid spine shaped as much by picking decisions as by place.

David Ramey has long championed acid balance over opulence in his Chardonnays, and so many of his Chardonnays are still bright and lively a decade after bottling because of it.

Back in 2019, during a tasting of his Chardonnays, he felt compelled to remind me of something I imagine he has had to repeat often.

‘It’s a dream that Old World is somehow better or more natural. Do the lab analysis. Stop romanticising things you don’t understand – great producers are great no matter where they are, just as with film and art. Why do we value Château Latour? Experience.’

Ramey has been making wine for more than five decades. In the grand scheme of California winemaking, that’s experience.

Tor Kenward, who works with winemaker Jeff Ames, also makes a stunning Chardonnay from Hyde called Cuvée Susan, which is more textural with extended élevage bringing a deeper mid-palate weight, yet still anchored by Carneros freshness.

A Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay from Nid Tissé, produced by Marie-Laure Ammons, offers another interpretation – more tightly coiled, mineral-driven, and inspired by her upbringing in rural Limousin and by her own winemaking approach, shaped by work for the likes of Philippe Melka, Julien Fayard, and Pierre Seillan.

Do the right thing

And then there is Hyde’s neighbour, Hudson Vineyards, established by Lee Hudson in 1981.

Lee decided to start making wine in 2004, and he asked Chardonnay legend John Konsgaard (who I have yet to taste with, and hence, none of his wines make this list), to make sure, ‘I didn’t do anything stupid,’ Hudson told me while riding a four-wheeler around his nearly 2,000-acre ranch.

‘I wanted to make Chablis. And John said: "Well, move to France. We don’t make that here. We make wine that represents the sun."'

Hudson’s site, with its shallow Hair Clay Loam soils, with a mix of volcanic and marine sediments, and exposure to the Bay’s marine influence, consistently produces fruit with ample concentration and structure – with the style idling between power and finesse, largely determined by picking decisions.

Heading further in

But Carneros is only part of the story. In Coombsville, just east and south of the city of Napa, cooler temperatures and volcanic soils create a markedly different expression of Chardonnay.

Coombsville’s persistent morning fog and afternoon breezes delay ripening, allowing for extended hang time without sugar accumulation racing ahead of phenolic development.

The result here is a wine of remarkable detail – citrus, stone fruit, saline mineral tones – held together by a natural acidity that is so bracing it’ll take the paint off the deck of your boat.

Nearby, in the western Oak Knoll District, the Linda Vista Vineyard Chardonnay from Matthiasson Wines illustrates another model for success.

Steve Matthiasson has built his reputation on restraint – earlier picking, moderate alcohol, minimal intervention – and the Linda Vista bottling reflects that philosophy.

Oak Knoll’s slightly cooler temperatures compared to mid-valley sites allow for freshness, but it is Matthiasson’s farming and timing that define the clarity and lift of his Chardonnay.

Then there are the wines that challenge the assumption that Chardonnay belongs only in Napa’s cooler southern or low-lying zones.

On stony ground

Stony Hill, established by the McCrea family in 1943 on the eastern slopes of Spring Mountain above St. Helena, remains one of Napa Valley’s defining Chardonnay estates.

The 2023 Chardonnay, drawn from vines planted in 1988 using massal selections from the estate’s original Old Wente plantings, shows classic Stony Hill restraint underpinned by a firm, saline acid structure that signals long ageing potential.

Similarly, winemaker Chris Carpenter’s W.S. Keyes Vineyard Chardonnay from La Jota demonstrates what is possible across the valley, on Howell Mountain.

Mountain fruit tends to ripen more slowly, with smaller berries and thicker skins, resulting in wines with greater concentration and grip.

Back on the valley floor, but pushing ripeness boundaries, Pahlmeyer’s Savoir Faire Chardonnay from Hyde Vineyard shows how clonal selections matter too – the 2024 release is entirely Calera clone.

The Calera selection is a low-yielding clone, producing small clusters and berries that deliver naturally high acidity and taut minerality.

And then, there’s Old Wente selections – a heritage clone marked by millerandage (‘hens and chicks’) that produces large and smaller berries (the small are typically seedless), contributing to richness, textural depth, and a broad, creamy mid-palate with ripe orchard fruit.

Putting it all together

Above all, what unites these exceptional Chardonnay wines is not style, certainly not typicity, which is something I don’t believe in, but a combination of factors: slightly cooler climes, water-retaining, yet well-draining soils, good aspect with protected pockets that can mitigate afternoon heat, and farming to ensure canopy management, yields, and soil health all influencing how those Chardonnay berries develop.

Get these elements right, and Napa Chardonnay can result in one of the best wines you’ve ever tasted in your life.

Oh, I didn’t do the obligatory Rombauer ‘cougar juice’ mention, so here it is: I’d happily drink a glass of Rombauer’s Carneros Chardonnay any day.

Listen: If you haven’t tasted it in recent years, you won’t believe how that wine is now built on – wait for it! – balanced ripeness and more nuanced oak.

My goodness, it's delicious.

Below are 12 brilliant Chardonnays from Napa that you’ll want to stuff in your cellar or wine fridge.

My 12 all-time Napa Chardonnays

Related articles

Paso Robles has long been known as one of California’s most approachable wine regions, both in personality and in price.

As its reputation has grown, so have its costs. Tasting room fees that once hovered comfortably below $20 now commonly reach $40 to $100 per person at premium estates.

Bottles priced over $100 at the winery are also more common as the region earns greater acclaim.

However, even with the rise in luxury offerings, Paso Robles continues to hold onto one of its core identities. It remains a place where value-priced wines still shine.

Priority target

According to a survey conducted for the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, the majority of the region's wines fall within the $16-$30 range.

Some producers are making value a deliberate priority.

In 2023, the Linne Calodo Winery reduced its tasting fee from $40 to $20.

'I believe that everyone should have access to great wines when visiting Paso Robles and that you should be able to easily experience the hospitality that built our wine scene,' says owner and winemaker Matt Trevisan.

Consumers appear to agree. In a Wine Opinions study, consumer sentiment indicates that Paso Robles wines are considered good value for their price point, second only to Sonoma.

In a market where many buyers are becoming more price-conscious, Paso stands out as a region where quality and affordability still align.

Growth is strongest among wines priced between $20 and $30. In other words, even as high-end wines gain attention, value wines continue to be the heart of Paso’s consumer appeal.

The right raw materials

For many winemakers, value is not a compromise. It is rooted in sourcing, farming, and thoughtful production.

For example, long-term vineyard contracts help stabilise grape costs for $20 bottles.

‘We approach value by identifying vineyards where we can cut prices without sacrificing quality,’ says McPrice Myers of McPrice Myers Wines.

‘The attention to detail, both in the vineyard and the winery, does not change between our premium approach and our value approach.'

He also notes that having a range of prices supports both distribution and direct-to-consumer sales. ‘We want to be approachable to everyone, whether they’re just getting into wine or are seasoned enthusiasts.’

Paso’s ability to offer both premium wines and strong values is supported by its wide range of vineyards, soils, and winemaking approaches.

‘The versatility and diversity of Paso Robles is immense and is the main reason our region is so special,’ says Stephanie Terrizzi of Giornata.

At Field Recordings, owner and winemaker Andrew Jones has all the right raw materials to make solid $15 to $25 wines.

Vineyard costs and oak usage are the main factors that influence pricing for his value wines.

Fermentation practices remain the same across all price points, including native yeast fermentation, minimal SO2, no fining agents, and light filtration before bottling.

Jones also credits part of his affordability to a streamlined production facility.

‘A lot of our value comes from our production practices. We have a very simple setup in (the urban winery area of) Tin City.’

Paso Robles continues to evolve, yet its commitment to producing accessible wines remains steady.

Consumers recognise that the region consistently delivers quality at prices that still feel within reach, which keeps Paso at the forefront of value in California wine.

Brianne's value picks from Paso Robles

Related articles

There’s a ‘holy trinity’ of California wine – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.

They dominate restaurant lists, anchor most tasting rooms, and take up more retail shelf space than everything else combined.

For the past 50 years, this has been the California wine story. But there is a lot more to that story, and it began here long before those three grapes.

‘If you really zoom out, it’s actually kind of absurd that we’ve built our entire reputation on Burgundian varieties and a Bordeaux variety,' says Morgan Twain-Peterson, winemaker at Bedrock Wine Co. in Sonoma.

'From a strictly climate standpoint, Mediterranean varieties are the grapes we should be growing in our Mediterranean climate.’

Curious consumers

It’s not a new idea. Before Prohibition, California vineyards were full of Carignan, Alicante Bouschet, Mourvèdre, Petite Sirah and Cinsault.

A lot has happened since Prohibition, including a recent and noticeable slowdown in sales – particularly of Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

‘People can’t sell them,’ says Twain-Peterson. ‘They’re either ripping vineyards out or thinking about what else they can grow.’

The timing aligns with a generation of consumers looking for something different.

People are drinking less, but when they do drink, they want authenticity, curiosity, value – wines that feel like discovery, not a status symbol.

‘People are more and more willing to try new grapes,’ says Jason Haas, proprietor of Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles, whose estate has been built entirely around all the traditional varieties of Châteauneuf-du-Pape for nearly four decades.

‘It’s never been easier than it is now.’

And the range of what consumers are discovering in California goes well beyond Grenache and Syrah.

‘The first wines to sell at Bedrock last year were the weird stuff,’ says Twain-Peterson. In a market built on name recognition, under-the-radar has become a selling point.

Many of those once-obscure grapes are finding their own expression and a new audience in California.

'Picpoul has great acidity, but the California expression is more tropical and a little more luscious than what people are used to from the south of France,' says Haas. 'It’s a grape that is capable of more than it’s usually allowed to show in France.'

Carignan tells a similar story. 'Old-vine Carignan is the most underrated thing in California,' says Twain-Peterson – 'affordable, endlessly expressive, capable of everything from crunchy and bright to rich and structured, depending on where it’s grown.'

The right place

The appeal goes beyond what’s in the glass. According to growers and producers, these varieties are better suited to the areas where they are grown.

‘If we’re talking about what’s still going to get ripe in a cool year, but also withstand a furnace blast of 110 degrees for six days straight like we got in 2022 – those varieties are far better candidates to deal with heat,’ says Twain-Peterson.

Not coincidentally, many of California’s oldest vines – the ones that have survived a century of heat, drought and frost – are mostly Mediterranean varieties.

‘Planting something that’s happier in a hot, sunny, dry climate should mean it’ll live longer,’ says Haas. ‘That’s got to be a good thing – both from a cost standpoint and from a pure sustainability standpoint.’

There is a direct line between what belongs in the ground and what ends up in the bottle in its purest state.

‘When you have the right variety in the right place, the wine becomes transparent to the terroir,’ says John Hamel, winemaker at Hamel Family Wines in the Moon Mountain District of Sonoma Valley, who has been grafting Grenache over from Cabernet and planting Mourvèdre on his estate.

‘The wines have been a real revelation,’ he adds.

A freedom of expression

Freed from the stylistic expectations of established varietals in California, producers find themselves more creative with winemaking choices, and consumers benefit from having no canon to defer to, no benchmark to be wrong about.

‘When there isn’t this backlog of every style of that wine,’ says Hamel, ‘people are interested in that.’

That diversity of expression is precisely what makes these wines feel less intimidating to a new generation of drinkers.

At the heart of it, what drives all of this is a genuine belief that California has more to offer than most people think.

‘I hope they will find grapes that show the place in which they’re grown in a beautiful way, where none of us is trying to copy the Old World,’ says Haas.

‘We’re trying to find grapes that are well suited for their spots in California – that will show the soils, show the weather, show complexity and freshness and balance, without having to be manipulated to do so.’

A selection of California's Mediterranean wines from Ana Carolina Quintela:

Related articles

Setting the scene

The masterclass coincided with publication in Decanter’s March issue of an interview with Barrett, where he recalled the early days of Montelena and the impact that the victory of the estate’s 1973 Chardonnay at the legendary competition had – both on Montelena itself and on California more widely.

After a reception to welcome guests – where Montelena’s only non-Napa wine was served, the 2022 vintage Potter Valley Riesling, made from Mendocino fruit – the masterclass proper commenced.

This featured three vintages (2020, 2014 and 2009) of the famous Chardonnay, all poured from magnum, and three vintages of its Estate Cabernet Sauvignon: the incredibly youthful and exuberant 2021; the ‘Goldilocks’ 2017 vintage, where everything went right; and the fascinatingly evolved 2007.

Montelena's territory

The pair explained that the Calistoga AVA, where the estate is situated, at the foot of California’s Mount Helena (hence Montelena), has unique properties.

Located at the northern end of Napa, it’s both a valley appellation and a mountain appellation, said Barrett. (It’s also a great place to visit, he added, more relaxed and welcoming than some other parts of the county.)

The Montelena fruit grows on geologically diverse soils and enjoys the afternoon sun.

And yet despite the obvious California generosity of fruit flavour, there is a hallmark acid line to these wines that keeps them fresh for decades.

Also, explained Crafton, a marked sense of place and vintage.

‘We work hard on the winemaking side to make ourselves disappear,’ he said. ‘We want you to taste the character of the year, and the place.’

History makers

Bo Barrett was only 18 when his father Jim established Chateau Montelena in 1972, but remembers clearly the excitement when the team in California found out that the 1973 Chardonnay was the top-scoring white at the Judgement of Paris.

‘The phone was ringing off the hook, with everyone wanting to buy our wine,’ he recalled.

‘Without the Judgement of Paris, we’d just be a red wine estate, and it would have taken much longer for us to get to where we are today.’

The original intention was for the estate to produce a single wine, the Estate Cabernet, but it produced a Chardonnay at the start too, to help with cashflow.

After the triumph in Paris, it was inevitable that Chardonnay would take its place permanently alongside the Cabernet.

Chardonnay thankfully remains firmly in the fold today, and the estate has doubled down on its commitment to the grape, buying a new vineyard three miles south of the current one.

The winemaking style with the Chardonnay is to never use malolactic fermentation, and again this serves to accentuate the purity of fruit, the precision and the freshness.

‘At the end of the day, we want tasting our wines to make you happy,’ said Crafton. And judging by the audience reaction, and smiles as they left the class, the team at Montelena continues to achieve that goal.

The Montelena masterclass wines:

Related articles

Prior to the arrival of Spanish colonists, the Te’po’ta’ahl, whom the Spanish came to call Salinians, were an indigenous people who called this region home.

They inhabited this portion of the Central Coast from the coast over the Santa Lucia Mountains, to the Salinas River.

Spanish missions were established in the region in the late 1700s, at what is modern-day Soledad and Jolon.

The region’s modern agricultural roots, which run deep, are often dated to an influx of Swiss-Italian immigration in the late 1840s and onward, after the discovery of gold in California.

Today, the region grows an array of produce, and is called ‘America’s Salad Bowl’, producing over half of the country’s lettuce, as well as broccoli, artichokes, cauliflower and strawberries.

Some of the Santa Lucia Highlands’ most prominent families, among them the Pisonis and Franscionis, are now fourth-generation farmers, in some cases managing both produce and fine wine vineyards.

Two names most often associated with the Pinot Noir movement here are really just one; Gary.

Gary Pisoni and Gary Franscioni, who went to high school together, planted some of the region’s most prominent vineyards in the 1980s and 1990s, where their families once managed cattle.

One of those sites is somewhat confusingly called Garys’, as in, there are two of them. Be careful where you put the apostrophe.

A clone all their own

No one is more synonymous with the Santa Lucia Highands than the gregarious Gary Pisoni. His impressive locks and infectious smile make him the perfect ambassador for a region known for its outgoing wines.

Gary planted the beginnings of the Pisoni vineyard in 1982, and he did so with some Pinot Noir that he acquired, as his son Mark Pisoni puts it, ‘years ago when customs were a little more lenient.’

The Pisoni clone, as it is now known, comes from a renowned vineyard in Vosne-Romanée, in Burgundy's Côte-d'Or.

