Specials

94 Points! From the highest-elevation vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands, at its southern, warmer tip, the 2023 Pinot Noir Cortada Alta exudes feral features of honeysuckle, sagebrush, pine, and wild rose. The exposure to the winds can make the tannins abrasive, though when well-managed as they are here, the wine remains super structured yet supple. Ultimately, it’s both feral and funky in all the right ways, as enjoyable as it is contemplative. It should drink well another 10 years or more. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com

93 Points! The 2023 Pinot Noir Cortada Alta Vineyard is another high point in Russell Joyce's portfolio, offering a uniquely balanced and energetic expression of the Santa Lucia Highlands. It leads with a bright, fragrant bouquet of red and blue fruits, damp earth and crushed stones. The palate is slender and focused, containing a surprising saturation, considering its lithe frame. It concludes with an elegant, ethereal finish with fine-grained tannins. - Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

94 Points! Clean and focused with blackberry and dark-bark aromas and flavors. Medium to full body and firm, creamy tannins with length and focus. Lavender and berries with chocolate undertones. Very polished and flavorful. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

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

It's incredible. Apparently, Chateau Ste. Michelle has this cool 'winery only' program that features smaller batches of kick-tail wines. This is our first pick of the litter but there will be more amazing deals like this to come! This wine is 'in the pocket' and drinking perfectly now...

94 Points! A spicy and earthy red with plum and berry aromas that follow through to a medium body with round, soft tannins and a juicy finish. Lots of character and subtlety to this sangiovese. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Lovely now, but will age nicely too. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

92 Points! The 2018 Pinot Noir Gap's Crown Vineyard has aged really nicely, painting a picture of where Jeff Gaffner's style leads with time in bottle. A velvety, plush. mouthfeel is the highlight today. Rich cherry fruit has softened with time, leaving behind echoes of turned earth, cedar and tobacco leaf. This is in a fine place to drink now and over the next couple of years. - Billy Norris, Vinous, 2026

For James Regusci Jr., agriculture isn’t just a passion, it’s in his blood. Like his father, Jim, and grandfather, Angelo, James developed a love for farming while working on our family ranch. After graduating from Oregon State University with a degree in Agricultural Sciences, James returned to Napa Valley to work in horticulture for The French Laundry and joined the Regusci Vineyard Management team in 2019. In 2020, James launched Four Doors Wine, opening his own door as a fourth-generation farmer and vintner.

This is a brilliant, site-driven Cabernet Sauvignon from the renowned Stags Leap District
Classic Stags Leap profile: plush power balanced by elegance, finesse, and precision
Showcases purity of fruit, refined tannins, and mineral-driven structure

93 Points! The cooler temperatures seemed to benefit the Calistoga source of Coup de Foudre's 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon. Dominated by ripe cherries, it still has some of the herbal streaks found in the 2022 but fewer of them, morphing them into attractive tomato or tobacco-leaf nuances. It's full-bodied and reasonably silky in feel, with ample length and a dusting of fine-grained tannins on the finish. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

94 Points! A firm, structured and intense red with potent black fruits wrapped in muscular tannins. Iron, floral, black-cherry and star-anise flavors. Very focused and powerful yet poised, ready for extended aging for those with patience. - JamesSuckling.com

92 Points! An archetypal Alsace dry riesling with a wide spectrum of aromas ranging from lemon and crisp pear to fresh pineapple and candied orange. Very crisp and focused palate with a wonderful freshness that’s hard to resist. Long, ample finish that’s very clean. From organically grown grapes. Drink from release. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! The 2018 Veneroso is bold, punchy and super-expressive. Sweet pipe tobacco, cedar, leather, dried herbs and menthol lend notable aromatic complexity to this 70% Sangiovese and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon blend. A closing burst of dark red Sangiovese fruit punctuates the finish. This is such a classy wine. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Just gorgeous now. The folks at Highlands have wrapped up their business and sold us a small cache of their older goodies at INSANE prices. This wine at $29.98 is simply RIDICULOUS. Howell Mountain, 20+ years of bottle age, great vintage, and under $30. Wow.

96 Points! The 2023 Gemellaia, a varietal Merlot in this vintage, is dusty and floral, enticing with an array of crushed violets, white pepper, cedar shavings and wild blueberries. It is seamless and supple, with a savory mix of red and blue fruits underscored by crisp mineral tones, as an air of lavender gathers toward the close. It is dramatically long, staining and structured, with a web of fine tannins, yet maintains excellent freshness and verve. The 2023 Gemellaia is simply stunning. No fan of Merlot should be without it. – Eric Guido, Vinous

96 Points! A fresh and perfumed wine with aromas of sandstone, roses and lavender. Silky tannins and refreshing acidity with a long finish that carries flavors of wild blueberry, raspberry and pomegranate. – JamesSuckling.com

95+ Points! A dramatic departure from the history of this wine, the 2023 Gemellaia is composed of 100% Merlot and is an absolutely transcendent expression of the variety. Bounding from the glass with a sophisticated, red- and black-fruited nose with sandalwood, turned earth, underbrush and dark chocolate aromas, the palate is rich and saturated yet equal parts slender and spry. It culminates with a lifted, savory finish that lingers with refined, chalky tannins and remarkable length. This is the only thing like it in the Central Coast, and I look forward to following its evolution. – Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

92 Points! A sleek and flavorful red with aromas of dark raspberries, licorice, orange peel, toasted hazelnuts and bay leaves. Full-bodied with a fine-tannin frame. Excellent balance. 92% merlot, 7% cabernet sauvignon and 1% cabernet franc. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

91 Points! The 2021 Red Blend Estate opens with a dark and brooding blend of crushed ashen stones, grilled herbs, violet pastille and blackberries. This is juicy and round in feel, with vibrant acidity and masses of ripe red and blue fruits. It finishes long and finely structured with dusty tannins, leaving hints of licorice and confectionary spice to fade. - Eric Guido, Vinous

Champagne Duménil is one of those discoveries that reminds us how many great growers are still hiding in Champagne. This small family estate, now led by Frédérique Duménil, has roots stretching back to the 1800s, but one of its most important decisions came in 1969, when Frédérique's grandmother Cécile planted Chardonnay in the Pinot-dominated Montagne de Reims. She loved vintage Champagne and believed Chardonnay would give their wines greater longevity. More than 50 years later, the 2015 Duménil Vintage Brut proves her right. A blend of 60% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Meunier and 20% Pinot Noir from cooler north-facing slopes, it spent more than six years on the lees before disgorgement in 2022.

Now roughly 11 years from vintage, it's drinking beautifully, with bright stone fruit, citrus, subtle tropical notes and a gorgeous green-gold hue. Rather than being heavily brioche-driven, it shows impressive freshness, precision and energy, with the structure to explain exactly why Cécile believed so strongly in Chardonnay. Vintage Champagne routinely sells for $85 to $100+, and this would be an excellent value at its normal $70 retail. At $34.98, it's ridiculous. Eleven-year-old, vintage-dated grower Champagne with more than six years on the lees for under $35, and we have only 180 bottles.