Ratings & Reviews

Grapefruit zest, fennel, and a sleek minerality interplay with racy acidity. Bright, crisp, and shiny.

A creamy style, offering notes of peach, Creamsicle, lemon curd and strawberry sorbet on a supple, elegant frame. Shows plenty of length, with hints of green tea and orange blossoms on the long, expressive finish. Drink now.

Generous flavors of raspberry puree, maraschino cherry, pomegranate and matcha are fresh and intense. Red licorice, clove and fresh earth accents, along with a touch of blood orange, leave a long, lasting impression. Drink now.

A faint salmon color announces this white’s fresh and creamy notes of salted, ripe melon, nectarine and peach at the core. Hints of citrus zest and white flowers join a whiff of ginger and a hint of persimmon preserves.

A lovely Viura, Rioja’s native white grape makes an appearance here as mouth-coating and sleek. Lemon-kissed vanilla pudding and a mineral tonality are clean and fresh, with an almond-hazelnut gloss on the finish

Full-bodied but well polished, offering nicely ripe fruit and meaty, spicy accents on an easy texture. This could almost be a Cotes du Rhone with its dark plums, beef and milk chocolate flavors backed by rounded tannins. Drink now

Crunchy and vivid, this offers fresh cherries, pink nectarines and grapefruit peel on the nose. Medium-bodied with crisp acidity, this is flavorful and refreshing. Drink now. Screw cap.

Double Gold

featured in "The 30 Best Gins for 2025"

From the Rhône in France, this grape-based gin features 13 botanicals — a nod to the 13 grape varieties grown in the famous wine region. The botanicals themselves are much more traditional: the usual suspects like juniper, angelica root, rosemary, and coriander all make their presence known, particularly the latter. Compared to other grape-based gins, the base ingredient has more of an impact on texture than flavor, and it’s an enjoyable drinking experience throughout.

This vineyard was planted in 1909; its twisted, gnarly 112-year-old vines are grafted onto St. George rootstock in deep, loamy sandy soil. They yield a mature-tasting, ripe, and savory red with notes of melting dark chocolate, plum liqueur, and sage. According to Lodi expert and Tasting Panel editor-at-large Randy Caparoso, “Ironstone’s finest, of course, is its Rous Vineyard Zinfandel, known for floral/violet and blueberry/cherry qualities very specific to this vineyard. It’s very distinctive and one of the finest in Lodi in terms of layering and balance.” He adds, “This section of land is called the Victor Triangle, located on the east side of the Mokelumne River AVA, centered around the small census-designated place of Victor, that is known to have pockets of particularly deep (90–100 feet) sandy soils. The visible impact of these soils is lower weight clusters and smaller berries.

With Chinon-like notes of Provençal herbs, dark cherry, and jasmine in a delicate, seamless frame, this also overdelivers for the price.

Including 10% Syrah, the fruit for this wine was sourced from the Kautz family’s Thornton Ranch close to the California Delta, which connects to the Pacific. With notes of spiced cherries, roasted coffee, and roses picked from the soil as well as earthy undertones, it’s a stunner: We guessed that it was valued three times more than its actual retail price.

The grapes for this wine are grown in red, iron-rich soils of schist, granite, and limestone at 2,400 feet above sea level. Joan Kautz describes the use of used barrels here as “integration versus overpower,” and we can taste the subtlety imparted by 12 months of aging in French oak. Aged sur lie, the wine possesses a creamy, leesy mouthfeel up front; back-of-the-palate minerality is striking in comparison, along with a flow of pears drizzled with cinnamon honey and a squeeze of lemon.

Here’s a shimmering textbook example of Marlborough’s claim to fame. Intense aromas of grapefruit, passion fruit, and an array of herbs—basil, mint, dill—are mirrored on a palate that beams like sunshine while showing a bit of textural flesh accentuated by lemon blossom on the finish.

The vinous equivalent of a conga line: lively and kicky. Heady aromas of caramelized pineapple and mango pudding reverberate on the creamy palate with bright lemon meringue and key lime, accented by a bite of peach and green banana on the finish.