‘Dad first planted this clone on our ranch in the early 1980s,' Mark explains, 'and it is only found at our Pisoni Vineyard, and then we have only shared it with our partner Gary Franscioni. So, it's only planted at our Pisoni estate, Garys’ Vineyard & Soberanes Vineyard. Then on Gary Fransiconi’s two properties- Sierra Mar & Rosella’s.’

Mark continues: ‘A few things that make it special are that it is massal selection, so it shows some diversity in the vineyard versus the more common clonal selections.

‘Cluster size is average, and they are very tight with small berries. The most remarkable thing for me is that I always felt this clone made a very “complete" wine with great depth, aromatics and maintained acidity well without blending other clones.'

He concludes: ‘We have been asked by nurseries over the years and other outside growers, but have not had any interest in commercialising the clone. It is part of Dad’s and our region's history.'

Contours and climate

The Santa Lucia Highlands may be the most visibly obvious wine appellation in America.

River Road, which runs nearly the entire length of the appellation, sits between the Salinas River and above your head to the west are the benchlands, or ‘highlands’, which are really alluvial terraces where the vineyards begin. Up there is where the wine grows.

These alluvial formations range from 50 to nearly 200 feet above the fertile valley floor, facing east. The soils are poor, fast-draining and sandy, with plenty of granite-based alluvium, a composite of sand, gravel and stones.

‘The Santa Lucia Highlands is the only place that I know of where the warmest part of the day falls between noon and 1 pm,’ says Adam Lee, the founder of Siduri and winemaker at Clarice.

Once the Central Valley warms up, it pulls in strong, cold winds from the Monterey Bay, which is unusually cold owing to a deep-sea canyon off the coast.

The winds mean, of course, thicker skins in the grapes, which can result in more tannins, but because of the speed of the winds, they also stop the ripening of the fruit each day.

‘This really cools down the area. The winds passing over the vine leaves at a fairly high speed shut them down and delay ripening. We often get 130 days’ worth of hang time, while Burgundy is amazed at 100 days,’ says Lee.

Fortunately, the long growing season and the arid climate balance the shortened days; this means that there is no pressure of a pending frost or autumn rains to push harvest before the fruit has fully matured.

Building on bold fruit

‘California Pinot Noir’ is often code for its fruit-forward character, undeniable ripeness and fruit-driven expression.

That’s available in spades, so the region’s best wines weave complexity and nuance into the undeniable Santa Lucia Highands fruit.

For many, it's whole cluster management, picking earlier or finding other ways to dial in precision.

‘The Santa Lucia Highands does have this propensity to deliver bolder fruit,’ says second-generation winemaker, Jeff Pisoni. ‘Our aim really is to have that balance, nuance, and elegance, a style that you’re seeing more and more of in the region.'

Pisoni continues: ‘I see all these traits: our rugged soils, wind, fog, and the mountains, as contributing to great raw material. But it’s a lot, and we have to be careful with it.

'For me, the critical elements for bringing these into balance are harvest timing and acidity. Acidity, which plays a huge role in the stability, interaction with and perception of phenolics and tannins.

‘Finally, it’s fermentation management, specifically extraction, and how you manage air or reduction. “Ripeness” or sugar always gets the dialogue, but these other factors are tremendously important. I think the phenolic potential in the Santa Lucia Highands is amazing, but it can overshadow other positives.’

A young region matures

In terms of Pinot Noir, Pisoni’s 1982 planting more or less marks the very beginning of modern fine wine in the Santa Lucia Highlands.

Much of the growth happened in the mid to late 1990s, and more plantings followed into the 2000s.

Which means, it's a very young region, and wines from young vines can tend to be on the monochromatic side.

Shallow root systems cause the fruit on the vines to ripen quickly (particularly in warmer years) and tend to produce wines with pronounced primary fruit characteristics.

But that's changing.

‘When I started, the vines were quite young with very shallow roots,’ says Adam Lee.

‘Now, many of the vineyards in the area are 20 years old or more, and so the roots go far deeper. These days it's about 20-30 feet. This allows you to get much more than just primary fruit,’ Lee continues.

‘Flavours become more complex, and stem ripening can truly happen as a long hang time can become far longer - even in a warm year. That’s why I think the future of Santa Lucia Highlands lies in not just producing wines of great fruit, but also additional complexity.’

A stylistic shift

While ripe fruits have long been the hallmark of the Santa Lucia Highands, a youth movement of sorts is happening in the region’s wine styles.

At the top end, the wines made by Jeff Pisoni and Adam Lee show an elegance and nuance that embraces the region’s undeniable fruit signature.

There is also a cadre of young Santa Lucia Highands winemakers, including Corral’s Adrien Valenzuela and Chad Silacci of Rustique Wines, who are chasing fresher styles of wine that emphasise elements beyond the region’s ripe fruit.

However, no one is pushing the region towards wines of a new era, one focused on clarity, precision and place with an edgy, almost Old World bent, more than Scott Caraccioli.

His story is reflective of many in this region. Like the Pisonis and Franscionis, he’s a fourth-generation row crop farmer and a second-generation wine grower.

‘The wine that really inspired me to operate outside the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay mainstays, and showcased what else we can do here was Bibiana’s 2016 Cattleya Syrah from Soberanes,’ Caraccioli admits. This motivated him to work with Mark Pisoni, who farms the site, to obtain Alban clone cuttings.

‘The great thing about this region is that it allows you to take a more elegant approach. Restraint, nuance, and understated wines are what we’re trying to achieve at Caraccioli,’ he says. (Scott's winemaking team is a father-son duo, Greg and Chris Vita.)

Caraccioli is also looking beyond the Santa Lucia Highands to find out how some of California’s sought-after winemakers, particularly those from cool-climate regions, might use the Caraccioli estate's Escolle Vineyard as a canvas to paint a different version of the region.

‘Someone like Ian Brand has made me a better grower,’ says Caraccioli. ‘His diverse perspective, having worked with vineyards on a broad scale throughout the greater Central Coast, enables him to share thoughts and practices that have positively impacted Escolle.’

He adds: ‘Ian’s an outsider; he didn’t grow up here as so many of us did, and his point of view and associated winemaking are really important for a region like ours. Growing Gamay, for instance, was a direction that stemmed from conversations with Brand.’

‘As we evolve and mature as a region, our wines will become more refined,’ he continues.

‘With these granitic soils as our core, we can see that Syrah and Gamay are really brilliant matches for that soil type. The soils in Beaujolais and the Northern Rhône are so similar to ours here, and there’s an opportunity with these varieties.’

See wines and scores for all 100 SLH wines tasted and reviewed by Clive Pursehouse

20 brilliant bottles from the Santa Lucia Highlands

Related articles

A seismic tasting 50 years ago

When a small group of California wines triumphed over France’s finest at the 1976 Judgement of Paris, few could have imagined the global shockwave it would set in motion.

Staged by the late Steven Spurrier (Decanter Consultant Editor for 25 years), the tasting event was meant to be a bicentennial celebration, pitting upstart American producers against benchmark French estates.

Instead, it redefined the hierarchy of fine wine and altered the course of California’s future.

The result – Burgundy’s most esteemed whites being bested by a Napa Valley Chardonnay from Chateau Montelena (a bottle of which now sits in an exhibit in the Smithsonian in Washington, DC) – cemented not only the estate’s reputation but also the credibility of an entire region.

Half a century later, the story still reverberates.

The event remains a symbol of innovation, resilience and the restless spirit that continues to drive Napa Valley.

For Bo Barrett (current CEO and son of Jim Barrett, the late winery founder), who was just 18 when the winning 1973 Chardonnay was bottled, the tasting was a catalytic moment – one that transformed his family’s modest dream into a global legacy.

In this conversation, exclusive to Decanter, Barrett looks back on the early days of Montelena, his father Jim’s improbable leap from law to wine, and the unvarnished realities behind a victory that helped reshape the American viticultural dream.

Decanter, in conversation with Bo Barrett

You were only a teenager when your father bought Chateau Montelena in 1972. What do you remember about those early days?

I remember that it was all quite remarkable.

Two factors stand out in my mind that led my dad to Montelena. The Vietnam War was going really badly at the time, and top income tax rates in the US were extraordinarily high.

My dad was a real estate and tax attorney for a company that built malls around the world, and when he saw that President Nixon had introduced new incentives to revive American agriculture – which was struggling – he spotted an opportunity.

The administration had just expanded major investment tax credits and accelerated-depreciation rules for agricultural projects.

In effect, if you were a high earner, you could either hand a huge portion of your income over in taxes, or you could invest that same money into American agriculture instead.

My dad’s business partner always called Montelena ‘the tax dodge that got out of hand’.

Were you with him when he first set eyes on Montelena?

I was with him on the second trip.

My dad was a pilot, and we’d fly around together looking at pomegranate and citrus groves, cattle ranches, all these different things.

I was probably 17 when I came with him on his second trip to check out Chateau Montelena.

This lake was totally overgrown. It was a total jungle. The vineyards were completely run down.

When did you realise this wasn’t just a family project but might be your life’s work?

I didn’t know I was going to be a farmer until that first summer. I came up and started working in the vineyard and kind of just took to it.

The vineyard manager was an Italian-American named John Roll. He’d ploughed with a mule for Madame [Hélène] de Pins at Beaulieu vineyard.

He taught me how to hunt deer, collect abalone and forage for mushrooms – all this good stuff. He taught me the joy of the mason, which is the pride you take in a hard day’s work.

What do you remember about that famous 1973 Chardonnay around bottling time?

From the summer of 1973 and all the way to ’76, my whole family was here. The bottle that’s in the Smithsonian – I know I filled that bottle.

My brother Mike put the nitrogen on the bottle, and my little brother Kev put the bottles in the case. My whole family’s fingerprints are on that bottle.

Tell us about the day that Steven Spurrier visited the winery.

I remember [the winemaker] Mike Grgich being very nervous and making us get the cellar pristine, super-spiffy clean. It was a VIP tour, same as when Robert Mondavi was coming – everything had to shine.

We had to pull the magic disappearing act: all the staff go away, no one’s around. I wasn’t there watching Steven taste.

Mike probably sent me to the vineyard. Honestly, we didn’t pay that much attention until later.

What about when the results of the Paris tasting came in?

When the telegram came in, we were in the cellar working, filling barrels, and the doors were wide open.

Grgich was out in the gravel parking lot, dancing and waving this piece of paper and yelling, ‘We won! We won!’ So we turned off our pumps and walked out. We were all joining him in this little Yugoslavian victory dance.

It was a hell of a surprise. George Taber [then a Time magazine reporter and the only journalist present at the event, and subsequently author of the 2006 book on the topic] called my dad, and my dad gave him a quote. He didn’t want to insult the French: ‘Not bad for kids from the sticks.’

In what ways and how quickly did things change for Montelena after the article in Time came out?

It was immediate. Suddenly, we had distributors calling from all over the country.

The people who had said, ‘No, we don’t carry California wines’ the week before called us up and said, ‘Hey, we’d like to sell your wine.’ The phone was lighting up.

We didn’t have a general manager, but the California ‘attention’ didn’t change that much.

The first immediate change was that the rest of the country recognised that California was making good wine.

You’ve said before that the Judgement of Paris was a catalyst rather than a miracle. What do you mean by that?

All the ingredients were there: the land, the light, the people, the willingness to do the work.

If there had never been Prohibition, California would’ve buried Europe a century ago.

The most important thing is, it made quality such a driving force for everybody’s goal and mission.

So it had that drive towards improved quality, which then drove consumers to seek out a superior product. And so it became a self-perpetuating thing.

How do you see the next 50 years for Napa Valley?

It’s going to be as tough as the last 50. Work harder than anybody, pick the steep hill and keep climbing.

When you think about legacy, about Chateau Montelena’s place in history, what comes to mind?

I do think about what we’ve accomplished with just trying to do the right thing – to make something special out of a special place. The drive to express American excellence is what we’re the proudest of.

And I just hope that the people who fall in behind us in this business understand that you have to do the hard work and keep your nose to the grindstone and have the right philosophy, which is always to reward people’s faith.

They’re taking a bet on buying your product and your job is to make that bet pay off.

Three of my four grandparents were immigrants. The other was born in a covered wagon. No wine experience at all. The opportunity that was presented to us by this great country – it’s been a good thing.

We’re just quiet about it. People ask, ‘Are you going to retire?’ I say, hell no. I love what I do.

I’ve got a beautiful place, friendly people to work with and a fantastic crew. It’s a nice little ship. I don’t want to give it up.

Benchmark Napa: A taste of modern-day Montelena

Related articles

Paul Masson is often misremembered as a maker of California ‘jug wine’ and missed altogether for his outsized impact on California viticulture and the state's wine evolution.

It was the Burgundy-born Masson who brought Burgundian cuttings of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Burgundy to the Santa Cruz Mountains, specifically a site he planted in Saratoga, California, way back in 1896.

The vines, originally from Louis Latour, are among the groundbreaking Pinot Noir plantings that would lay the genetic groundwork for many of the now-famous ‘California heritage clones.’

Famous names like Mt Eden, Swan and Martini have their origins in Masson’s early plantings.

The Santa Cruz Mountains, however, have not become identified with a single variety.

Instead, it is this region’s great diversity that radiates, and perhaps makes it somewhat of an enigma in terms of how consumers and even wine collectors understand the place.

Cabernet, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah shine together here in ways that strike me as completely unique to a cool California coastal appellation.

A cool all its own

So what is it about the Santa Cruz Mountains that allows it to sufficiently ripen Cabernet and Syrah crating elegant expressions of these varieties, alongside the more delicate Burgundian varieties of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay?

‘There are a few things that set the Santa Cruz Mountains apart from other cool climate regions in California,’ says Cole Thomas, winemaker at Madson.

‘The first is that we experience ocean wind much differently. Most of California’s cool-climate regions experience very high prevailing ocean winds, whereas our vineyards do not.

‘We have perpendicular ridge lines and tall redwoods that moderate wind speeds. This makes a massive difference in how the fruit ripens because the vines do not shut down during the warmest and windiest time of the day.

The result is ripe skin tannins earlier.

‘The other key difference is the elevation vs proximity to the ocean. It is rare to have both such a high elevation and ocean exposure together. It seems many places don't have both,’ Thomas concludes.

Fog among the vines

Comparing the Santa Cruz Mountains to another cool-climate appellation where he grows Pinot and Chardonnay, Mendocino County’s Anderson Valley, Rhys Vineyards winemaker Jeff Brinkman notes how that ocean proximity affects peak temperatures in each region.

‘One difference that is quite important is the way both regions accumulate heat during the growing season. On paper, they have a similar average temperature, but that doesn’t tell the whole story,’ Brinkman explains.

‘In the Anderson Valley, mornings are often foggy, but it’s a higher-elevation fog that doesn’t linger in the vineyard.'

He continues: 'The daily high temperature occurs in the early afternoon, and there’s often a late-afternoon ocean breeze that cools things off quickly. It has a larger swing in daytime high-to-low temperatures.'

This diurnal shift means warm-to-hot days and very cool nights as ocean winds and fog move into the valley.

‘The Santa Cruz Mountains are totally different,’ Brinkman continues. ‘The day-to-night swings are much lower because of the proximity to the ocean, the elevation, and the fog is often right in the vines.

Think of it as a very gradual curve with the daytime high spread over a much longer span of the afternoon.’

Classic Cabernet Sauvignon

Marty Mathis is the second-generation winemaker and grower at the winery his mother, Kathryn Kennedy, founded in Saratoga.

Having returned to the region in 1947, Kennedy, who graduated from Stanford at the age of 19, decided to plant a vineyard in the early 1970s, as California's fine wine boom was underway.

Clone 8 Cabernet, planted on its own roots because Kathryn couldn’t afford the grafting, went into the ground in Saratoga in 1973.

The wines made over the years by Kathryn and, now, her son, Marty Mathis, are among the country's most ethereal.

They are beguiling, elegant, and with a long-lived ageability to rival the iconic brands at the top of the mountain from them, Ridge and Mount Eden.

‘This part of the Santa Clara Valley had a wine reputation which in some ways predated Napa Valley,’ says Marty Mathis, of his mother’s decision to plant at home.

