Larkmead 2022 Lillie Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley

I'm a bit late in getting to a review of this excellent wine, but this is not a white wine that is showing age - quite the contrary. It is still very youthful and racy, with years to go. The excellent Cabernet producer, Larkmead, does not produce a lot of white wine (whites account for only 10% of the winery's volume). And, unfortunately, this wine is pretty much only available to wine club members. That said, if you happen to have a chance to enjoy it, you're in for a treat. It's currently showing notes of lemongrass, lime blossom, honeydew melon, green papaya, and granny smith apple, and it also has a subtle umami note reminiscent of saltwater. This is going to sound crazy, but it actually reminds me a little bit of a green papaya salad without the chile spice. This kind of complexity is rare indeed. (96 Points). 

 

- Tim Teichgraeber 

Duckhorn 2024 North Coast Sauvignon Blanc

 

As several wine categories have been flagging, California Sauvignon Blanc sales in the US have been doing pretty well. There are several long-standing fine California Sauvignon Blanc brands that you always see in the market: Duckhorn, Ferrari Carano, Groth, Honig, and I'm sure you can come up with a couple of others.

Although the stated list price is $32, this is currently selling at the local Emeryville Total Wine store for $19.99, and you can expect it to be listed for around $20-$25 most places. 

This vintage of Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc absolutely delivers. This is a terrific wine. It's fresh and zippy with spring-like snap pea, grass, clover, lemon-lime, elderflower and honeydew melon flavors. A dose of Semillon gives it some added depth. No wonder it's one of the leading brands in the ultra-premium tier - it's super-complex and well-executed with great layers, complexity, and concentration. Brava to winemaker Renee Ary! (93 Points)

Review: Auteur 2023 Bacigalupi Vineyard Chardonnay Russian River Valley, CA ($65)

Another excellent Chardonnay from Kenneth Juhasz at Auteur. Like most of the rather Burgundian-style Chardonnays that this label produces, it is taut, precise, and disciplined, but the exotic Bacigalupi vineyard fruit does pierce the veil. You'll note narrowly focused lemon, apricot, and kaffir lime leaf notes in the mix. This is a medium-bodied, not at all buttery, subtle, new breed of California Chard that merits attention and respect. It was divine with a roast chicken and a Zuni-esque bread salad on a cool, foggy Oakland night in June. (94 points)

- Tim Teichgraeber 

Rhys 2022 Horseshoe Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, CA $99

This is a terrific wine from a vineyard sitting at between 1,360 ft and 1,610 ft elevation in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It embodies everything that is great about contemporary California Chardonnay: it is sleek, full of finesse, possessing brilliant stone fruit (apricot) and citrus (lemon) flavors, plus a brilliant nuanced limestone and shale minerality drawn from the Santa Cruz Mountains site. It is exactly as advertised, but for the stated list price of $99 bottle, I'm not sure it delivers in terms of value. Don't get me wrong, this is a really good wine, but at this price I expect some kind of panache that goes beyond correct and precise. I'm just not getting a lot of 'wow' out of this wine. I look forward to tasting more from this producer, which has been getting some great accolades from my colleagues. (92 Points)

 

- Tim Teichgraeber 

Markham Vineyards Revisited

 Back in the 1990's when Merlot was a hot commodity, Markham was a marquee brand. It was from Napa Valley, around $25 bucks a bottle, and it was damn good wine. In fact, the 1990 Markham Merlot was named Merlot of the Year by Wine Spectator magazine. California wine was on fire back then. 

But demand for Merlot was so strong that growers started planting Merlot in all of the wrong places, and it started to suck. And the movie Sideways. And fashion trends. And consumers moved on. This was not good for Markham.

Good luck googling the various ownership changes at Markham - the record is a little bit obscure and complicated, but today it appears to the in the hands of a company called Distinguished Brands. Kimberlee Nicholls has been at Markham since 1993 when she was hired on as an oenologist. Today, she is the winemaker, and her name is on the front label. It should be.

 I have recently tasted a few wines from Markham, including the 2021 Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley, and I have to say they are super impressive, even if they're a bit more expensive than they were in the 1990's. They're also BETTER. Understand, the 2021 vintage is quite special, but there's unquestionably some winemaking finesse going on here. Kimberlee Nicholls is not a youngster, and not new to Markham, but I still reckon she's a winemaker to watch.

2021 Marked Parcels Little Cannon Vineyard Oak Knoll, Napa Valley ($73) This wine is simply superb! Easily one of the best California Merlots that I've tried in the past few years. It's fresh, vivacious, versatile and flavorful with gorgeous cherry, plum and blackberry fruit and great acidity. It's delicious now and I would love to try it in ten years. Super impressive. (95 Points) 

 2021 Markham Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($53) When I tried this red weeks later, I said to myself, "OK, that Merlot was no fluke." This is in the exact same vein. It is similarly focused, fresh, not overripe, not over-oaked, just juicy and balanced, with good concentration and lots of cassis, black cherry, and blackberry fruit with just a hint of cocoa. It is clearly very lightly filtered and already dropping a fair amount of sediment, which is fine. Everyone in my household was impressed, and the price makes it one of the better values in Napa Valley Cabernet that I can think of. It's right up there with Turnbull's outstanding entry-level Napa Cab. I know it isn't a cheap date, but this is a really good Napa Cab for the price. (93 Points)

 

Textbook 2022 Pey Family Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)

 

 

I know Jonathan Pey best for his work in Marin County (a very cool climate just north of the Golden Gate Bridge), where he made Riesling and some other wines for many years. His newer value-oriented brand, Textbook, makes Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley and Paso Robles, red blends, and a couple of white wines. In 2019, as the brand was seeing good growth, it was sold to Distinguished Vineyards and Wine Partners (a subsidiary of Kirin), but Jonathan Pey stayed on as winemaker. As Napa Cabs go, this one is a good value if you can get it for under $40. It's very well-made, velvety, has rich black and red fruit, and has nice structure for short-term drinking. Recommended.

- Tim Teichgraeber

Auteur 2022 Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay, Carneros ($65)

Kenneth Juhasz is making some very Burgundian-inspired, spectacular wines at Sonoma-based Auteur. This Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay is decidedly restrained, weighing in at an alleged 12.8% alcohol, with tense flint, apricot, gardenia, and jasmine aromas. Well-chilled, it would be hard to peg this as a California Chardonnay, but it doesn't come across as Burgundy, either. As it warms, a bit of subtle oak becomes apparent, but it remains bright, elegant, and tightly-wound. This is a subtle, not showy wine, but it has tons of class. It's a little like a Wong Kar-wai Film - it rewards the attentive and patient. (94 Points).