Jeb Dunnuck, October 2019
94 POINTS - 2018 SANTA BARBARA COUNTY CHARDONNAY
“I loved the 2018 Chardonnay Santa Barbara County. This beauty has terrific notes of spiced orchard fruits, salted citrus, mint, and sappy herbs as well as a clean, medium-bodied, racy style on the palate. It's a balanced, classic, incredibly high-quality Chardonnay to enjoy over the coming 4-6 years."
95 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD CHARDONNAY
“The 2018 Chardonnay Peake Ranch Vineyard comes from the estate and was barrel fermented and aged in 45% new French oak. Golden apples, spice, white flowers, and a hint of salinity all emerge from the glass, and it's beautifully textured and medium to full-bodied, with bright, crisp acids and a great finish. It's going to evolve for a decade."
98 POINTS - 2018 SIERRA MADRE VINEYARD CHARDONNAY
“The 2018 Chardonnay Sierra Madre Vineyard comes from a great site outside of Santa Maria and spent 18 months in 45% new French oak barrels. It's a slightly more reductive, salty Chardonnay with a vivid bouquet of nectarines, white peach, crushed stone and white flowers. Beautiful on the palate, it’s tight and medium to full-bodied, with beautifully integrated acidity and a great finish. This is a wine that blossoms with time in the glass and has that rare mix of freshness and richness as well as length. It ranks with the finest Chardonnay in California and will keep for 4-6 years, if not longer."
94+ POINTS - 2018 STA RITA HILLS PINOT NOIR
“Moving to the 2017 Pinot Noirs, the largest production cuvée is the 2017 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills, which was destemmed and spent 18 months in 50% new French oak. Black cherries, ground herbs, forest floor, and hints of candied violets all emerge from this medium to full-bodied, supple, nicely textured, balanced effort. It's drinking nicely today yet should improve with a year in bottle and keep for 5-7 years."
94 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
“Deeper ruby-hued, the 2018 Pinot Noir Peake Ranch Vineyard was also all destemmed and spent 18 months in 50% new French oak. Darker currants, black cherries, loamy earth, and classic Sta. Rita Hills salinity and spice notes give way to a medium to full-bodied, seamless, elegant Pinot Noir to enjoy over the coming 8-10 years."
95 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH JOHN SEBASTIANO VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
“From a vineyard on the other side of the Sta. Rita Hills from Peake Ranch, the 2018 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard has a slightly more vibrant style in its black raspberry, violets, Bing cherry, and sappy flower aromas and flavors. Medium to full-bodied, with beautiful purity and elegant, it's another terrific wine from this up-and-coming estate that warrants attention."
91-93 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD GRENACHE
“Coming all from the estate vineyard and all Alban Clone, the 2018 Grenache Peake Ranch Vineyard is a pretty, red-fruited effort that has loads of white pepper, cranberry, raspberry, and floral aromas and flavors. Elegant, medium to full-bodied, silky, and with fine tannins, it shows the floral, elegant, seamless style of Grenache and will keep for over a decade."
95-97 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH JOHN SEBASTIANO VINEYARD SYRAH
“The nose of black, blue, and red fruits, white pepper, bacon fat, and spring flowers on the 2018 Syrah John Sebastiano Vineyard is incredible and both a hedonistic and intellectual turn-on in every sense. Medium to full-bodied and multi-dimensional on the palate, with ultra-fine tannins, incredible purity, and a great, great finish, it's a Côte Rôtie look-alike that knocks it out of the park. It’s going to be a candidate for the Syrah of the vintage."
VINOUS, JANUARY 2021
Antonio Galloni
90 POINTS - 2018 SANTA BARBARA COUNTY CHARDONNAY
“The 2018 Chardonnay (Santa Barbara County) is airy and graciously light on its feet, with tropical accents of tangerine oil, citrus peel and white flowers that lift effortlessly as the wine opens up. Bright and energetic, the 2018 is a very pretty wine, especially in its peer group."
93 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD CHARDONNAY
“The 2018 Chardonnay Peake Ranch Vineyard is rich, expansive and creamy with a real backbone of structure to back it all up. Lemon confit, crushed rocks, white pepper and mint provide the upper register to balance this super expressive, inviting Chardonnay from Peake Ranch."
94 POINTS - 2018 SIERRA MADRE VINEYARD CHARDONNAY
“The 2018 Chardonnay Sierra Madre Vineyard is another wonderfully expressive inviting wine in this range. Ample and creamy in feel, the Sierra Madre shows the tropical profile that is often found in Chardonnays from Santa Maria. The marriage of depth and translucency here is positively striking. Tangerine oil, pineapple and floral accents linger on the close."
92 POINTS - 2018 STA RITA HILLS PINOT NOIR
“The 2018 Pinot Noir (Sta. Rita Hills) is another impressive appellation-level wine in this range. Medium in body and delicate, with gorgeous aromatic presence, the 2018 hits all the right notes. A burst of rose petal, lavender and sweet red cherry fruit infuses the finish. "
92 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
“The 2018 Pinot Noir Peake Ranch Vineyard is another wine in this range, that is not fully expressive today. I don't think that will be an issue over time, but readers should plan on being patient here. Hints of red fruit, sage, mint and savory herbs emerge with some coaxing, but the 2018 is really a wine of potential more than anything else."
93 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH JOHN SEBASTIANO VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
“The 2018 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard is nervous and tightly wound, but there is a good bit of fruit behind all of that energy. Crushed flowers, mint, autumn leaves and dried herbs open up in the bouquet, where the wine is at its most expressive. Readers should be prepared to cellar the 2018 for at least a year or two."
94 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH BELLIS NOIR RED BLEND
“The 2018 Bellis Noir, a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Pinot Noir, is one of the most distinctive wines in this range. It is also a true original, something that is exceedingly rare. Juicy red cherry, plum and floral notes build as this racy, sumptuous wine shows off its curves. Readers will find the 2018 absolutely irresistible."
93 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH PEAKE RANCH VINEYARD GRENACHE
“The 2018 Grenache Peake Ranch Vineyard is loaded with varietal character. Racy and expressive, with tons of personality, the 2018 is terrific. The purity of the flavors is impressive. I would give the 2018 a year or two in bottle to come around, as it is pretty closed at this stage."
94 POINTS - 2018 PEAKE RANCH JOHN SEBASTIANO VINEYARD SYRAH
“The 2018 Syrah John Sebastiano Vineyard is one of the stand outs in this range. Inky blue/purplish fruit, licorice, lavender and menthol burst out of the glass. This site on the eastern edge of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation can really excel, as the 2018 amply shows. The new oak needs time to integrate, but there is plenty of stuffing here to allow that to happen. "