‘In 1885, wines from this part of the Santa Clara Valley were often labelled as Medoc. They included Cabernet, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Though the use of Merlot in this part of California seems to have faded away after prohibition,’ Mathis explains.

Geographic outlier

The Kennedy wines are certainly a product of this cool climate appellation, but as they sit at the foot of the mountains, they're an outlier geographically, yet they show a consistent mountain style of the region.

Mathis believes it's about the soil. ‘The soil is fairly rich in the top, 18-24 inches,' he says.

But below that is a low fertility mix of Clay, sand, sandstone, and quartz pebbles. This provides less vigorous vines and a more mountain-style yield.

Mathis continues: ‘We have two bodies of water that can provide cooling breezes during the most intense heat waves.

'Obviously, the powerful Pacific Ocean flows cool air over the mountains, but we also receive cooling breezes from the south San Francisco Bay when the wind blows from the interior.’

Such savoury Syrah

For a region built on Pinot Noir, it is now best known these days for the Cabernet and Cabernet-based wines of Ridge and the neighbouring Mount Eden.

In my tastings, Syrah, which has proven difficult to market, may just be the region’s most compelling wine.

These are wines of staggering complexity, floral refinement that meets a gamey, umami depth with ferrous minerality and undeniably elegant red fruits.

This variety finds a sweet spot in coastal conditions, where sufficient heat and a long growing season allow the necessary phenolic ripeness at lower sugar levels.

The finished alcohols are often listed between 12.8-13.8%. The acidity and tannin, with varying use of whole bunch maceration, craft ageable wines evocative of the Northern Rhône with dazzling freshness and lifted ‘New World’ fruit.

‘I think the intersection of shallow sedimentary soils and cool climate is key for our Syrah,’ says Brinkman of Rhys Vineyards.

‘The cool climate provides the savoury elements we typically have. I'm thinking specifically of the olive, game, and peppery components. The shallow soils, to me, provide the briny element, good acidity, and naturally lower yields needed for good Syrah.’

Madson’s Cole Thomas is in full agreement, saying: ‘Syrah needs a bit more elevation to ripen. The best sites sit above the fog-line and experience warmer daytime temperatures than most of our Pinot Noir and Chardonnay sites.

'Still, these sites are cool, and sugar accumulation can be a challenge. We typically harvest in late October or early November. Again, poor sandstone soil limits yield and intensifies flavour, while the coolness provides delicate aromatics and freshness in the wine.’

Charming Chardonnay

The elegance that balances depth in the Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnays sticks out across producers and styles.

Perhaps no producer is as synonymous with the variety there as Thomas Fogarty, perched high on the northern flanks of the Santa Cruz range.

It produces six or seven bottlings from an array of single vineyards across its deeply forested estate, a Heritage Oak and Fir preserve.

Here, the vines rub shoulders with the intense and endemic mountain chaparral: California bay, eucalyptus, black sage, Monterey pine and a variety of fragrant manzanitas.

The Fogarty single blocks, eight in all, are planted on a mix of sites. The oldest Chardonnay vines are at Damiana, which sits at the very top of the estate, over 2,000 feet above sea level.

This original block was planted in 1978. The first vineyard was carved out among the trees, after clearing low brush and shrub land.

This approach has informed the others, mostly planted from the early to mid 1980s.

Nathan Kandler leads the winemaking at Thomas Fogarty, and uses a similar approach across all the Chardonnays, allowing the single vineyards to really show their diversity.

‘Most of the differences in the wine stem from soil and exposure in the vineyards,’ explains Kandler.

‘The heterogeneous nature of the various sites leads to pretty amazing differences in the variety of Chardonnays we make. The rootstock and the clonal selection are pretty static.

'The soils, however, range from volcanic basalt to sandstone and shale mixes.’

25 wines from Santa Cruz

Related articles

Clive Pursehouse speaks for the Willamette Valley in Oregon

As cool-climate Pinot Noir regions go, I think the Willamette Valley in Oregon is without peer in the United States.

I love the wines of the West Sonoma Coast, with their freshness and lift, but the classical elegance of the Willamette, marked by its unmistakable forest floor character and sweet, fresh red fruit, swings it for me.

The Willamette Valley has become a New World answer for lovers of classic Burgundy.

The biggest stigma that the Willamette Valley faces is that it’s not in California. As more than 80% of the country’s wine comes from the Golden State, people often have a hard time imagining American fine wine coming from anywhere else.

While Burgundy aficionados love the region’s Pinot Noirs, the average American wine consumer is still unaware of the Willamette Valley, considering this well-established region, with more than 700 wineries, a sort of ‘Wild West’ outpost.

Despite this, the region that was pioneered in the early 1970s has risen in just 50 years to be recognised as one of the world’s premium Pinot Noir-producing appellations.

American upstarts such as Adelsheim, Coury, Lett and Ponzi have been followed there by French names like Drouhin, Jadot and Lafon.

Unlike the West Sonoma Coast, which I do love for its beautiful wines, the Willamette isn’t a sub-appellation and has a singular identity, known for crafting elegant Pinot Noirs with fresh fruit and a deep, evocative ‘underbrush’ aspect, all while allowing for 11 nested AVAs within it to offer a diversity of expression.

You can’t see the ocean from any of the Willamette Valley’s vineyards – it sits about 65km west as the crow flies – but its maritime influence has a constant impact on the wines of the region.

Earthy richness

The cooling power of the Pacific makes the Willamette Valley the exceptional cool-climate region it is.

As the temperature rises in the valley during the warm summer months, cold air from the Pacific rushes into the Willamette through a gap in the Coast Range, cooling the region in the late-afternoon heat.

The latitude of the Willamette Valley, much farther north than Northern California, also means it has a shorter growing season and lower UV intensity.

The signature of Oregon Pinot Noir for me is the rich, Pacific Northwest forest floor, whether it’s turned soils, undergrowth or mushrooms: what the French call sous bois – the deep evergreen forests blanketed with ferns.

This provides a sense of depth and umami richness that frames the fleshy, bright berry fruits – be they strawberries, raspberries or riper Oregon blackberries – finishing with a saline character deriving from the region’s temperate Mediterranean and maritime climate, crisp and balanced acidity and often a flinty minerality.

Taken together, these elements create an elegance evocative of the Pinot Noirs of Burgundy.

However, in my view, the calibre of the wines, particularly for the price, exceeds what’s available in both Burgundy and the West Sonoma Coast.

Ana Carolina Quintela speaks for the West Sonoma Coast

American wine is no longer aspirational – let’s agree on this much before anything.

Pinot Noir, especially, has been thriving across different regions in the country, comfortably so.

Inevitably, at this point. The only interesting question isn’t whether the US can make great Pinot Noir, but where it speaks most compellingly.

More often than not, the answer circles back to the same two regions: Oregon’s Willamette Valley and the West Sonoma Coast of California.

While these two regions are often grouped together as cool-climate Pinot territory, in practice the resemblance only goes so far.

For me, the California coastal wines pull ahead, and the West Sonoma Coast’s biggest trump card is the Pacific ocean.

The ocean isn’t just a backdrop. The marine fog layer rolling in and out of the vineyards, spilling through winding roads, isn’t a special effect. The sudden rise in elevation isn’t scenery. The wind isn’t occasional, either.

Put it all together and those elements shape the wines that carry that imprint of salinity, etched acidity and a lift that goes beyond freshness.

It reads as energy. I’m comfortable calling it power.

Not ripeness, not weight, not authoritarian force. I mean the power of carrying a unique identity with confidence and a touch of defiance.

A power that doesn’t just sit on top of the wine, but holds it up from underneath. Pinot Noir is, by nature, an elegant grape, but elegance doesn’t have to be polite or appear fragile.

On the West Sonoma Coast, Pinot is elegant and unapologetically powerful.

A sense of scale

Part of what makes the West Sonoma Coast so compelling is also what makes it challenging for consumers to understand. This isn’t a region you cross through casually.

Vineyards are few and far between, because the land resists them with its steep ridges, isolated pockets, thick redwood forests and roads that remind you, pretty quickly, of how demanding it is to grow wine there.

There is a sense of scale: nature, larger than life, that shows in the glass.

I think it’s also fair to say that the Willamette Valley benefits from a built-in point of comparison to Burgundy.

Its geographic position (about 45°N latitude, compared to West Sonoma Coast’s 38.3°N) and climate make that parallel feel intuitive, and over time it has helped give the region a clear, legible identity, especially among collectors.

The West Sonoma Coast hasn’t had the same luxury.

As a younger AVA (American Viticultural Area – it was given TTB approval in May 2022), it has spent years labouring under the generic weight of ‘California Pinot’, or fighting for the visibility it deserves, which says more about how the two regions are framed than about the wines themselves.

I do love many of the wines from the Willamette Valley, but its more inland geography does leave it facing greater pressure as warming trends become harder to ignore.

And the longer you spend thinking about climate change, the more the coast starts to feel like insurance.

If great cool-climate Pinots are the ones that can keep their edge and balance, the appeal of places where the ocean still has a clear say feels obvious.

More top US Pinot Noir? For many more recommendations of top-quality Pinot Noirs from around the US, including Oregon and Sonoma, head to Decanter Premium

Related articles

• Willamette Valley 2023 vintage report: 20 of the year’s most polished and precocious Pinot Noirs
• Pinot Noir: 20 top-scoring wines to try
• Rethinking ripeness in Napa Valley: A fresh perspective on the region’s evolution

Having tasted extensively across the contrasting 2022 and forthcoming 2023 vintages of Napa Cabernet – the former early-drinking, riper with softer tannins, and the latter a cellarworthy year marked by vivid, fresh fruit and structured tannins – it made me consider the concept of ‘ripeness’

I asked a handful of Napa’s top winemakers to reflect on their approach and perspectives on ripeness in any growing season.

I wanted to know what it means to achieve ripeness today. How do farming choices shape ripening, whether ripeness is measured beyond numbers, and what does it mean in the context of balance?

What emerged was a familiar wine-world paradox: everyone agrees that achieving ideal ripeness – and ultimately a balanced wine – is paramount. Yet no one agrees on any fixed definition of that ideal.

‘The American palate has evolved towards less sweetness and more appreciation for acidity, bitterness, and a diversity of flavours,’ says Julien Fayard, of Fayard Wines, Covert, and Gemstone.

‘Culturally, as the food in our country changes, so do the wines. Napa is following a slower path, but reinventing and re-adjusting itself to better align its wines with what we’re eating today.’

For Aron Weinkauf of Spottswoode, it’s more personal and subjective. ‘I appreciate more subtlety, beauty, and freshness than I did 25 years ago,’ he says, echoing many others interviewed for this article.

Across conversations, the notion of achieving an ideal ripeness reveals no straight line to a target number. Instead, it follows a curving path, with overlaps between freshness and richness, hedonism and restraint, lab numbers and intuition – shaped by farming decisions, soil, vine material, climate, and stylistic preferences.

Evolution of the Napa style

From the higher-acid, tannic, long-lived wines of the 1970s, to the full-bodied, lush, sweet-fruited, richly oaked wines of the early aughts, and back toward a more nuanced middle ground today, the winemakers I spoke with consistently traced Napa’s ripeness conversation to historical planting decisions in the vineyard.

Rebekah Wineburg of Quintessa points to the 1990s as a defining moment: ‘The phylloxera crisis forced wide-scale renewal of vineyards,’ she says, explaining how it brought new clones and rootstocks selected to enhance physiological ripeness and bold flavour development.

At the same time, she continues, winemakers were ‘rejecting the vegetal flavours’ of earlier wines and seeking a style aimed at pleasure and immediate appeal.

By the 2000s, vineyard design and winery tools reinforced that shift. ‘Winemakers were chasing concentration, and the path to it seemed clear: lower yields, later picks, and absolute selectivity,’ Wineburg says. Advances in cellar technology made later harvesting feel safer – and, for a time, stylistically rewarding.

The alcohol fallacy

Rarely was ripeness framed in terms of potential alcohol levels.

Matthew Crafton, President and Winemaker of Chateau Montelena, explains: ‘I’ll see a picking window where the potential alcohol is in a good place, and the flavours are really nice’, explains , ‘but wait a day or two, and those numbers shift, and so do the flavours. You’re not measuring alcohol for balance—you can’t use alcohol as a proxy for ripeness.’

Meanwhile, Jean Hoefliger, of JH Consulting and AXR asserts: ‘You can’t be fooled into thinking a wine should always sit at a specific alcohol level.’

‘One of the greatest wines ever made – the 1947 Cheval Blanc, which came in at 14.4% ABV. Which was over two points higher than was typical for that wine. As for Napa Cab, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, consumer desire for more immediately approachable, pleasurable wine led to picking late, no acid or tannin additions, and ultimately to higher-alcohol, flabbier wines. That trend is now in reverse.’

Weinkauf emphasises how changes in vine material alone have altered ripening dynamics. ‘Today’s vine structure and vine vigour are very different. Trellis and vineyard infrastructures have changed.’

He notes that vertical shoot positioning differs radically from California sprawl or head-trained vineyards, with implications for yield, flavour concentration, and tannin development.

Climate change has added further complexity. Since 2015, Napa has experienced three of its warmest vintages on record. Nile Zacherle of David Arthur Wines argues that growers must adapt structurally, ‘rethinking row orientation and canopy architecture so wines are not shocked by climatic swings’.

Tasting ripeness

Despite access to unprecedented amounts of data, none of the winemakers describe ripeness as something determined solely in the laboratory, either. ‘Ultimately, it still comes down to taste,’ says Celia Welch of Scarecrow fame, and Celia Welch Consulting, with winemakers leveraging data as ‘checkpoints,’ above all else – as Rebekah Wineburg put it.

‘I literally ask myself: Do I want to eat this grape? Is it delicious?’ says grower, winemaker, and winery owner Steve Matthiasson.

As Aron Weinkauf explains, ‘we do measure sugar per berry,’ but he stresses that those numbers are weighed alongside ‘evaluating vine health, watching the weather, and tasting.’

Grapes growing on the vine give tangible cues such as ‘firm clusters versus limp, flaccid ones’, says Zacherle, ‘and a healthy canopy is one that provides dappled sunlight,’ for even-keeled ripening, ‘as harvest approaches.’

Wineburg describes ‘brown flavours’, bruised fruit, and a loss of freshness in grapes that are overripe.

By contrast, Jonah Beer of Pilcrow Wines (pictured above) frames under-ripeness biologically, suggesting that until the vine believes the seed can survive, ‘the vine keeps the acid high and sour’ in grapes.

Farming towards balance

‘Vines are pretty great at adapting to and reading their environment,’ says Weinkauf, ‘but our actions as the farmers can confuse them.’ He avoids early watering and excessive intervention, preferring to ‘guide rather than control’.

Matthiasson describes a season-long approach – cover crops, compost, pruning, shoot thinning, leaf thinning, irrigation – designed to deliver fruit that ‘makes the winemaking job easy’ and improve wine quality ‘without having to harvest later at higher potential alcohol’ (his Cabernet-based wines usually come in around or under 13% alcohol).

Chelsea Barrett talks of site-specific decisions. ‘In high-vigour blocks, we may plant permanent cover crops and [grow] larger canopies’, to control ripening, while ‘in lower-vigour sites, we might drop down to one cluster per shoot’, aiming at finding balance.

Fayard, by contrast, notes that, ‘we have been steadily lowering our alcohol by picking slightly earlier’. He adds that increasing yields at certain sites has improved hang time, slowed sugar loading, and led to ‘lower alcohols and better refined tannins’.

As an example, Fayard cited his Les Vins Julien line of wines, which are made with deliberately lower alcohol levels (as low as 11%).

Pendulums, preferences, and diversity

At a broader level, Napa’s ripeness story follows more of a pendulum swing. From pre-Parker elegance to power-packed Cabernets, now veering back toward a newer version of balance, based on how the growing season shapes a vintage. ‘There is no wrong or right, just diversity of style and taste,’ says Beer.

‘Remember those crazy-ripe Cabernets that had alcohols in the high 16% range?’ asks Welch, echoing Hoefliger that: ‘In recent years, the trend seems to be in the opposite direction.’

Continuum’s Tim Mondavi describes how smarter farming has changed the equation. He says: ‘In the past, we harvested late, in order to ameliorate the harshness of the wines.’

