Santa Barbara

96 Points! Black raspberries, spicy wood, flowers, and graphite all emerge from the 2023 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard, which was fermented with 25% whole clusters and aged a total of 17 months in 28% new French oak. Medium-bodied and beautifully balanced, it has a pure, layered, and polished mouthfeel, with fine tannins and integrated acidity. It’s a classy, seamless, and incredibly impressive Pinot Noir that I love even today, though it should be even better with another year or two in bottle and drink brilliantly through 2033. - Jeb Dunnuck

99 Points! Wow, so intense, layered and firm, this wine wraps sinewy tannins around generous red and black fruit. So ripe and rich in aromas of blackberries and sour cherries, then bitter chocolate, dense black currant and black licorice flavors. Great structure for further aging. Drinkable now and best from 2030. - JamesSuckling.com

Grape Whisperer, Ruben Solorzano planted the first test vineyard that would pave the way for the other GREAT PLACES vineyards back in 2007. After being inspired while helping Renee Rostaing prune his steep Côte Blonde parcel in Côte Rôtie, Ruben crammed 6,000 pre-clonal Syrah vines onto one beautiful hillside in marching rows of diagonal posts directly above Ballard Creek. This one-acre block, today known as Great Places, Ruben Solorzano, is the founding member of the Great Places Quartet. 

100 Points! The 2024 Syrah Great Places Jessica Lauren Stolpman is the most mind-bending wine in this range, and one of the finest Syrahs I've ever tasted from California. There’s a sense of flash and finesse here that makes this feel so pretty, so enticing. Dark macerated cherry, rosewater, crème de violette, incense and blackcurrant open with boundless concentration, while a pastille-like, velvety texture and ultra-refined tannins convey stunning purity. The inclusion of 85% whole clusters lends the wine remarkable textural vibrancy and aromatic delineation. The 2024 is dynamic and multidimensional, a wine that reaches the top of the mountain. Sensational. - Billy Norris, Vinous

97 Points! A dark and cocoa-accented wine that’s very fresh, balanced and agile in texture. Dark chocolate, dark cherries, dried blueberries, iron, violets and graphite all crowd into a dense, elegant character with fine-grained tannins. So linear and focused. Drink now or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Lots of Bordeaux-like currants, cedar pencil, chocolate, and leather nuances emerge from the 2021 Cabernet Franc Tinaquaic Vineyard, an incredibly well-balanced, medium to full-bodied red that has fine tannins and a great finish. It might be one of the finest Bordeaux blends I've tasted from this estate, and if you were to put this in a blind tasting of top Bordeaux, you might just shock your friends – and yourself. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! Deeply intriguing aromas of chiseled stone, wet clay, turned soil and tangerine peel make for a mineral-driven nose on this bottling. That stony, crushed cement character cruises across the palate, where a slightly citrusy lime leaf flavor adds depth. Drink now-2043. - Wine Enthusiast

From the winery:

This is classic Patterson: arguably the most Chablisienne of our bottlings, instant with pronounced stone, white flower and fruit aromas reminiscent of Fuji apple and Camice pear, quick on its feet with a crisp attack but expansive and deep on the palate. The combination of freshness and body really is something else. With more time in the glass, a touch of brown butter and oak seep in, hardly distracting from the other elements of the wine but instead adding to them a subtle polish. This 2023, vintage number six for Patterson, may be its best yet.

10 months aging in larger oak puncheons, 6 months in tank, 294 cases produced.

