92 Points! Sleek and lively, with elegantly structured flavors of raspberry and cherry highlighted by sage and pepper. Persists toward briary tannins. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! I loved the 2023 Cabernet Franc Estate, which is based on 90% Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Petit Verdot and Malbec, all raised 18 months in 50% new French oak. Ripe red and black berry fruits, cedary herbs, spice, and floral nuances all emerge from this beauty, and it's medium to full-bodied, pure, balanced, and elegant, with finely polished tannins and outstanding length. This terrific wine will evolve nicely over the coming 10-15 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

92 Points! A youthful ripe ruby/magenta color, the 2022 Zinfandel Russian River Valley is classic and inviting on the nose, with loads of sweet mixed berry perfume, candied red flowers, peaches, and herbes de Provence. Medium-bodied and approachable, it has a refined structure, fine tannins, and a juicy feel with a long finish. While It’s charming and tasty now, this is not just a simple quaffer, and it’s not going to slow down much over the next 4-6 years. - Audrey Frick, jebdunnuck.com

94 Points! In the same ballpark as the Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Cabernet Franc Caitlin's Select has lots of red and black fruits as well as those classic Franc underbrush, savory herb, and graphite-like nuances. Medium to full-bodied, balanced, and complex, with perfectly integrated tannins and acidity, it's another fabulous wine from this estate that will evolve for 15+ years if well stored. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! An engaging red, with sleekly layered cherry and raspberry flavors highlighted by roasted sage, fresh violet and pepper flavors that end with refined tannins. - Wine Spectator

92 Points! A good value, the 2023 Keola Red offers juicy darker fruits, peppery herbs, and sappy, floral notes. Based on 45% Petite Sirah, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 25% Syrah aged 18 months in 25% new French oak, it's medium to full-bodied, ripe, round, and supple, with no hard edges. This is a pleasure-bent, impeccably made red to drink over the coming 5-6 years. ..As always, Aaron Jackson makes a ripe, powerful style of wine that brings ample fruit and texture while staying nicely balanced. - Jeb Dunnuck

Sourcing:

Petite Sirah - Dusi Vineyards (Templeton Gap District), St Peter of Alcantara (Willow Creek District next door to Pesenti Vineyard)
Syrah - Maison Mason (Willow Creek District next to notable vineyards like Terry Hoage, Paderewski). And Caelesta Vineyard (Templeton Gap)
Cabernet - Old Bailey Vineyard (Adelaida District, oldest vine Cab on the westside, own rooted in 1969 and right next door to HMR Vineyard and planted around the same time).

93 Points! The 2020 Zinfandel Sheep Camp lifts up more like a spiced herbal tea than wine, with rose buds, cedar shavings, rosemary and dried strawberries forming its bouquet. This is soft textured with chalky minerals and crisp red fruits that give way to dusty tannins. The acidity wins the day, adding a vibrancy yet also spiciness that tugs at the cheeks as the 2020 finishes with admirable length and full of tension. - Eric Guido, Vinous

93 Points! The 2023 Zinfandel Jolene's Vineyard was matured for nine months in 48% new French oak. It has explosive aromas of wild berries and cherries, peach and apricot, fennel and earth. The full-bodied palate is generous and expressive with layer after layer of fruit and spice. It has a powerful frame of powdery tannins, mouthwatering acidity and a long, perfumed finish. - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

93 Points! The 2023 Zinfandel Stampede Vineyard is a powerful, deep wine. Varietal notes are dialed up to the maximum in this rich, heady red. Small berries in a late-ripening vintage yielded an unusually dense Zinfandel for this vineyard on the eastern edge of Lodi. The 2023 spent 11 months in neutral 500L puncheons, with no racking until bottling. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

91 Points! The 2022 Jurassic Vineyard Old Vine Chenin Blanc slowly emerges from the glass with notes of Golden Delicious apples, fresh pears, and wet slate plus touches of beeswax and coriander seed. The dry, medium-bodied palate delivers a satiny texture and racy acidity, finishing with a lemony lift. This wine was barrel-fermented and aged in French oak...The Jurassic Vineyard, planted in 1982, is situated at an elevation of 1,000 feet. The name pays tribute to the fossil-rich soils that force the vines to look deep for nutrients and water. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent

96 Points! Pouring a medium ruby/red color, the 2022 Pinot Noir Jennifer's gives up ripe and concentrated aromas of kirsch, toasty incense, crushed flowers, and dark stones. It’s medium to full-bodied and weightless but has a broader shouldered feel, with plush, ripe tannins, good freshness, an even texture, and a long, mouthwatering finish. It displays a lot of polish and is going to be an age-worthy wine to enjoy over the next 15 years. - Audrey Frick, JebDunnuck.com  

94 Points! The 2022 Syrah Valenti Ranch is a super-classic Mendocino Ridge wine. It offers a beguiling mix of dark Syrah fruit along with a host of savory/earthy undertones, all framed by beams of tannin that lend energy. Complex and pedigreed to the core, the 2022 is an absolute delight. In a word: gorgeous. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

93 Points! A light beautiful color of red marks the visual appeal of the 100% varietal 2022 Grenache, grown at high elevation on the producer’s estate around 2,400-feet. There’s a beautiful perfume to the wine, a combination of wild strawberry and lilac, accented in blood orange. Tobacco, white pepper, and garrigue play along the full-bodied palate that tastes more delicate than it is, the tannins smoothened into rounded submission. This should age well another 5-7 years. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com

92 Points! The 2023 Pinot Noir Chimera is a terrific introduction to this range. A burst of dark red/purplish fruit, rose petal, lavender, sweet spice, blood orange and pomegranate make a strong first impression. Juicy yet vibrant, the 2023 is all class. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

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

93 Points! Sourced from the Truchard Vineyard in Carneros, this blend of Dijon 1143, Pommard, and 777 was open-vat fermented and aged for 9 months in 30% new French oak. This everyday wine offers elegant, bright red cherry notes and warm brown baking spices, with just a hint of ripe fruit sweetness. The medium-bodied palate is framed by fine, sappy tannins and a nice touch of saline minerality on the finish. It has plenty of grippy acid tension and is thoroughly enjoyable on its own or can carry a meal. - Decanter Magazine

93 Points! The 2023 Fiano is totally captivating, wafting up with vivid sliced apricot complicated by a hint of sour melon and crushed stones. It splashes across the palate, displaying pretty inner sweetness and silken textures, with a peach preserves character that I find wildly attractive. Brisk acidity maintains balance as tropical citrus tones and a nuance of mango linger. Despite this nearly decadent description, the 2023 is incredibly fresh and goes down far too easily. - Eric Guido, Vinous

93 Points! Always a highlight of the Giornata range, the 2023 Fiano opens with an expressive bouquet of dried flowers, beeswax, citrus peels and cleansing, herbal flourishes. The palate combines a sappy, broad texture with a gently elastic core, culminating in a taut, poised and layered finish that lingers with remarkable length. A lovely combination of perfumed, lively and powerful, this should be a pleasure to follow through the better part of a decade. - Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

93 Points! Very structured, balanced and complete. Ripe black cherries, blueberries, toast and baking spices. This is the most widely available Alma Rosa pinot, made from mostly hillside, estate-grown grapes with no stems included. Aged in 30% new oak barrels. Drink now or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

The Paring, because it’s actually a selection from all 'top gear', sees the same winemaking process as The Hilt's $95 bottlings, about a year aging in all French oak, about 1/3 new, from top barrel guys like Darnajou and Remond. NOT cheap.

91 Points! Readers will love the 2023 Pinot Noir, and it's a smoking value in classy California Pinot. Medium ruby-hued, with ripe red fruits, peppery herbs, spice, and floral notes, it's medium-bodied, has a pure, layered mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and outstanding length. It will continue drinking beautifully through 2033. - Jeb Dunnuck

From the winery:

The 2022 Bald Mountain Zinfandel is the second release of our single vineyard Zinfandel and is comprised of 100% fruit from the Bald Mountain Vineyard. This old vine Zinfandel is grown in the mountain vineyard off of Wall Rd and is one of the most stunning vineyards in the North Coast. The old vines produce a concentrated and ripe Zinfandel that will age for years.The fruit was picked on September 23rd, 2022 and arrived at the winery early in the morning before being destemmed to tank. The wine was then macerated for 14 days until the completion of alcoholic fermentation.  After draining it was racked to 30% new American Oak barrels where is aged for one year before being bottled in August.