But better farming has allowed him to achieve ideal ripeness earlier in the season, thereby mitigating pressure from potential late-season extreme heat or fire.

‘Harvest is unpredictable,’ says Chelsea Barrett, ‘you make the best decisions you can with imperfect information,’ which is why better farming often comes with some capital-intensive technological improvements.

During the major heat event of 2022, wineries that had spent money to install vineyard misters kept canopy temperatures 15-20 degrees cooler on extremely hot days, thereby limiting sugar spikes and staving off higher potential alcohol levels.

‘We observe various movements – organic, biodynamic, regenerative farming, natural winemaking, on and on – but we do not commit to any single philosophy,’ concludes Fayard. ‘Instead, we prioritise transparency and customising our farming approach to each site.’

Wineburg summarises the collective mood best: ‘Ripeness is important, of course,’ she says, ‘but the intent has shifted.’

And that recalibration – toward balanced wines, expressive of site – suggests Napa Valley will never abandon its signature ripeness so much as refine it, just as regions such as Bordeaux and Burgundy did over generations.

Related articlesHeitz Cellar: Six decades of a Napa Valley icon

Meet the next generation at four legacy Napa Valley wineries

Mining for value in the Napa Valley: Over 20 of the best wines for under $75

The defining narrative of the Paso Robles 2023 vintage was the breaking of a three-year drought and a record-setting year for rainfall.

Three major rain events arrived in January, followed by continued precipitation into April and May, when rain typically ends in March. It was not a deluge but rather steady and persistent.

Established in 1983, Paso Robles – meaning ‘Pass of the Oaks’ in Spanish – is a region with 16,500 hectares planted, making it a sizeable player in California.

The region with 11 sub-districts has the greatest diurnal temperature swing of a California wine region, with temperature variances ranging from 2-10°C in one day. This allows the grapes to ‘refresh’ at night and retain acidity.

The growing season is extended due to these diurnal swings. That, coupled with regular late-season rains, allowed grapes to benefit from more hang time, resulting in wines with mature, ripe fruit characters plus strong acidity.

The region also benefits from the Templeton Gap effect. Openings in the coastal Santa Lucia Mountain range funnel cooler coastal air into the valley, allowing the grapes to rest and refresh. The Willow Creek and Adelaida sub-districts on the west side of Paso consistently produce the region’s highest-quality, most balanced wines.

Paso Robles 2023: Cohen’s picks

Vintage rating: 4.5/5

Wines of the vintage

White Saxum, James Berry Vineyard 96pts

Red LXV Wine Meso G2N Cabernet Franc 95pts

A welcome change of pace

‘2023 was a welcome growing season to be able to get out of the multi-year drought scenario and give the vines a break,’ says Staci Seay, director of vineyards and community relations at Hope Family Wines.

In the Templeton Gap sub-district, Hope Family recorded 700mm of rain in 2023, compared to the 350mm average in the City of Paso Robles. By comparison, Brecon Estate recorded 1450mm, well above its 650mm average. Saxum Vineyards logged 1,160mm at their James Berry Vineyard in Willow Creek and 1,520mm at York Mountain.

‘The rain washed out salts that had built up in the soils, which is very typical of year-over-year drought conditions,’ says Seay.

When salts accumulate in the soil, vine performance suffers, leading to imbalance and reduced production. The rainfall, combined with moderate temperatures, restored canopy health, which had been weakened by salt buildup.

Beyond the rain, it was an even Spring, with little to no frost pressure. The Hope Family experienced a couple of frost events due to their position at the bottom of the often cool Templeton Gap.

Paso Robles: Know your vintages

2022: The harvest came in hot. It was a vintage defined by a relentless 10-day heat spike of 40°C or hotter from 31 August through 9 September, forcing vintners into a sprint to pick early. Growers reckoned with raisining and sunburned bunches, resulting in huge amounts of fruit having to be dropped. 4/5

2021: After a challenging 2020 vintage, 2021 arrived in this key region in California’s Central Coast with near-perfect conditions, though with lower-than-ideal yields. Where successful, the best examples showed power and balance, with acidity as a welcome foil. 4.5/5

2020: A difficult vintage from all sides, including drought, dramatic heat spikes and smoke from nearby wildfires, coupled with pandemic-related stressors, including face masks. Widely mixed quality, depending on the producer. Not all producers made wine due to smoke taint or potential smoke taint issues from the wildfires. 3/5

Hang in there

Overall, the season was cool, with a mild summer and no meaningful heat spells. The growing season unfolded slowly and steadily, with later-than-normal budbreak and flowering. Summer temperatures were consistently in the 90s (°F – 32°C), without spikes or heat waves.

Harvest was late for most producers due to the cooler season. ‘Towards the end, I was concerned some of our late ripeners, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre, wouldn’t ripen,’ says Chris Eberle, winemaker at Eberle Winery.

The 2023 vintage marked the latest harvest start by approximately two weeks, with picking beginning on 17 September.

Brecon Estate experienced a similarly delayed harvest, starting two to three weeks later than usual, allowing the team to be patient in making picking decisions. ‘A smooth, consistent harvest and a Goldilocks vintage,’ says Alex Kemp, winemaker at Brecon Estate.

Hope Family Wines also began harvest slightly later. Seay recalls that, once a modest heat arrived in September: ‘I saw some of the best hang time in seven years with nice, even ripening.’

Not without its challenges

However, the extended growing season also introduced logistical challenges. At Saxum Vineyards, the combination of a cooler year and exceptionally large crop loads required early intervention.

The team proactively dropped fruit to handle the large load, knowing that excess fruit would delay ripening. With an already cool season, they wanted to avoid making the issue worse. For Saxum, the 2023 harvest arrived four weeks later than in 2022, a contrast driven by early picking during a heat spike in 2022 and a prolonged ripening period in 2023.

This longer hang time and large crop load resulted in nearly all sites ripening simultaneously. It was the largest harvest the winery has ever handled, compressed into a three-week window rather than the typical six to eight weeks.

‘We found our limit of how much fruit we can fit here,’ says Justin Smith, owner and winemaker at Saxum Vineyards.

As a result, the winery stepped away from two vineyard partners, Heartstone and Paderewski, to create capacity for its two new estate vineyards, soon coming online, Old Creek in the San Luis Obispo Coast AVA and V2 in the York Mountain AVA.

Yields for the vintage ultimately varied by producer. Eberle recorded the highest yields of any vintage to date. Hope Family Wines reported average yields, while Brecon Estate saw yields slightly above average.

‘We needed a vintage like this because after the heat, stress, and drought of 2022, we needed a break,’ says Eberle.

In the glass, the wines show power and balance, with lively, fresh aromatics. ‘If I could order up a vintage, this would be the one,’ says Smith.

Many producers, including Smith, noted savoury spice and herbal elements rather than the more common, overtly fruit-forward profiles, likely due to the cooler season and extended hang time. Fruit expression leans toward blue and black fruits rather than red.

Cohen’s conclusions on the 2023 wines

Where firm tannins defined the wines of the superb 2021 vintage, the 2023s display more moderate, balanced tannin structures. Their early approachability is linked to cooler conditions, which allowed extended ripening and tannin development without excessive sugar accumulation.

Ageability is expected to be a hallmark of the vintage. ‘The 2023 vintage is a unicorn that will be tasty in the beginning, and even better in five years,’ says Smith.

Eberle agrees, saying: ‘The longevity of these wines will be massive. 2021 is the only other vintage that will age as well as 2023.’

The distinction lies in accessibility, as the 2023s are already showing well, while the 2021s have yet to fully emerge. By contrast, 2022, often described as a ‘drink now’ vintage, was not built for long-term ageing.

Smith continues: ‘The 2023 wines are more complex and intellectual, whereas 2022 is just hedonistic pleasure.’

Cabernet Sauvignon, which accounts for just under 50% of Paso Robles plantings, stands out as one of the most ageworthy varieties of the vintage.

Eberle points to his own Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, while Kemp highlights both Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat as top performers for longevity in 2023.

Cohen’s pick: 20 Paso Robles 2023 standouts

Related articles

• Willow Creek: Paso Robles’ coolest sub-region
• Paso Robles looks to Bordeaux for sustainable insights
• Paso Robles 2022 vintage: Best wines from a challenging year

The road that winds its way to Heitz Cellar and the historic property, which includes a barrel house built in 1898, is a trip back in time. A quiet slice of the old Napa, tucked amid sprawling oak trees away from the tasting room traffic on the Silverado Trail.

Founded by Joe and Alice Heitz in 1961, Heitz quickly established itself among America’s great producers.

A pioneer in many ways, Heitz created America’s first single vineyard-designate, the 1966 Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, becoming the first to champion terroir in Napa and the US.

‘There have only been three winemakers in Heitz’s history,’ Carlton McCoy MS tells me. ‘Joe, his son David and Brittany Sherwood.’

Joe passed the baton to David in the late 1970s. Sherwood, the current director of winemaking, has been at the helm since 2018, when the property was acquired by Lawrence Wine Estates, of which McCoy is CEO. (She worked for six years alongside David Heitz, taking the lead in the cellar with the 2016 vintage.)

See Jonathan Cristaldi’s pick of Heitz Cellar across six decades

Less about the barrel

The ‘Heitz style’ has always been about flavour from fruit, eschewing extraneous tannin from over-extraction or overt oak.

‘Joe felt that it [overtly tannic wine] was just an excuse, a lazy way of making Cabernet,’ McCoy explains.

‘Oak can give you an illusion of opulence and pedigree, but you’re not assessing the density and length of the wine. So we taste the wines a year after harvest, before they see any oak.

‘That’s when we choose the single-vineyard wines over the Napa Valley designate. It’s also when we decide on ageing regimes and oak to finish the wines, based on what we think they need.’

The single-vineyard Heitz wines are released four years from harvest, and the Napa Valley designate is released three years after harvest.

‘At some point in the transition between Joe and David, I can only imagine as an attempt to “modernise”, they began using a higher proportion of barrique and, more importantly, a much greater proportion of new barrique,’ says McCoy.

‘For us, it was critical to return to the original style, but with larger casks. We have reduced the proportion of barrique and new barrique and now use a much larger percentage of 1,000- to 2,000-litre foudre.

‘We also still use the large casks that are 10,000 to 20,000 litres. We think the wines are fresher, and it allows us to secure density in the mid-palate, which you lose in smaller barriques.’

As the rest of Napa Valley moved towards new oak, and plenty of it in the form of smaller barriques, David Heitz veered Heitz Cellars a little in that direction, before correcting course after a few years.

‘We’ve taken it back even further,’ McCoy explains, in terms of minimising the oak impact.

‘We have to ask the question, if Joe were still here, would he be making the wines the same way? No, he wouldn’t; he’d want to focus on making the wines better.’

For McCoy, Sherwood and the Heitz team, that improvement is mostly gained in the vineyards, through a series of small tweaks to polish what is already renowned as classic.

Freshness in the vineyard

‘We’re making wines now that are closer to the alcohol levels from the 1970s. But we’re not doing it by picking early,’ McCoy clarifies, ‘it’s a combination of factors that help with the maturity of the fruit.’

By moving completely to biodynamics – conversion began after the 2019 vintage and Demeter certification was achieved a few years later – and significantly reducing irrigation, as well as bringing in a reduced- or no-till approach and interplanting between vine rows, the team at Heitz is seeing a concentration married to freshness in the fruit as it’s harvested.

This means that much of the work is done before the winemaking begins.

‘When you irrigate and have a big crop hanging on the vines, it slows down the maturity of the fruit,’ McCoy says.

‘For Cabernet, it’s not about picking earlier; it’s about balancing phenolic, or physiological, ripeness [relating to the grape skins, seeds and stems] with lower sugars [ie, potential alcohol].

‘After 24° Brix [a standard measure of sugar content in solution], it’s no longer sugar accumulation, it’s the concentration of sugar through dehydration and raisination.’

The Heitz team is committed to picking at a level of 24°-24.5° Brix at most, and aiming for full phenolic ripeness at that sugar level.

They achieve fruit concentration through lower yields [quantity of fruit per vine] and largely by dry-farming. This means the fruit comes in balanced yet concentrated.

The Heitz Cellar vertical

If there is a signature of the Heitz wines, it’s that they are shot through with forest character, whether it’s described as bay leaf, pine resin, spearmint or even eucalyptus.

The lively and elegant arboreal essence is the calling card for Heitz, both in the wines made today and indeed back to the 1969-vintage Lot C-91.

As a central part of our preparation for this article, McCoy presented a dazzling array of Heitz wines, 43 in all, for me and Decanter’s Napa correspondent Jonathan Cristaldi (see his tasting notes on a selection of 10 of them, below).

A dramatic case was immediately made regarding Heitz’s freshness as we nosed our first wine, the 1978 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: remarkable, and still exuberant, 47 years in.

The throughline was pronounced as we tasted a range of vintages, some of them regarded as hot, others rainy, wet and difficult.

Yet a consistency was evident: balanced, fresh and light on their feet, even in hot years; lively throughout, persistent forest elements that framed taut, fresh violets and blue/black fruits in each and every vintage.

In his day, influential US critic Robert Parker would write off an entire vintage, particularly one like 2011, yet today this is a Heitz wine that’s showing dazzingly, overtly floral, fresh and vibrant.

Many of the farming changes at Heitz were initiated in 2019, and McCoy believes this work will be clear to see in the wines moving forward.

The Linda Falls Vineyard Cabernet from that vintage is now tasting focused and precise, with a pronounced clarity and heightened fruit intensity.

And going back, the 1979 Martha’s Vineyard designate bottling is perfect (as per Cristaldi’s 100-point score), showing elegance and structure that is evocative of Barolo, or even Burgundy, with that forest-driven complexity and brilliant tension – a timeless Napa Cabernet that sets a benchmark for the region among the world’s great wines.

Restoring balance

For McCoy, one of the primary missions is to set a course for a return to a classic Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: more honest, authentic and balanced.

Joe Heitz had a notoriously difficult relationship with Robert Parker, famously once sending him a box of handkerchiefs after Parker had described the Heitz wines as lacking in aromatics.

Yet it’s Parker’s outsized impact on Napa’s wines as a whole that McCoy feels as if he’s still pushing back on today.

‘Philosophically, my biggest challenge with so-called modern Napa is that it wasn’t driven by the winemakers, or climate,’ says McCoy. ‘The style that came about in the late 1980s is thanks to one man. It’s a style that is still very much around today.

‘But the fact is, wineries did what they did at the time in order to stay afloat. It may seem hard to believe, but the wrong score from one guy could essentially put you out of business back then.

‘A lot of wines, and this isn’t just in Napa, but throughout the world, were made to cater to one man’s palate. And this is the result: you have a lot of winemakers who don’t like to drink the wines they’re making. That’s a real tragedy, in my opinion.’

McCoy concludes that ‘freshness’ is perhaps an overused term. ‘But we’re talking about a balance between acidity and the rest of the structure of the wine. Your mouth waters, and you want more. That’s been missing in too many wines for too long.’

The team at Heitz wants to remind the wine world why Napa was considered great in the first place.

A taste of Heitz across six decades: Cristaldi’s 10 highlights

Related articles

• Wines of the Year 2025: North America
• Meet the next generation at four legacy Napa Valley wineries
• Mining for value in the Napa Valley: Over 20 of the best wines for under $75

Napa & Sonoma

Napa and its neighbouring Sonoma County continue to shine brightly, as winemakers representing the next generation, and a fresh voice, sidle up next to established producers who’ve been making wines of renown for what seems like decades.

Our Sonoma correspondent Ana Carolina Quintela picked the one white in this year’s Wines of the Year selection – Poet & Prophet’s beguiling Ghost Cat Chardonnay from the intense mountain terroir in Alexander Valley’s eastern highlands.

And Quintela’s other selection is this year’s only 100-point wine, a Pinot Noir from Occidental – the lone producer who was in our WotY selection last year, too. The tiny berries and low yields harvested from this near-coastal vineyard site have crafted a wine of intensity.