96 Points! The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Star Lane Vineyard is a fabulous wine that shows how compelling Cabernet Sauvignon can be in Happy Canyon. Rich, heady, and explosive, the 2021 has it all. A rush of dark-toned fruit, black olives, leather, tobacco and incense all saturate the palate. This old-school, structured Cabernet is tremendous. What a wine. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

94 Points! The 2023 Syrah Estate Grown is an excellent wine, especially for $36. Fleshy and expressive, it coats the palate with serious concentration. There are no hard edges here, just velvety blue fruit, leather, clove, crushed rocks and a lift of fresh mint. This midweight Syrah really impresses for its vibrancy, palate presence and immediacy. - Billy Norris, Vinous

93 Points! Fermented with one-third whole clusters, the 2023 Syrah Estate exudes a lovely balance between high-toned energy and grounded depth. The nose is classically bright, savory and herbal before the palate takes a deep, darker-fruited turn, showcasing a beautiful, velvety texture supported by sturdy tannins. It finishes on a lifted yet weightless note with impressive precision. - Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

93 Points! The Stolpmans' largest-production syrah offers a really vibrant blueberry and blackberry character laced with mineral and chalk notes, for which they credit the limestone soil. Full-bodied with moderate tannins. Good concentration and length. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

From the winery:

This wine is 100% Chardonnay, and is the new version of what was our Bien Nacido Chardonnay.  Over the last 10 years the Bien Nacido Vineyard has been shrinking due to virus and economic considerations, and a couple of the blocks that we used to get from are now sadly gone.  Luckily, Block 18, which is directly behind the winery, has remained healthy, productive and yields high quality grapes.  This is the first year that we have worked with the Maria Vista Vineyard.  It is a beautifully farmed vineyard about 5 miles west of Bien Nacido, so slightly cooler site, and sits directly across the road from Presqu’ile Vineyard and Winery.

The grapes for this wine were harvested in four separate picks between September 10^th and September 24^th, at sugars ranging from 21.7 to 24.0° brix, all with great acidity.  Each lot was whole cluster pressed, chilled overnight in tank, and transferred to barrel the next day.  For Chardonnay, we use exclusively Francois Freres French oak Burgundy barrels, of which about 25% were new, 25% were two year old, and the rest neutral.  It went through complete malo in the barrel and was aged on the lees for 9 months.

This is classic Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay, with aromas of apples, pears, citrus and a nice dollop of toasty French oak.  The Maria Vista component, coming from a cooler climate gives the wine a nice bit of minerality as well.  

Sourced from Jack Ranch Farms, Spanish Springs Vineyard, Greengate Farms and Vista Verde Vineyards, 7 months aging in 228L and 500L barrels, 1month in stainless steel. A delight!

47% Grenache, 38% Syrah, 15% Mourvedre

Vineyards:
Grenache: Alta Mesa, Derby, Spanish Springs, Old Potrero. Syrah: Old Potrero, White Hawk, Wolff. Mourvedre: Alta Mesa, Old Portrero,

Fermentation:
Fermented with native yeast - Grenache: 30% whole cluster, Syrah: 25% Stem inclusion, Mourvedre: 100% Destemmed

Elevage:
23 months in French oak - 4% New, 21% Second-fill, 75% Neutral

94 Points! Fermented and aged in a combination of tank and puncheon, the 2024 Chenin Blanc Ernesto Wickenden Vineyard Old Vines is concentrated, crystal-clear and most importantly, absolutely delicious. Lemon oil, ripe pear, chalk and white pepper blossom in the glass with real lift. Energetic and lively, the 2024 confidently marches across the palate. A rounded, lightly creamy finish wraps things up with a pretty little bow on top. - Billy Norris, Vinous

93 Points! Fermented in equal parts stainless steel and neutral puncheons, the 2024 Chenin Blanc Ernesto Wickenden Vineyard is a beautiful representation of the variety sourced from vines planted in 1966. It opens with an airy, ethereal bouquet that gradually blossoms with dried jasmine, tangerine, crushed stone and citrus peel aromas. The palate is broad, textural and glossy yet enlivened with invigorating acidity that runs through the vibrant, mouthwatering finish. - Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

93 Points! Warm slate, lemon flesh and pith, hard apples, chamomile and white tea are nervy and long in this brisk chenin blanc, the concentration of fruit and savory notes making for a fascinating expression of the variety. As lively and mouthwatering as it is right now, there is a bright midterm future ahead as well. Drink or hold. - James Suckling.com