It has been a long time since my last post and I am a good 100 wines behind, at this point, so these next few posts will be short and to the point.

Before Passover and after it, as well, I got into my car and drove to Covenant Winery, Hajdu Winery, Hagafen Winery, Marciano Estates, and Shadybrook Estates to get a bottle of kosher wine they made called Monetin. I also had many wines shipped to me from Herzog and Mayacamas. Finally, I had dinner with Gabriel Weiss and Alex Rubin and I tasted their wines as well. So, yeah this is a full California tasting. This is NOT a list and scores of each of these winery’s wines, but rather a set of tastings of what I have not yet had from these wineries.

The plan here is to list the wineries and their wines in the order I tasted them (mostly as I did taste some of the wines more than once).

My many thanks to each and every winery here for putting up with me and sharing their wonderful wines.

Marciano Estates (Feburary 2024)

Elk was in town that week and I drove through the pouring rain to pick him up, that was the craziest day of driving since my trip to Northern Israel in a carwash of rain on those mountainous hills, just nuts! Thankfully, we arrived at Marciano Estates, quite alive, almost on time, I will leave that part of the story for another time! However I must state that Elk should never be allowed to travel without his gear working. My hearing is still recovering! We were met by Michael McMillan, the General Manager at Marciano, and we were given the wines to open. The three wines were the 2022 Marciano Estates Blanc, the 2021 Marciano Terra Gratia, and the 2021 Marciano Estates. They were all stunning wines, and while the prices are high for these kosher wines, so is the cost of land, fruit, production, and so on in Napa Valley.

As always the time spent in Marciano Estates is always fantastic, the estate is stunning, as is the wine and the surrounding area. My many thanks to the entire Marciano team for putting up with us, along with the frequent time changes, and so on. The wines and the scores speak for themselves, I personally bought a few of the Marciano Blanc, the 2022 and 2021 vintages. The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2022 Marciano Estates Blanc, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 93 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is lovely, and bready, with smoke, oak, brioche, peach, apricot, yellow plum, and orange blossom. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is really lovely and ripe, with intense acidity, lovely mouthfeel, plush-styled, a beautiful expression of French white, with intense peach, complexity, sweet oak, apricot, sweet yellow plum, intense loam, verve, and beautifully tense, with sweet tannin, grapefruit, lemon/lime, really lovely! The finish is long, intense, layered, concentrated, and richly extracted, with incredible sweet blossom, and sweet vanilla, on the long finish. Incredible! Drink from 2028 until 2034. (tasted February 2024) (in Napa Valley, CA) (ABV = 14.1%)

2021 Marciano Terra Gratia, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 93 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is lovely, balanced, ripe, and rich, with raspberry, strawberry, blackcurrant, plum, iron shavings, squid ink, rich minerality, loam, sweet spices, roasted herbs, and sweet oak, impressive. The mouth of this full-bodied Napa Cab blend is ripe, layered, extracted, and balanced with great acidity, and concentration, with lovely blackberry, cassis, raspberry, ripe strawberry, milk chocolate, rich tension, nice extraction, lovely plushness, a theme throughout the three wines we tasted today. Lovely! The finish is long, ripe, rich, extracted, and tense, with freshness, sweet oak, sweet tobacco, and sweet vanilla. This wine is incredibly accessible but please stay away from it for at least 3 years. Drink from 2026 until 2032 (tasted February 2024) (in Napa Valley, CA) (ABV = 14.8%)

2021 Marciano Estates Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 94 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is incredible, purer than the Gratia, rich, expressive, but far more elegant, showing ripe, milk chocolate, milky, with blackberry, plum, raspberry, tar, smoke, and rich sweet spices. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, layered, and extracted, with great acidity, lovely tension, sweet tannin, blackberry, plum, sweet oak, sweet vanilla, raspberry, strawberry, juicy strawberry/raspberry, sweet spices, nutmeg, sweet earth, plum, and sweet loam. The finish is long, dirty, earthy, ripe, and elegant, with juicy and ripe strawberries, sweet oak, vanilla, and sweet tobacco. Drink from 2027 until 2033. (tasted February 2024) (in Napa Valley, CA) (ABV = 14.8%)