Cabernet is king in Napa Valley, yet our Napa correspondent Jonathan Cristaldi’s top wine from 2025 is a Syrah: the Colgin Cellars IX Estate from the remarkable 2021 vintage. There’s an elegance to this bottling, offering floral and citrus tones like the classic Syrahs of the northern Rhône.

Napa’s Cathiard Vineyard, at St Helena, produced Cristaldi’s top-scoring Cabernet Sauvignon: from 45-year-old vines, the 2022 is a complete package. And from a high-elevation site on Howell Mountain comes Pilcrow’s Granite Lake.

Rather than the inky black fruit and dark chocolate you might expect, this Cabernet Sauvignon is a red-fruited surprise, with blood orange and grapefruit elements mingling with forest and mineral tones.

A throwback, says Cristaldi, to a classic age in Napa Valley.

Greater North America

Decanter’s US team tasted nearly 4,000 wines this year, and we saw talented winemakers come together with wonderful vintages in the 2022 and 2023 releases. Fantastic wines were made up and down the West Coast – indeed, four of our five selected wines were made from white varieties.

The cooler vintage in Washington state, balanced years in Willamette Valley and California, and the evolution of Chardonnay and white wine in general have given us a brilliant slate of wines.

In terms of scores, our list tops out with two wines from my Willamette Valley vintage report. My first 100-point wine is a thrilling Chardonnay from legacy producer Bethel Heights – The High Wire soars to great heights.

And the 99pt Hyland Vineyard Pinot Noir from Martin Woods is, in my opinion, the best red wine of the vintage: its elegance impresses immediately.

A stunning 2018 sparkling Chardonnay from Rhys is the current release from one of the first names in the Santa Cruz Mountains, where the Mt Pajaro Vineyard perches on the western flanks, just 12km from the Pacific.

The wine offers a depth and richness evocative of the great wines crafted in that one place in northern France. From an iconic site in the Sta Rita Hills comes the Domaine Jean François, Sanford & Benedict Twelve Rows Chardonnay from 2021– it’s a collaboration between John Terlato of Sanford winery and Burgundy’s François Labet.

From the vineyard’s original 1972 own-rooted plantings, this is an intense wine that shows the greatness of Santa Barbara Chardonnay.

While a few wines from Washington in the cool 2022 vintage scored 98 points, the 97pt Grand Klasse Roussanne from Gård is the most compelling wine from the region. Intuitive winemaking, coupled with a perfect white wine vintage, came together to create what I believe is the best white wine ever to come out of Washington.

Wines of the year 2025: North America

Wines from Napa and Sonoma are listed first then wines from the rest of North America

Related content

Decanter’s top 50 US wines of 2025

Willamette Valley: Three must-know producers flying under the radar

The 2022 Columbia Valley vintage report for Washington and Oregon

Chiara de Iulis Pepe

Emidio Pepe, Abruzzo, central Italy

By Alessandra Piubello

Chiara de Iulis Pepe welcomes us smiling and resolute, feet rooted to the ground and a clear gaze beyond the horizon. Now 32 years old, since childhood she has absorbed the Pepe values. Wine and family are one in the Pepe household in Torano Nuovo, in the Teramo hills of Abruzzo where, 60 years ago, a revolution began.

Third-generation Chiara took over from her aunt Sofia in 2020, who in turn had succeeded her father – Chiara’s grandfather – Emidio Pepe in 2000. At 27 years old, Chiara decided to take the bull by the horns. ‘Drinking, selling and talking about wine was no longer enough for me,’ she says in a firm and confident voice.

‘The time had come to actually make it.’ Chiara was ready; her grandfather and aunt’s teachings were deeply rooted within her, and the oenology and viticulture course in Dijon plus work at a French biodynamic company gave her the final push.

‘My intention,’ she explains, ‘is to carry forward the vision of those who came before me, trying to perfect a few details wherever possible.’

Subtle renewal

The generational transition has been fluid in this female-run company; so much so that, even now, the three generations co-exist in harmony. When she took over, Chiara slowly replaced the existing team.

‘Those who work in the vineyards, besides being updated on pruning and biodynamic agriculture introduced by aunt Sofia in 2005, also perform cellar duties, so that the two teams communicate with each other.’

The work follows the established Emidio Pepe path, with no change of direction: no filtration or clarification, only vitrified concrete containers, spontaneous fermentation, manual destemming for the reds, grape treading for the whites, and lengthy ageing.

A quarter of a million bottles are currently ageing in the cellar. Every year, approximately 43% of the 80,000 bottles produced are set aside, but this will rise to 60% when the new cellar is completed in 2027. Chiara has introduced steel tanks with refrigerated double bottoms suitable for treading the white grapes, and which also permit gravity filling into the tanks for manual destalking of the reds.

But her focus is on the vineyard. She reacts to the unpredictable climatic conditions with determination, intelligence and heart. With the same experimental nature as her grandfather, she has introduced vineyard treatments using cow’s milk (in solution, it has been found to have fungicidal properties that act against powdery mildew), covering the soil with green manure without digging it in, and in the new 2ha (strictly pergola) system, she uses agroforestry and widely spaced planting layouts.

‘Our wine,’ Chiara states, ‘must continue to be genuine, digestible, and to express the location and its vitality.’

Catherine Kistler

Occidental, West Sonoma Coast, California

By Ana Carolina Quintela

Catherine Kistler has been making the decisions at Occidental for years now: determining the critical picking times, leading the crew through long harvest days and guiding fermentations in the cellar.

Yet until very recently, she would have hesitated to call herself the head winemaker. ‘Imposter syndrome is real,’ she admitted – a sentiment hardly unusual for women in the working world, particularly in the wine industry.

Perhaps the title also felt too heavy, too bound up with her father’s legacy, even as she carried it forward in practice. Only in the past year, when the vineyard and cellar crews – men and women who had worked alongside her father Steve Kistler for decades – began turning to her for answers instead of him, did she allow herself the title.

‘The respect from the crew, more than anything, helped me feel comfortable in that role,’ she says.

‘2024 is the year where I feel most confident that I can say it’s my vintage. My first full, no-training-wheels sort of thing,’ she adds, letting the words settle.

Direct line

Ocidental was founded in 2011, though Steve continued working at Kistler Vineyards – the winery he founded in 1978 with the late Mark Bixler – until he stepped away from it in 2017. And if Kistler Vineyards became synonymous with California Chardonnay, Occidental has been, from the beginning, devoted entirely to Pinot Noir.

Planted from selections Steve gathered in Vosne-Romanée and propagated over the course of decades, 34ha of vines stretch across a ridge in the FreestoneOccidental area of the West Sonoma Coast.

Catherine joined him full-time at Occidental in 2016, under his direct mentorship after testing herself far from Sonoma. First on the ski slopes, racing at national level from age 13; later in the lecture halls of Harvard, where she studied Classics and History.

Yet, a life in wine felt inevitable. ‘Watching my father, I knew that the insane hours, the nights he wasn’t home, the time he put into making wines – all of that was what gave meaning to the name,’ she reflects.

Still, she never considered another path. ‘It was always my plan to come back.’ The intimacy of their relationship meant she could argue, push back, even make mistakes, while absorbing his 50 years of experience without filter. That closeness gave her both the freedom and the confidence to grow into her own authority.

‘I feel uniquely blessed to be his daughter in this position,’ she says. ‘The fact that I get all the idiosyncrasies that make him amazing at this job landing with me untempered – and for me to accept him as he is, and vice versa – is incredibly fulfilling.’

Under Catherine’s watch, Occidental is writing its next chapter as a family business. The back label now reads Kistler Family instead of her father’s name, a small change with a larger echo.

She also discovered a new parcel, 4km from Bodega Bay, closer to the ocean than any site they’ve farmed before. Rootstocks are in, and she is grafting them slowly to Occidental’s field selections, with fruit expected in 2028.

The gesture is less about growth than about anchoring – on land and legacy, attuned to her.

‘You just vibrate at that frequency of being here. I love the people around, I love my family, and I love the wines I make,’ she says. The words carry the same focus and effortless grace that define her presence and her wines.

Next instalment: Thomas Herbert & Leo and Roc Gramona

Wines from a new generation:

Related content

Meet the next generation at four legacy Napa wineries

From Pauillac to Stellenbosch: Celebrating May-Eliane de Lencquesaing at 100

Champagne Dhondt-Grellet: The young grower at the top of his game

Of all the many thousands of wines tasted by Decanter every year, only a small handful ever gain the very highest score of 100.

This year, in fact, a mere 30 wines (tasted between 1 October 2024 and 30 September 2025) gained that coveted triple-digit score. In the immortal words of Cilla Black, let’s look at what they are and where they come from.

Top-scorers by country

As two countries that feature heavily both online and in print, the bulk of this year’s top-scoring wines came from France and the US.

France had the higher number of 100-point scores by far – 15 wines (50%) versus 12 (40%) from the US – while Italy with two 100-point wines and Australia with just one made up the difference.

Top-scorers by region

Drilling down into the regions things get a little more interesting. We can see that the French wines are split among several regions, with Bordeaux taking the largest share of 100-point wines (nine wines overall or 30% of the total).

However, the largest single region for top scores was California, with 11 wines (36.7%) that received a 100-point score.

The Rhône Valley was the third most-awarded region with five (16.7%) of the top scores, while Western Australia, Burgundy, Oregon, Tuscany and Piedmont all picked up one perfect score apiece.

Top-scorers by appellation

The most-awarded appellation overall was the Napa Valley, which had 10 wines with a 100-point score (mostly from one standout vintage, which was also the case with many of the Bordeaux wines as we’ll explore below).

There were three wines from Châteauneuf-du-Pape as the second highly rated appellation – though probably not wines you would expect – followed by Cornas, Pauillac, Pessac-Léognan, Pomerol and St-Emilion which all had two 100-point scores this past year.

The remaining appellations were Barolo, La Tâche, Margaret River, Margaux, Sonoma County, Toscana, and Willamette Valley with one 100-point wine apiece.

And now let’s briefly look at those wines.

France

Bordeaux

Many of the vintage reports published this year have focused on the very difficult 2024 vintage, which has not yielded many exceptional wines overall.

However, Bordeaux editor Georgie Hindle also reviewed the recently bottled and shipped 2022 vintage from Bordeaux which was a different story altogether.

In her report published in March, she said of the vintage: ‘The 2022s have emerged as wines out to please. As a group they are highly charged and powerful with an impressive amount of fruit, tannins and alcohol, yet they are refined and balanced with a sense of classicism.’

She gave six wines a score of 100-points – three each from the left and right banks.

She also gave a perfect score to the ‘monumental’ 2016 vintage of Château Latour, finally released from the estate’s cellars this spring.

Two wines from the 2015 vintage, Château Margaux and Château Lafleur confirmed in their majesty 10 years on.

Rhône Valley

Matt Walls covers the Rhône extensively for Decanter and this February he wrote about an especially memorable tasting at Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which yielded three 100-point wines.

These were not the estate’s reds though – but rather its ‘masterpiece’ of a white wine, the Roussanne Vieilles Vignes.

Tasted while scenes from Netflix’s Drops of God adaptation were filmed in the background, Walls was thoroughly seduced by what he calls ‘one of France’s greatest Mediterranean whites’, with many high scores given including three digits for three vintages: 2020, 2014 and 1988.

There was room for a couple of top-scoring reds though, notably two 2010 Cornas from Domaine Clape and Vincent Paris, which are among Walls’s favourite vintages from that appellation to drink now.

Burgundy

For a region with such a sterling reputation, there was just one wine that claimed a ‘perfect’ score in 2025. Maybe the standards of expectation from the Côte d’Or are that much higher?

Nonetheless, the unsurprising top-scorer was from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, with the domaine’s La Tâche 2022 getting the seal of approval from Charles Curtis MW during his in-bottle tasting this spring.

US

Napa Valley

Like Bordeaux, the bulk of top scores for Napa Valley this year came from the 2022 vintage, which was also not necessarily a straightforward growing season but from which some true gems have emerged.

Jonathan Cristaldi wrote in his report: ‘Compared to more structured, long-ageing vintages such as 2021 or 2019, the 2022s are approachable, plush and opulent.

‘Tannin structure varies, with some wines showcasing excellent granular grip and ageing potential while others exhibit a smoother, more fruit-driven profile that leans toward early drinking.’

Cristaldi ultimately gave six wines from the 2022 vintage 100 points, alongside another four from the 2021 – giving Napa its rather awesome tally of 10 top-scores this year.

Sonoma and Willamette Valley

The only US wines breaking Napa’s stranglehold on the crown were a Pinot Noir and Chardonnay duo.

In her report on the wines from the Sonoma Coast in 2022 (there’s that vintage again), Ana Carolina Quintela gave 100-points to the Cuvée Elizabeth Pinot Noir from Occidental. A true ‘wow-moment wine’ she noted.

And our North America editor, Clive Pursehouse, awarded his very first 100-point wine to the ‘captivating’ Bethel Heights’ The High Wire Chardonnay 2023 from Willamette Valley in Oregon.

Best of the rest

Italy

A rather diplomatic split of one 100-point score each for Italy’s premier regions of Piedmont and Tuscany this year.

Michaela Morris dished out a top-score to Giacomo Conterno’s Montfortino Riserva 2019 in her review of that newly-released batch of wines.

And Italy editor, James Button, couldn’t help but give 100-points to the ‘impeccably harmonious and long-lived’ 2006 Masseto during a vertical of the Super Tuscan at the start of the year.

Australia

And to wrap things up, while reviewing the wines being released through La Place de Bordeaux this autumn, Hindle gave top marks to the Cloudburst Chardonnay from Margaret River.

She wrote: ‘Round, utterly moreish from the first sip – this is engaging, mouthwatering, alive and so utterly enjoyable. I’d never tire of drinking this wine.’

Decanter’s 100-point wines of 2025:

Related content

Bordeaux 2022: The 100-point wines

Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 2022: Vintage report and buyer’s guide

‘This is my first 100-point wine after nearly 4,000 in my three years at Decanter’

This is our second annual list of Decanter’s Top 50 US Wines. My hope is that our list of wines inspires conversation and sparks disagreement.

That it makes people take note of the regions beyond those you think of first when you think of the wines being produced in America’s wine country. There are some spectacular wines throughout the US.

I feel like we’re in the process of both getting started and figuring it out. I guess that’s life in a nutshell. I work with a very small team of freelance writers, and I’m the only full-time person at Decanter in the US, so, with limited resources, we are doing what we can to maximise our scope.

We’ve expanded and moved coverage around in some areas, done more in others, and, regrettably but necessarily, less in others. It is a challenging landscape for media, and while it hasn’t been a perfect year for our US team or me when it comes to expanding coverage, I think we’re moving in the right direction.

A year for white wines

Over the course of the year, Decanter gave about 30 100-point scores to current-release wines in 2025. Those numbers are split nearly evenly between Bordeaux, Napa and the Rhône Valley.

Only three of those wines were white wines. The iconic old vine Roussanne from Château de Beaucastel and two Chardonnays, one from Australia’s Margaret River and one from the Willamette Valley.

That meagre number includes my first-ever 100-point wine, the 2023 Bethel Heights Chardonnay, which you’ll read more about later, but this rudimentary analysis stands in stark contrast to what we’re seeing in white wine production and quality here in the US.

There was no better year for white wine than 2025, and it is reflected in our countdown. A cool vintage in Washington (and Oregon’s) Columbia Valley created two 97-point white wines, a Sauvignon Blanc and a Roussanne, from a region that is often too hot to achieve the balance necessary for white wines to really shine.

Chardonnays from the Willamette Valley, Sonoma Coast and Santa Barbara continue to impress in 2025, with warming conditions often having them outpacing their Burgundian cousin, Pinot Noir.

There are 13 Chardonnays in this Top 50 list, including a stunning wine from the Santa Cruz Mountains.

For good measure, there’s also Carricante from Sonoma County, a Chenin Blanc from Mendocino and a Finger Lakes Riesling that we thought were exceptional.

Decanter Top 50 US Wines: 50-41

Tasting notes and scores are linked in this list

50: Barboursville Vineyards, Octagon, Monticello, Virginia, USA 2017

49: L’Aventure, Estate Reserve, Paso Robles, California 2022

48: Apollo’s Praise, Dry Riesling, Lahoma Vineyard, Finger Lakes, NY 2024

47: Joseph Phelps, Proem #5 Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, Sonoma County, California, 2022

46: Valdemar Estates, Las Canteras Syrah, The Rocks District, Columbia Valley, Oregon, 2023

45: Domaine de la Côte, La Côte, Sta Rita Hills, Santa Barbara County, California, 2022

44: Résonance, Koosah Vineyard Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon 2023

43: Rebrook Cellars, Montagna Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2022

42: Ridge Vineyards, Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, California, 2023

41: Argot, Sage Ridge Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2022

Wines of place and wonderful places

Our first 10 wines show a fantastic range, welcoming Virginia, while Texas shows up a little further up the list, both for the first time.

We also have a repeat producer, Apollo’s Praise, representing the Finger Lakes. California is still the big dog, making more than 80% of the country’s wines. The Golden State appears 30 times, with most of our coverage in Napa and Sonoma, and that shows here.

There are a couple of wines from regions in the state that I cover, cooler climate appellations like Mendocino, the Santa Cruz Mountains, and we’ve seen more coverage from our Santa Barbara County correspondent, Vanessa Rason, resulting in more wines on this year’s list.

Oregon, both in the Willamette Valley and the Rocks District, which is technically part of the Columbia Valley (with Washington), is well represented, with 15 entries. A further validation of the state’s incredible terroir and talent.

Decanter Top 50 US Wines: 40-31

Tasting notes and scores are linked in this list

40: Reynvaan Family Vineyards, Stonessence The Rocks District, Walla Walla Valley, Oregon,2022

39: Thomas Fogarty, Damiana Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, 2023

38: Ernest Vineyards, Joyce Vineyard Chardonnay, West Sonoma Coast, California, USA 2022

37: William Chris, Enchanté, Texas Hill Country, Texas, 2023

36: Evesham Wood, Cuvée J Pinot Noir, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023

35: Devison Vintners, Malbec, Walla Walla Valley, Columbia Valley, Oregon, 2022

34: Minus Tide, Chenin Blanc, Sterling Ranch, Mendocino County, California, 2024

33: Beaux Frères, Rogue Vines Chardonnay, Ribbon Ridge, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023

32: FUTO Estate, CFX, Napa Valley, California, 2022

31: Gran Moraine, Dropstone Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2022 

The beauty and bravery of small producers

The reality is that this list is almost exclusively comprised of small producers. There are a few brands that are part of larger corporate entities, but this Top 50 features many small family businesses making some of America’s best wines.

In a challenging time for wine and for small businesses, there is plenty to be hopeful about here. Sure, some of these wines are hard to find, but their quality and recognition stem from being produced in small lots, with incredible attention to detail, immaculate farming, and undeniable winemaking talent.

From the likes of the talented Joe Ryan making the wines at Sonoma Coast’s Ernest Vineyards, to the long-time commitment to the Willamette Valley of the Casteel family at Bethel Heights, and the young bootstrapping upstarts at Minus Tide making imaginative and classic wines.

I’m more proud of that element of this list than anything else. I hope you will seek out these wines and the producers making them; they deserve your support.

Decanter Top 50 US Wines: 30-21

Tasting notes and scores are linked in this list

30: Jett, Skysill Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Walla Walla Valley, Columbia Valley, Washington, 2022

29: Paul Lato, Le Souvenir, Santa Maria Valley, Santa Barbara County, California, 2022

28: Hirsch Vineyards, Raschen Ridge Pinot Noir, West Sonoma Coast, Sonoma County, California, 2022

27: Abbott Claim, X Omni Vineyard Chardonnay, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2022

26: Cimento, Cabernet Sauvignon, Stone Valley Estate Vineyard, The Rocks District, Columbia Valley, Oregon,2021

25: Kathryn Kennedy, Cabernet Sauvignon, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, 2022

24: Purlieu, Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville, Napa Valley, California, 2022

23: Centennial Mountain, Carricante, Sonoma County, California, 2022

22: Crowley, Phoebe Chardonnay, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023

21: Storm Wines, Duvarita Vineyard Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Barbara County, California, 2023 

The rising tide of American wine

In what has to be described as a challenging time for the wine industry and America’s global reputation more broadly, American wine is more ready than ever for an international audience.

Long looked at as a land of bombastic and overripe wines, America’s current generation of talented winemakers has turned this narrative on its head. Chasing balance and freshness, this crop of American wines shows typicity and place through the restrained use of new oak, eschewing over-ripeness and higher alcohols in favour of acidity, minerality and balance.

It’s an exciting time for American wine. The wines defy the stereotypes of the Parker era; those days are in the past and the future is very bright.

Decanter Top 50 US Wines: 20-11

Tasting notes and scores are linked in this list

20: RAEN Winery, Fort Ross-Seaview Sea Field Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, California, 2023

19: Drew Family Cellars, Radiolaria Chardonnay, Mendocino Ridge, Mendocino County, California, 2023

18: Paradigm, Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville, Napa Valley, California, 2021

17: Littorai, Mays Canyon Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, California, USA 2023

16: The Black Square, Cabernet Sauvignon, The Rocks District, Walla Walla Valley, Oregon, 2022

15: Bryant Estate, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2022

14: White Walnut Vineyard, Estate Chardonnay, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023

13: Bedrock Wine Co, Areio e Vento e Amor, Contra Costa County, California, 2022

12: Di Costanzo, Montecillo Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Moon Mountain, Sonoma County, California, 2022

11: Granville, Koosah Vineyard Chardonnay, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023 

Number one

In a year of brilliant white wines, it was no surprise to me that the top wine on this list would be a Chardonnay and upon further consideration, a cool climate wine at that.

The High Wire Chardonnay tells a captivating story: that of a pioneering family, the Casteels, who purchased vineyards planted in 1978 upon their arrival in the Willamette Valley a year later.

A story of resilience, as this California heritage planting, Wente Clone, on its own roots, did not reliably ripen until fairly recently. It is a brilliant wine made by one of the country’s best winemakers, Ben Casteel.

You can read all about it here; it’s the first wine (and only so far) that I’ve ever given a perfect score to.

Decanter Top 50 US Wines: The Top 10

Tasting notes and scores are linked in this list

10: Pilcrow, Granite Lake Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain Napa Valley, California, 2022

9: Domain Jean François, Sanford & Benedict Proprietor’s Vineyard The Twelve Rows Chardonnay, Sta Rita Hills, Santa Barbara County, California, 2021

8: Prophet & Poet, Ghost Cat Upper Barn Chardonnay, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County, California, 2021

7: Gård, Roussanne, Grand Klasse, Royal Slope, Columbia Valley, Washington, 2022

6: Cathiard Vineyard, St Helena, Napa Valley, California, 2022

5: Rhys Vineyards, Blanc de Blancs, Mt Pajaro Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, 2018

4: Martin Woods, Hyland Vineyard Pinot Noir, McMinnville, Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA 2023

3: Colgin Cellars, IX Estate Syrah, Pritchard Hill, Napa Valley, California, 2021

2: Occidental, Bodega Headlands Cuvée Elizabeth Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, California, 2022

1: Bethel Heights, The High Wire Chardonnay, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon, 2023 

Top 50 US Wines 2025: How the selections were made

The selections for Decanter’s Top 50 US wines were chosen from over 3,500 wines tasted and reviewed between December 2024 and November 2025. To be considered, they must be current or soon-to-be-released wines; library wines are not eligible.

They were selected to show a range of styles, places and exciting and emerging winemaking talent. This is not intended to be a list of the top-scoring wines of the year, but wines that show the brilliance and diversity of America’s winemaking talents and regions.

Related articles

The best Sonoma County wines for $50 or less

Meet the next generation at four legacy Napa Valley wineries

Decanter US newsletter: Sign up today

It’s gift-giving season and celebrations galore — our yearly reminder to open the ‘good bottles’ for the ‘big moments’, as if wine ever needed a special occasion to be enjoyed.

Still, there’s something about the holidays that makes even the most laissez-faire drinker suddenly earnest about choosing well. Maybe it’s the twinkle lights, maybe it’s our annual free pass to be overly cheery, whatever it is, this is the time of year when people start seeking intention, usually spending a little more, thinking a bit harder, and yes, wine gets swept into that too.

That said, instead of assembling another traditional gift guide – and there is certainly no shortage of good ones pointing you toward bottles and wine-adjacent things from every corner of the world – we turned to California and asked its winemakers what they actually buy and give within their own community.

What do they reach for when they’re not drinking their own wines, what will they pull from the cellar for a special dinner, or bring to the twentieth holiday party of the month? What do they open when a ‘quick drink’ snowballs into a crowd?

California wine feels especially energised right now – new projects, new voices, a lot of curiosity in the air – which makes it all the more interesting to see which bottles winemakers themselves gravitate towards. So consider this a list of their favourite things – a guide, but not just for gifting, and maybe a gentle push to spend a little more time with California wines this season and beyond.

Wine gifting picks from six winemakers

Derek Baljeu, winemaker at Knights Bridge in Knights Valley, Sonoma County

2022 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

‘If your holiday budget stretches, Spottswoode Cabernet is the bottle you give when you want to make a statement – this is a “meet the parents” bottle. It’s family-owned, female-led, organically farmed, and a pioneer in regenerative agriculture. More importantly, the wine is grace and balance personified – powerful without weight, elegant without fragility. The estate Cabernet is stunning, but Lyndenhurst – at less than half the price – carries the same DNA and makes an incredible gift for anyone who loves Napa but wants freshness and restraint. These wines are holiday showstoppers, whether wrapped in ribbon or sitting next to a roast.’

Gina Giugni, winemaker at Lady of the Sunshine, Edna Valley, Central Coast

2024 Gringet, Phelan Farm, San Luis Obispo Coast

‘Mikey (Giugni, winemaker at Scar of the Sea Wines) and I just drank this wine together on the porch while cleaning our chanterelle haul from our Mountain Meadow vineyard just a few weeks ago, after the early-season rains here on the SLO coast.

‘Everything about it is delightful – it’s farmed regeneratively and made naturally by Raj Parr, and is a great expression of the Savoie variety grown in the northernmost part of the SLO Coast AVA in Cambria. This is a wine I’ll be taking home for Christmas to blind my family on for our holiday gathering in Northern California, or I’ll be drinking again with friends around the New Year with Morro Bay oysters on the beach back home in Cayucos.’

Grace Corison Martin, assistant winemaker at Corison Winery, St. Helena, Napa Valley

2016 J Schram Blancs, Schramsberg, Napa Valley

‘I love Schramsberg, especially this time of year. I’m a big fan of the J. Schram Blancs (I recently had the 2016 and absolutely loved it).

‘To me, it’s some of the best sparkling wine you can find. It’s a great bottle if you’re looking to impress the in-laws or want something special for a holiday celebration. I grew up drinking Schramsberg over the holidays, and its cave tour was one of the first tasting experiences I went on in Napa – I had the best time.’

Rodrigo Soto, winemaker at Far Mountain, Moon Mountain, Sonoma County

2021 Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

‘If you’re reaching for a California Cabernet with a real sense of place – and price isn’t a constraint – Mayacamas is hard to beat. For me, mountain vineyards always win over the valley floor, and I’m drawn to producers who farm thoughtfully; Mayacamas’ organic approach shows in the wine’s balance and clarity. The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon is lovely!’

Meghan Zobeck, winemaker and owner of M Zobeck wines, California

2019 Blanc de Blancs, Caraccioli Cellars, Santa Lucia Highlands

‘Sparkling wine is fun to open and pairs well with all of the salty, rich foods that are abundant this time of year. When in doubt about what wine to bring or gift, I choose bubbles – or for your nerdy wine friend who thinks they only like bubbles produced in Champagne.

‘I like to surprise people with Caraccioli Cellars, based in the Santa Lucia Highlands, to expand their idea of what we are capable of making in the Golden State. Scott Caraccioli and his team are putting out some of the best sparkling wines in the country from their Escolle Vineyard, in addition to some killer Syrah and Gamay. I do believe that when the people behind the wines are awesome, the wine tastes even better.’

Morgan Twain-Peterson MW, owner and winemaker at Bedrock Wine Co, Sonoma County

2022 Evangelho Vineyard Carignan, Birdhorse Wines, Contra Costa County

‘Birdhorse is the project of wife-and-wife team Katie Rouse and Corinne Rich, who, in their day jobs, are the associate winemakers at Bedrock Wine Co. and Scribe, respectively. I love their wines because they are always delicious and forthright – they are not trying to be “grand” wines but rather ones that you can have a friendly conversation with.

‘Though they embrace a bit of the “natural wine” aesthetic in terms of cluster use, no oak, and minimal sulphur, both Katie and Corinne have an MS in Fermentation Science from Davis, so they are excellent winemakers. Be it the Carignan from the 1890s-planted vines at Evangelho I recommend here or their Valdiguié, the wines are satisfying, toothsome, and snappy, with good California fruit but balanced by good tension and lovely aromatics. I also just find that they work well almost anywhere. This is perfect for the friend who is super into lighter and juicier reds like Beaujolais, Frappato, or Freisa but could use a little more California wine in their life.’

Related articles

• The perfect whisky for Christmas: Ten to savour and share
• Unlock the perfect match: Cheese and sparkling wine pairing guide
• Wine with turkey: A food pairing guide

When the subject is California Pinot Noir, 10 out of 10 wine drinkers would probably name Sonoma, Santa Barbara, maybe Anderson Valley, or just about anywhere else before San Benito County even crosses their mind.

And, chances are, some people don’t realise that it is a prime wine-growing area at all — a particular kind of shame, once you learn that it has been home for half a century to one of California’s most influential Pinot pioneers: Calera.

A terroir convert

Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025, Calera is the late Josh Jensen’s dream come true and exists mainly because of his vision and determination. The broad strokes are well known: Jensen, California-born, Yale and Oxford-educated, worked harvests in Burgundy at both Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Domaine Dujac before returning home to track down the best corner in California for Pinot Noir.

Fresh back from France, that meant limestone.

He became a full convert to French terroir — a concept still obscure, if not entirely unknown, in California at the time.

His two-year search led him to Mt Harlan in the Gabilan Mountains, a high-elevation ridge (at 2,200ft or 670m) shaped by the cooling Monterey Bay winds and, most importantly, the limestone soils he’d been hunting.

And Jensen didn’t arrive empty-handed…

The suitcase story

As the story goes, Jensen brought Pinot Noir cuttings back from Burgundy. He first planted them at Chalone before propagating them atop Mt Harlan, where they became the foundation of Calera’s vineyards.

It’s hard to say precisely what happened and what Jensen might have smuggled back in his suitcase — he passed away in 2022, and he kept the specifics close.

Beyond Jensen’s well-known journey, what often slips beneath the surface is just how much of California’s Pinot Noir history now traces back to him and to Calera.

The Burgundian cuttings, the original Mt Harlan vineyards, and a winemaking approach that helped establish benchmarks for ageworthy California Pinot Noir are all part of his legacy.

‘You can’t talk about California Pinot without talking about Calera,’ says Justin Ennis, winemaker at Joseph Phelps Freestone. who farms 29.5 acres (11.5ha) of Calera selection on the Sonoma Coast.

A California clone

It turns out that in the 1980s, budwood from Calera was widely spread across vineyards throughout the state, from the Sonoma Coast to the Russian River to Santa Barbara and beyond.

‘While Josh was carefully growing his estate, he was also very generous with giving cuttings out. Larry Hyde and Steve Kistler, for example, came in and got cuttings from us, and then, you know, now they’re everywhere,’ says Mike Waller, Calera’s winemaker.

The Calera clone, as we know today, didn’t simply replicate itself in perfect little carbon copies across California. Pinot Noir never behaves that way, viticulturists like to say.

Over the years, through many different propagations and in new soils, the material evolved and adapted to California’s climate, becoming distinct enough that UC Davis Foundation Plant Services has registered it.

‘If you’re trying to make one of the finest wines possible, Calera is really solid material to start with,’ says Ennis.