Shadybrooks Estates

So, you can find Shadybrook Estates not too far from Hagafen Winery and they have a solid new Kosher Mevushal red wine called Monetin. You can roll up to them, as I did, and buy a bottle or they can ship it to you. We arrived in the middle of a rain storm and also a large party that was going on inside the winery. The staff were very kind and understanding, they helped me with the purchase and then it was off to Covenant Winery. There are rumors that they also made some kosher Semillon, but it was either not true or not available. Either way, they have my info now and hopefully we can find out more soon!

I recommend stopping by, after going to Hagafen Winery and picking up a bottle to try. The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2020 Shadybrooks Estates Monetin Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is ripe, and balanced, with good minerality, and nice focus, showing nice black and red fruit, anise, tar, milk chocolate, roasted herbs, and sweet spices. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is nice, ripe, and a bit round, although the acidity is good, with some green notes, lovely ripe and plush mouthfeel, backed by blackberry, plum, dark cherry, raspberry, milk chocolate, sweet oak, sweet mouth-draping tannin, and roasted herbs. The finish is long, ripe, and balanced, with more milk chocolate, sweet tobacco, roasted herbs, menthol, vanilla, and sweet spices. The green notes are throwing me a bit more than I would like. Drink by 2027. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)

Covenant Winery and Hajdu Winery

The drive down from Napa was much better than the drive up, as thankfully, the rain had finally stopped and I could actually see the road! We got to Covenant Winery a bit late, but as always, Jonathan Hajdu and the entire Covenant clan, Jeff, Jodie, and family were a joy to hang with and taste wines.

The current slate of 2023 wines from Covenant and Hajdu Wines is proof that when a team desires to do things right they can make a wine that appeals to folks like me and to the masses. The wines are balanced and crisp, but not overly tart, which to some feels sour. They are ripe and refreshing without being cloying. The name of the game is balance and they have hit every one of the wines out of the park. Solid prices, great wines, and all of them are refreshing and enjoyable – that is what I call California Dreaming! These are the other two 2023 white wines I had before.

There are some wines that I tasted that I was asked to hold back on reporting, I will hopefully get those notes out soon! Many thanks to Jonathan Hajdu, Jeff and Jodie Morgan, and the entire team! Mazel Tov to Jeff and Jodie, and Zoe and Skye and the rest of the family on the birth of both grandchildren – may you guys only know Simcha! The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2023 Hajdu Pinot Blanc, Andersen Valley, CA – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is ripe, with great balance, freshness, bright, peach, apricot, grapefruit, honeysuckle, and sweet lime. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is lovely, ripe, and balanced, with great acidity, with great peach, apricot, grapefruit, honeysuckle, and green apple. The finish is tart, refreshing, bright, and aromatic, Bravo! Drink by 2025. (tasted February 2024) (in Berkeley, CA) (ABV = 12.5%)

2023 Hajdu Vermentino, Mendicino, CA – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is really fun, sulfur, flint, green apple, peach, Pear, Asian pear, and smoke galore. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is lovely, a bit shocked, but lovely, tart, with so much funk, apple, pear, and peach. grapefruit, and lime, are just lovely. The finish is long, ripe, balanced, and tart, with rich salinity, flint, and lovely smoke. Lovely! Drink by 2027. (tasted February 2024) (in Berkeley, CA) (ABV = 13%)

2023 Hajdu Rose, California – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is fun, a bit serious, and austere, with strawberry and cream, lemon, lime, and sweet notes. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is fun, with good acidity, fresh, juicy strawberry, raspberry, and guava, with great flint and smoke, a really fun wine and refreshing wine. The finish is long, flinty, smoky, and ripe, but fresh and juicy, Bravo! Drink now. (tasted February 2024) (in Berkeley, CA) (ABV = 13.5%)