‘There’s this overall elegance you get from Calera because of the complexity in the clusters, the different berry sizes, the different fruit set timing, the way it all comes together. It’s less about fruit and more about savoury elements,’ adds Jeff Mangahas, winemaker at Williams Selyem, who farms six acres of Calera clone Pinot Noir (2.4ha), noting how recognisable the clone’s structural identity can be.

An approach marked by elegance

Jensen’s push to redefine what California Pinot Noir could achieve also touched his winemaking and philosophy on native fermentations, minimal interference, no filtration, and his core belief in terroir.

Waller, who worked alongside Jensen for 12 years, says: ‘Josh had no technical background. He had a vision. He learned something from the greatest Burgundies in the world and brought that over. He made wines in a very specific, hands-off way, and those risks made the wines even more special.’

Within the world of sommeliers and winemakers, Calera carries a cult-like reverence. Old bottles, especially from the original vineyards — Jensen, Reed, and Selleck — have a collectable status comparable to top Pinot Noirs around the world.

Daniel Alday, sommelier and beverage director at Verjus in San Francisco, says: ‘Josh was instrumental in proving that California Pinots can stand shoulder to shoulder with the best Burgundy has to offer. Over the years, I’ve tasted several different Calera bottlings across vintages and vineyard sites, and the wines are always shocking in how much fresh red fruit and electric acidity remain after 30 or 40 years.’

Truly timeless

Outside that circle, in the broader wine world, though, Calera remains ‘under the radar.’ Being the sole commercial winery on the remote Mt Harlan AVA probably doesn’t help.

‘Sometimes we do get overlooked because there are so many Pinot producers and so many hot regions,’ says Waller. ‘But people find Calera along their wine journeys. Eventually, they realise we were one of the classics.’

Calera’s place in California wine history isn’t really up for debate, but it’s another thing entirely to taste through a comprehensive lineup and let the wines make the argument themselves.

At a recent retrospective, bottles stretching back 40 years from the Jensen and Reed vineyards didn’t feel like relics lost to time; the younger wines still had the familiar Calera nerve, structure, and freshness.

Taken together, they tell a surprisingly cohesive story and make it seem as if the next 50 years might be more of a continuation than a reinvention.

‘I’m carrying on Josh’s tradition. The winemaking hasn’t changed at all,’ says Waller.

Classic Calera: A look at California Pinot history

Related articles

• Are California’s best sparkling wines from the Central Coast?
• Singular US Pinot Noir: 20 vineyards where the variety has found a home
• Anderson Valley Pinot Noir: A look at the 2021 vintage

Among the handful of Napa estates still steering their own course, we find a firm conviction about what it means to build for the long term. Younger heirs have their challenges and must stay relevant to an audience that drinks differently, travels less, and scrolls or swipes at bewildering speeds.

For these families, legacy isn’t something you simply inherit, so much as something you work for, keep working for, with an urgency to innovate, and stay relevant.

Dunn Vineyards: Holding the line on Howell Mountain

Mike Dunn remembers the moment the family business called him home. ‘I walked into a bookstore in Mendocino one weekend and picked up a book on wine and read about my family,’ he says. ‘I thought I should probably learn how to make wine at that moment.’

His stepfather, Randy Dunn, wasn’t so sure the two could work together. ‘He recognised that I was kind of my own boss, and didn’t want to work for him’, Mike recalls – but after the sudden loss of Mike’s sister, the family rallied, and Randy ‘embraced my return’.

When Mike joined the winery in 1999, he brought both pragmatism and precision to Howell Mountain, softening pressing, shortening pump-overs, and reducing the amount of new oak.

He pushed back against de-alcoholising the wines if the finished alcohol was under 14%, a practice Randy had adopted without apology. Still, Mike is in favour of removing alcohol if it’s over 14%.

The tannic power of Dunn’s mountain wines has resulted in numerous critics describing them as ‘undrinkable young’, a phrase Mike meets with good humour. ‘It may have been that way in the past, but today, they are approachable earlier, and still in our style,’ which is surprisingly elegant and powerfully built.

Mike Dunn’s challenge is to ensure he doesn’t spread himself too thin dealing with the viticultural demands atop Howell Mountain while maintaining a loyal client base and prized wholesale accounts. To ease some of the burden, in 2020, Ted Kizor joined to assist in the cellar, along with Lily Mirabelle Freedman, as General Manager in 2023.

Mike’s son, Alex, is also getting involved on the farming side – yet another generation of Dunn comes into the fold.

Corison Winery: Grace and the art of continuity

Cathy Corison once remarked that she never fully understood the term terroir until she realised ‘people are part of the equation.’

That belief underpins her four decades of championing elegant, lower-alcohol Napa Cabernet – at times seen as out of fashion, occasionally unprofitable, but unwavering in integrity.

‘I never got the business memo; this girl just wants to make wine, ’ she says.

But there came a point when she and her husband, William Martin, began talking to their daughters—Grace and Rose—about a succession plan. If neither daughter wanted to take it on, ‘We might choose to stop buying any fruit and concentrate on our estate vineyards, making less wine and living happily ever after,’ muses Cathy.

‘This is a very difficult business, and I didn’t want either Grace or Rose to come back into the business unless they really loved it.’

Grace, who trained in acting and lived in New York City before returning to St Helena, caught the winemaking bug while home on a kind of forced leave during the pandemic.

Her creative background makes her acutely aware of ‘what’s around you, and [how you ] then shape it into something that tells a story,’ she says. Her generation, she adds, values transparency as much as terroir.

‘People my age want to know not just what’s in their glass, but how it was made and what values are behind it.’

Meanwhile, Cathy is learning the art of letting go after nearly four decades. ‘This project has always been so personal,’ she admits. Yet in Grace’s growing stewardship, she finds reassurance: ‘We haven’t wanted to make more wine, just better wine. If we have a long enough runway, there should be great continuity.’

Cliff Lede Vineyards: From rock ’n’ roll to rhythm and balance

Few wineries blend serious winemaking with tongue-in-cheek playfulness quite like Cliff Lede. ‘We take winemaking seriously,’ says Cliff’s son Jason Lede, ‘but don’t take ourselves too seriously.’

Since 2002, Cliff Lede’s portfolio of wines from Bordeaux varieties is set against a backdrop of a shared love of classic rock, complete with vineyard blocks named after favourite songs.

Today, Jason leads the company his father founded. ‘Initially, there wasn’t necessarily the intention to be a multi-generational winery,’ he says. ‘I spent 10 years building my résume, and officially joined in 2015.’

That same year, the winery obtained its Napa Green certification, and Jason describes the transition as equal parts pride and pressure. ‘With the current state of the industry, we’ve made it a priority to eliminate noise and focus on what drives our business forward.’

He’s expanded the estate, deepened focus on Stags Leap District Cabernet, and brought in new audiences through music-driven tastings, DJ events, and two new wines – Rhythm and Crossfade.

Director of Winemaking, Chris Tynan, leads a tight ship in the cellar, with a strict focus on farming and making wines to enjoy with meals, at moderate alcohol levels – like their flagship poetry, which clocks in at impressively modest mid-13s.

Founder Cliff Lede remains confident about the handover: ‘We’re ready to weather the storm. We’re refining our winemaking techniques to redefine what balance means to us. I am confident that not all recent industry changes are fundamental, and that wine will persevere as an essential part of a life well lived.’

Rudd: Flexibility and focus in challenging times

When Samantha Rudd took over the winery her father established in the 1990s, she was keenly aware of his legacy. ‘Rudd is about craftsmanship. It started in 1996 with a lofty goal of creating a world-class estate.’

Rudd has thrived under her helm, but she’s not one to rest on family laurels amid shifting tides. ‘All my father was able to accomplish in his life is incredibly impressive,’ she says. ‘However, that is literally the past.’

In 2021, Rudd promoted Natalie Bath to Head Winemaker. Bath, who interned at Petrus in Pomerol and first joined Rudd in 2014, has dialled back ripeness, tightened the white wine program, and brought a renewed focus on organic farming with some biodynamic practices. As a result, the wines are livelier and fresher than ever before – and attractive to a younger clientele.

It’s an oft-repeated mantra, but for Rudd: ‘Making the best wines possible from our land every year,’ is the goal. And to do that, she has surrounded herself with a comfortable team asking what they need to do to, ‘keep finding consumers, and not get stuck in our ways.’

She sees today’s economic and global consumption challenges as a chance to cultivate new wine lovers. ‘I remind our team to practise gratitude with customers,’ she notes. ‘Now more than ever, we need to make them feel special. I worked at [Bordeaux’s Château] Margaux during its 200-year celebration. If we are truly in this for the long haul, we will need to be able to adapt.’

Up Next in Napa Valley:

Related articles

• Mining for value in the Napa Valley: Over 20 of the best wines for under $75
• Napa Cabernet 2022: Vintage report and buyer’s guide
• North America newsletter: Sign up today

There are exciting developments in the region, as shown by Napa Valley’s Dominus Estate recently acquiring the 34.8ha Yountville Ranch Vineyard.

On the market, though, California fine wine prices have fallen in line with other key regions.

An index for Dominus showed a rise and fall since January 2021 (see chart below), broadly mapping recent price performance among leading US wines, said Geraint Carter, of international merchant Bordeaux Index and the LiveTrade online trading platform.

At Liv-ex, a global marketplace for the trade, the California 50 index fell 6.2% in the first eight months of 2025, despite rising 0.9% in August.

The index, tracking Dominus, Screaming Eagle, Harlan Estate, Opus One and Ridge Vineyards’ Monte Bello, was also down 1.7% over five years, although still up 45% versus 10 years ago.

As elsewhere, lower prices may bring opportunities. Screaming Eagle prices on the secondary market rival those for blue-chip Burgundy, but Liv-ex said in August: ‘Selling pressure has allowed buyers to acquire this tiny-production, cult wine more easily than would be possible in better market conditions’.

Safe bet

However, it warned of ‘considerable downside risk’ for buyers. More ‘risk-averse’ options include wines traded in higher volumes, it said. ‘Opus One and Dominus are two such examples, both showing decreasing volatility.’

Opus One is the most traded US wine at Bordeaux Index and LiveTrade in volume and value, said Carter. Yet, he also said, ‘The US remains a minority presence at Bordeaux Index with sales averaging just 3% of total turnover over the past decade.’

California’s top wines have more traction inside the US. Chicago-based auction house Hart Davis Hart saw several mature lots find buyers at, or above, pre-sale high estimates in August.

Twelve bottles of Ridge Vineyards’ Monte Bello 1991 fetched $7,767.50, including buyer’s premium (high estimate: $5,500), while a magnum of Mayacamas Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon 1974 fetched $2,629 (high e: $2,200).

Fine wine & spirits specialist Bordeaux Index kindly sponsors this section of Decanter, and provides its view on the market here every issue. It can be found at bordeauxindex.com.

California occupies an enigmatic space in the fine wine world. Despite its reputation for big scores and high prices, the region has remained a minority presence in the international trade. At BI, US wines have averaged just 3% of turnover over the past decade, with only a short-lived surge to 6% in 2018-19.

This year it is trending at little more than 1%. Within this modest share for the US, unsurprisingly it is California that dominates. Mondavi’s Opus One stands comfortably ahead of the pack in both value and volume, thanks to its Bordeaux heritage, consistency and broad distribution, while the likes of Screaming Eagle, Harlan, Dominus/Moueix and Colgin make up a distant second tier.

Encouragingly, over the past decade, the range of producers represented has grown markedly. Estates such as Rose & Arrows, Chanin and Domaine de la Côte now attract well-merited attention, reflecting both California’s stylistic diversity and a willingness among buyers to look beyond the established players.

The icons themselves have lost some of their lustre in the last two to three years, with deep price falls for wines such as Screaming Eagle and Hundred Acre underlining the risks of operating in what is a fairly opaque and illiquid market.

California produces some of the world’s most exciting wines, but its secondary market footprint remains niche and somewhat volatile. And with Trumpian trade squalls and political crosswinds factored in, the pitch has only become trickier.

Rare Faiveley bottles to go under the hammer

Christie’s will hold a ‘once-in-a-generation’ auction to mark Domaine Faiveley’s 200th anniversary, featuring historic bottles sourced from the Burgundy producer’s cellars.

The auction, which will run online from 5 to 19 November, will feature many ‘library cellar rarities’, from grand cru verticals to ‘the legendary Musigny 1908’.

A ‘Domaine Faiveley experience’ will also be offered, comprising a lunch or dinner for up to 10 guests and a nine-decade vertical tasting. Founded in 1825 by Pierre Faiveley, Domaine Faiveley today covers more than 120ha across the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune, including 12 grand cru and 21 premier cru sites.

Edwin Vos, international head of Christie’s wine and spirits department, said, ‘This auction offers an extraordinary opportunity to explore Domaine Faiveley’s legacy and access some of Burgundy’s most exceptional wines.’

Muted reception for La Place autumn campaign

Early releases of international fine wines via La Place de Bordeaux in September saw a relatively muted buyer reaction, several merchants have said.

Bordeaux négociants kicked off the annual September releases campaign with superstar names, including Napa’s Opus One 2022 (97pts, Decanter; £1,410 per 6x75cl in bond, Bordeaux Index), plus Super Tuscans Masseto 2022 and Solaia 2022.

It was too soon to fully judge the campaign as Decanter went to press, but Miles Davis, market expert at Vinum Fine Wines, said initial demand was relatively muted.

Last year’s Opus One 2021 release sold very well in a tough market, he said. ‘This year… we’ve sold a bit [of the 2022 vintage].’ He said some buyers also pounced on new stocks of Château Haut-Brion 2014, released early September.

‘It’s one of the cheapest mature vintages [of Haut-Brion] on the market,’ Davis noted.

Robert Mathias MW, senior buyer for Lay & Wheeler, praised Opus One for releasing its 2022 wine as one of the cheapest available vintages. He said economic headwinds continued to affect consumer demand in general, but early successes from the September campaign included Seña 2023 (99pts, Decanter); ‘a wine of real quality at a reasonable price [£360 per 6x75cl in bond]’.

Commenting more broadly, Geraint Carter, of Bordeaux Index, said La Place de Bordeaux’s September campaigns have struggled to generate excitement among the merchant’s clients. Nevertheless, the quality of the wines is top-drawer.

Disclaimer: Decanter’s Market watch pages are published for informational purposes only and do not constitute investment advice. Wine prices may vary and they can go down as well as up. Seek independent advice where necessary and be aware that wine investment is unregulated in several markets, including the UK.

Related articles

• Wine investment: Why the Super Tuscans are bucking the trend in a week market
• Wine investment: Fine wine prices continue to fall
• Wine investment: Top value Burgundy offers value in downbeat market

There are few winery destinations in the world as magical as OVID, perched atop Pritchard Hill 426m above Oakville on Napa’s eastern side.

From this vantage, the estate offers breathtaking views across the valley floor and nearly the entire span of the Mayacamas Mountains.

Rooted in the volcanic uplift soils, the estate was established 25 years ago by Dana Johnson and Mark Nelson, who had careers in technology and sciences.

In 2017, they sold their prized estate to the Duncan family of Silver Oak.

One thing has remained absolutely constant: OVID’s standing among Napa’s blue-chip estates is deliberately understated – a quiet reverence, coveted by collectors and exhilarating to those who chance upon it in their quest for America’s finest wines.

While its bottlings command the kind of prices suited to readers in the highest tax brackets, the estate projects a polish and sophistication that feels entirely at ease with its place among Napa’s elite.

Profound and perfect

Today, winemaker Austin Peterson is crafting wines of profound depth, structure, and complexity. Peterson is a thoughtful winemaker, equal parts philosopher and craftsman.

He spends most of his time in the vineyard as opposed to the cellar. He is astutely aware of each and every vine and bares an innate sense of compassion for the plants – fully attuned to their needs.

The vineyard itself is just 6ha divided into 17 distinct blocks, home to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot, including abundant plantings of Clone 4 Cabernet.

It is this clone, Peterson insists, that imparts the savoury character and polish evident in such vintages as the 2021 Ovid Proprietary Red – a wine I found to be totally enthralling, extraordinarily complex, and just remarkable in its depth, savoury quality and mineral freshness, worthy of a perfect 100-point score.

An exclusive dinner

On the evening of 1 November 2025, I’ll be hosting a multi-course wine pairing dinner at OVID.

It will be an intimate affair, with guests invited to tour the winery, perhaps the vineyard, and converse freely with Austin and myself throughout the night.

We’ll be pouring the 2021 Hexameter, 2021 Syrah, and the 2021 OVID Proprietary Red – three bottlings that showcase the mind-boggling terroir that is OVID.

Alongside these, we’ll debut the 2023 Experiment White and open a surprise older vintage from the library, a rare chance to see how these wines evolve with time.

This is the night you didn’t know you were dreaming of.

Secure your tickets now – places are limited.

Related articles

• Napa Valley Cabernet 2022: Vintage report and buyer’s guide
• Cru Americana: 10 of America’s finest vineyards
• Cristaldi: Seeking Napa’s best ‘second label’ wines

That this is a list should come as no surprise. The title, dear reader, gives it away. What matters most, however, is what you do with it.

The search for value in Napa Valley is not a fool’s errand; it can still be done!

As someone who has written wine recommendation lists for years across various publications, I’ve found they usually fall into one of two camps: wonderfully practical and helpful, or gloriously hedonistic and almost useless.

Scroll down for Jonathan’s best value Napa wines under $75

What I can promise is this: I’ve tasted every wine on this list, rated it, and logged each one into Decanter’s online reviews. These are wines worth your attention – delicious, even enviable.

Not that I envy a wine for simply being wine; rather, I imagine consumers envying those fortunate enough to already own or drink them.

Still, take a cue from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1933 advice to his 11-year-old daughter: ‘Don’t worry about anybody getting ahead of you – worry about efficiency [and, intriguingly, ‘horsemanship’ – Ed.].’

Efficiency matters here because you do need to worry about wines that have become impossible to find. At the time of publication, each wine is still available directly from the winery.

Though, I can’t guarantee you’ll find these in local retail shops or restaurants, especially if you live outside the US 

But let’s say you reside in a fashionable London neighbourhood, a posh Parisian arrondissement, or near a charming enoteca in Dogliani in Piedmont – print this list, hand it to your local wine buyer, and demand they import as many as possible.

The task ahead

Because here’s the truth: finding excellent Napa Valley wine that travels beyond Napa, that you can drink now, and that costs under $75 a bottle, is no small feat. (And yes, I fully expect my inbox to fill with suggestions for other sub-$75 wines I’ve missed, forgotten, or couldn’t squeeze in.)

But remember my caveat. These wines must:

• The wine must be available outside of Napa Valley.
• It must be excellent, more than a casual ‘sure, I’ll have a glass.’ These are bottles you’ll want to finish to the last drop. At least, I do.

Napa Valley has around 475 physical wineries and over 1,000 brands, so a list of 25 is but a drop in the proverbial bucket.

Wallace Stevens found 13 ways of looking at a blackbird; I’ve found 25 Napa wines under $75 in the past six months that are as enticing as they sound.

Here they are – from whites to reds.

Cristaldi’s pick of the best Napa wines for under $75

Related articles

• Napa Cabernet 2022: Vintage report and buyer’s guide
• California Syrah: top Santa Barbara County wines
• Oregon vintage 2022: Best Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs under $50

Set against rolling hills with views of Mt St. Helena, a luxurious Napa Valley estate near to downtown Calistoga that includes almost 2.7 hectares (6.6 acres) of Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards has recently found a buyer after being listed at $13.475m (£10.04m).

Lying on site of a former school, the sprawling 18.6-hectare estate (46 acres) features vines that gently slope down to a natural, spring-fed lake.

It also features heritage oak trees and an outdoor swimming pool, plus several buildings ranging from a main residence to a poolside cottage and bell tower, showed a listing by Arthur Goodrich and Federico Parlagreco, of Sotheby’s International Realty – St. Helena Brokerage.

A wine cellar underneath the main house is capable of storing at least 5,000 bottles, and has a ‘tasting nook’, according to the listing.

News of the recent sale constitutes the most expensive residential property deal in this part of California wine country since 2023, according to Mansion Global. The estate was previously listed at $18.5m a few years ago, and at $14.95m earlier this year.

A report by San Francisco Standard linked the purchase to a company managed by philanthropist Lyna Lam, wife of crypto billionaire and leading Silicon Valley entrepreneur Chris Larsen.

Listing agent Goodrich told Decanter it was his policy not to comment on the identity of buyers or sellers, however.

Of the luxury vineyard market in Napa Valley, he said, ‘It is definitely an ideal time to be buyer in wine country and while the wine industry may be experiencing a slowdown, these events are typically cyclical in nature.’

It wasn’t clear how involved the new owners wished to get in the vineyard operation, if at all, but the listing noted that the estate is eligible for a micro-winery permit.

Its Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards are split into four distinct sites and collectively produce 1,200-plus cases annually.

Highly regarded winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown is in charge of producing wine from the estate’s harvest, with vineyards managed by Hardin-Clark, and the listing said this has resulted in a growing wine club.

Alongside the underground cellar space in the main residence, there is a library wine collection going back to the property’s first vintage in 2002.

Related articles

• Rarely seen Napa Valley wine ranch on sale for $100m
• Dominus doubles down on Napa with historic vineyard purchase
• How to buy a vineyard

Champagne has long been the liquid symbol for celebration, poured at coronations, christenings and Christmas tables with inevitability. Yet the assumption that only one region can produce suitable sparkling wine is beginning to feel tired.

What began as borrowed prestige founded on another’s reputation and nomenclature has given way to a new seriousness: sparkling wines of artisanal quality, defined not by loopholes but by their distinct terroir and a commitment to the regional ‘house style’.

This is not an imitation. It is translation: French blueprints reinterpreted in Californian sunlight, tempered by maritime breezes and rooted in soils ranging from chalk to diatomaceous earth. The result is wines that can compete on merit rather than marketing.

Subscribe today to read all Decanter Premium articles, tasting notes and scores

The sparkling foundation

Laetitia Vineyards & Winery lies just a few miles from the coast in the cool Arroyo Grande Valley.

The winery was founded in 1982 by Deutz, a well-known Champagne house. Laetitia has spent more than four decades proving sparkling wine can be more than an eccentric sideline in California.

A corporate interlude under Vintage Wine Estates brought updated machinery (though they kept their impressive original Deutz era wooden press for show in their tasting room), rigorous laboratory work and expanded cellar staff, raising quality even as the estate was folded into a wider portfolio.

In 2024, second-generation winemaker Eric Hickey – who began in the cellar in 1988, led by his father – led a buy-back with local families, restoring Laetitia to independent stewardship.

The wines are sharper for it: the 2021 Blanc de Blancs shows crystalline focus and chalky drive, while the 2021 Cuvée M delivers complexity, toast and richness fit for December tables.

Pinot roots and a sparkling future

Not every Central Coast sparkling house was born to bubbles. Riverbench, founded in the Santa Maria Valley in 1973, built its name on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay before branching into méthode champenoise in 2008. Its sparkling wines lean into orchard fruit and brisk acidity, deepened by lees ageing.

Sea Smoke, better known for plush and velveteen Pinot Noir, has followed suit, folding a selected lot of estate fruit into a sparkling programme that is more than meets the eye. An understated generosity and energetic acid profile highlight the oceanic minerality of the Sta. Rita Hills.

While on the fuller side, their Sea Spray remains brut nature with no dosage added, highlighting the producer’s commitment to showcase the integrity of their estate-grown grapes, reminding us that estates once defined by undeniably Californian Pinot Noir can turn their hand to cellarworthy sparkling.

Then there is Flying Goat Cellars, founded by Norm Yost, named Vintner of the Year by the Sta. Rita Hills Wine Alliance this past August.

Cultish in reputation, Flying Goat specialises in nerdy, small-lot sparklings, often from Bien Nacido, Riverbench and Solomon Hills vineyards. If Laetitia offers polish and Racines a French accent, Flying Goat is the eccentric professor – idiosyncratic, cerebral and deeply respected.

Franco-Californian fusion

If Laetitia represents endurance, Racines embodies evolution built on French traditions.

Founded with its first vintage in 2017, Racines is the brainchild of Burgundy’s Étienne de Montille and Brian Sieve, joined by Rodolphe Péters of Champagne Pierre Péters.

Their presence in the Sta. Rita Hills is no vanity project. Fog, wind, and ancient marine soils share some similarities with their Champagne counterparts, albeit with a bit more sunshine.

Wines from Sanford & Benedict, Bentrock and La Rinconada carry Champagne’s discipline of precision intact and minerality, yet the presence of Sta Rita Hills’ unique terroir in the glass makes it easy to distinguish their Californian roots.

The new wave

The next wave of California winemaking talent is pushing sparkling further still, with each producer bringing a distinct philosophy and style to their glass.

Loubud, the personal project of Laura Hughes (currently the assistant winemaker at Sanford), focuses on small-lot, coastal-influenced wines. Her sparklings are generally lean and vibrant, showing saline energy, tension and shaped with artisanal precision.

From there, the tone shifts with Lady of the Sunshine, where winemaker Gina Giugni uses regenerative farming as the foundation for wines of both vibrant freshness and earthy botanical nuance.

Her sparkling solera cuvées are different, with flavours that can be both fresh and oxidative, unembellished by heavy sulfur additions – these wines are wonderfully refreshing for those who value originality and authenticity above adornment.

Meanwhile, Tyler and Lieu Dit, both associated with Justin Willett, have begun weaving méthode champenoise into their already acclaimed portfolios.

Best known for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay of crystalline precision, their sparklings carry the same exacting approach: lean, mineral and unapologetically terroir-driven.

Why here?

The Central Coast thrives on paradox. Ocean winds cool the fruit while the Californian sun ensures ripeness. Chalk, clay and diatomaceous earth give both texture and tension. It is this collision – between generosity and restraint – that makes the region so apt for sparkling wine.

In short, Champagne’s climate is impossible to replicate, but Sta. Rita Hills and the Santa Maria Valley come closer than one might ever expect.

The Northern counterpoint

Quality California sparkling did not begin here. Schramsberg in Napa and Domaine Carneros in Carneros have long set the standard.

Schramsberg supplied the Nixon-era White House; Domaine Carneros, with its château façade, has become a must-try sparkling-only tasting location for American wine lovers. Both deliver consistency and broad appeal, with volumes to match.

Yet scale brings compromise. Both labels produce reliable classics, but lack the crisp mineral and saline imprints found in soils of the central coast.

Bigger names up in California’s North Coast offer consistency and recognisable branding, but can sometimes feel more corporate than soulful. Nevertheless, these wines remain essential markers of quality-driven California sparkling wine.

Sparkling-only houses up north also seem to offer one thing we don’t often find on the Central Coast: a wider range of sparkling styles with a spectrum of dosage levels that can be found in almost every tasting room, and even the occasional demi-sec bottlings, reminding us that America’s romance with sugar is alive and well, despite ‘dry’ being the most requested style in tasting rooms and restaurants alike.

Within the bounds of the Central Coast, most producers have found the sweet spot of ripeness and freshness thanks to the proximity to the coast and protection of morning fog.

This can be achieved with little to no dosage, keeping in line with consumer trends without compromising on flavour, which allows for a sharp yet balanced result.

A crown all its own

For decades, American sparkling has hovered between aspiration and apology, alternately borrowing Champagne’s name, undercutting its price.

The Central Coast suggests another way forward: sparkling wines that neither imitate nor rebel, but speak fluently of their own place.

The reflex may still be to reach for the prestige of French Champagne or the affordability of Italian Prosecco. But the smarter money – and, given tariffs, more sustainable and often better value for quality – can be found on bottles from Arroyo Grande, Santa Maria and the Sta. Rita Hills.

They deserve not only a place at the table but perhaps a new tradition altogether: a toast to life with a coastal accent.

Brilliant bubbles from California’s Central Coast: seven to try

Related articles

• Expert’s Choice: American sparkling wines
• A royal affair: California wines and historic spirits served at Trump’s state banquet
• Vintage English sparkling wine: Panel tasting results

A luxurious state banquet for US president Donald Trump and first lady Melania was hosted by King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle on Wednesday night (17 September), with a menu seemingly designed to honour both countries.

Menus and wine lists for such occasions are usually created with meticulous attention to detail.

UK officials offered up a lavish menu to mark Trump’s official visit to the country, which has also been marked by protests.

Vintage English sparkling wine featured during the banquet at St George’s Hall, with Wiston Estate, Cuvée [Brut] 2016 poured for the 160-strong guest list, according to widespread media reports of the menu.

California’s legendary Ridge Vineyards also made an appearance via its Monte Bello 2000 vintage, 25 years on from harvest.

Trump reportedly doesn’t drink alcohol, and so the contents of the bottles were likely only enjoyed by other banquet guests.

Other wines served included 2018-vintage Corton-Charlemagne grand cru Burgundy from Domaine Bonneau du Martray, which is owned by US businessman Stan Kroenke, plus Pol Roger ‘Extra Cuvée de Reserve’ 1998 Champagne; Pol Roger was a favourite of Sir Winston Churchill.

A special US-UK cocktail was mixed to mark the occasion, ‘blending smoky whisky with the bright citrus of marmalade’, said the Royal family’s social media channels.

‘Crowned with a pecan foam and garnished with a toasted marshmallow set on a star-shaped biscuit, the cocktail aims to evoke the warmth of a fireside s’more.’

After dinner, spirits and fortified wine lovers among the banquet guests were also spoilt for choice.

There was a 1912 Hennessy Grande Champagne Cognac, reportedly representing the birth year of Trump’s Scottish-born mother.

A Warre’s 1945 vintage Port was also offered, possibly reflecting Trump becoming the 45th US president back in 2017 but also potentially marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

Meanwhile, there was a rare Scotch whisky on the table after officials brought out a bottle of Bowmore Queen’s Cask 1980.

A cask was filled in that year during the late Queen Elizabeth II’s visit to the Islay-based distillery off the west coast of Scotland, and the contents were bottled for her Golden Jubilee in 2002.

Before that, state banquet guests were served a dinner featuring ballotine of organic Norfolk chicken wrapped in courgettes with a thyme and savoury-infused jus, according to menu details reported by several media, including The Independent.

As a starter, diners were given ‘Hampshire watercress panna cotta with Parmesan shortbread and quail egg salad’. 

State banquet menus are always written in French as the first language, as noted during French president Macron’s visit to the UK earlier this year.

During the banquet for Trump, King Charles III spoke of the long-standing close ties between the US and UK.

Related articles

• Vintage English sparkling wine: Panel tasting results
• Ridge Monte Bello retrospective: 21 vintages of the California classic
• King Charles III and Queen Camilla celebrate 20th wedding anniversary with Ferrari Trento

Faulkner said that: ‘Some days in late August at home are like this, the air thin and eager like this, with something in it sad and nostalgic and familiar.’

That struck a chord in me as a frenzied August saw me packing in a few days on the road, including a trip home, a trip that definitely struck me as sad, nostalgic and familiar.

Somehow, between it all, I found the time to taste more than 300 wines. It was a whirlwind.

Santa Cruz Mountains

Prior to my visit to the Santa Cruz Mountains in August, I had made the pilgrimage to Montebello, but hadn’t ventured beyond those hallowed grounds at Ridge.

On this August visit, hosted by the Wines of the Santa Cruz Mountains regional body, I was able to get a more holistic picture, including visits to Rhys, Mount Eden and a new to me producer, Thomas Fogarty, as well as a return trip to Montebello.

On my last day, I sat down to a broader appellation tasting and left there having tasted over 120 wines in just three days. I also had one of the best burritos of my entire life.

While this is where American Pinot Noir first got its start, thanks to Paul Masson in the early 1900s, it was actually the Chardonnay and Syrah which blew me away.

The beautifully rugged region, with its enchanting, unique garrigue-scent filling the air at nearly every turn, is home to incredible wines. High elevation, steep slopes, and cool air from the Pacific, combined with fog from the San Francisco Bay, all come together to create something truly exceptional.

One of California’s original wine regions remains far too under the radar, despite the success of Ridge, but look for more coverage from me later this fall.

The Dundee Hills