2023 Hajdu Grenache, California – Score: 90 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose of this wine is ripe, but balanced with good notes of strawberry, raspberry, boysenberry, smoke, green notes, herbs, and loam. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is ripe, with intense blackcurrant, boysenberry, chalky, and minerally, with charcoal, rosehip, and smoke. The finish is long, balanced, and fun, the minerality and acidity saves it for me. Drink until 2026. (tasted February 2024) (in Berkeley, CA) (ABV = 14.5%)

2022 Hajdu Proprietary Blend, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 91+ (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is ripe, herbal, smoky, and meaty, with some green notes, black and blue fruit, root beer, tar, white pepper, and lovely anise. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, layered, and concentrated, with enough acidity, showing blackberry liqueur, juicy boysenberry, ripe plum, rich earth, mouth-draping but still-aggressive tannin wrapping the sweet cedar, and rich smoke. The finish is long, rich, smoky, earthy, and ripe, with rich milk chocolate, sweet tobacco, anise, root beer, bitter espresso notes, with sweet spices. Drink from 2026 until 2030. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14.5%)

2023 Covenant Rose, Lodi, CA – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is fun, classic Grenache, with ripe strawberry, tart raspberry, passion fruit, and smoke. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is lovely, ripe, juicy, and refreshing, with tropical notes, passion fruit, strawberry, dark raspberry, and minerality. Nice! The finish is long, ripe, balanced, and fun, fruity, refreshing, tropical, flinty funk, nice! Drink now. (tasted February 2024) (in Berkeley, CA) (ABV = 12.3%)

2022 Covenant Cabernet Franc, Landsman, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, CA – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
This is a lovely expression of Califonia Cabernet Franc, this is fruity, and this is California, but the control, care, and plushness, really express Cabernet Franc, with its green notes, pepper, floral notes, and power, nice! The nose of this wine screams Cali, with ripe fruit, green herbs, hints of asparagus, rich white pepper, rich spice, rose hip, lavender, hot chili, red fruit, and lovely loam. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is ripe, layered, and not concentrated, with good fruit focus, great acidity, and a lovely plushness, with hints of bell pepper, green notes, and roasted herb, but the plushness, ripe plum, raspberry, and cacao, with great mouthfeel, loam, and sweet mouth-draping tannin. The finish is long, dirty, earthy, smoky, spicy, floral, and fruity, with more cacoa, and chili peppers on the long finish. Nice! Drink until 2027. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14.5%)

2021 Covenant The Cutting Edge, Dry Sherry, California – Score: 87 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose of this is a bit tough to love, it is classic in its style, and the oxidized notes will always throw me, but the nice almond, marzipan, and peach are there. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is nice with great acidity, but the oxidation really does not work for me, the nuts and the saline are nice. The finish is long, nutty, feeling the heat, floral, and smoky. Drink by 2025. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 15%)

Shirah Winery

I was at the Four Gates Estate for a very comprehensive tasting of some wine, that post is coming soon! While the food was on the grill, Gabriel Weiss and Alex Rubin came by and joined the party! It was great seeing them and listening to their take on wine. The evening was wonderful and as stated, I hope to get that up soon, but it is an “evergreen” post, so it is a bit behind on the to-do list! When Gabriel and Alex came up they brought some of their wines with them. I must reiterate how much I LOVE the Shirah Marssanne and Albarino – they are true expressions of California while also being bright and refreshing! You can find the notes of those wines here and I recommend you do what I did and buy them, they are worth the price of admission! That is what I did!

The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2022 Alex Rubin Riesling, Santa Barbara, CA – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER)
This wine is skin macerated, AKA Orange-like, the length of time, which was only 48 hours on Albarino skins, does not make the wine feel like a classic Orange-style wine gets/feels. The mouthfeel is enriched and the wine reached Malolactic fermentation.
The nose of this wine is wonderful, showing rich honeysuckle, orange peel, orange notes, rich yellow flower and jasmine, pink grapefruit, pineapple, and lovely watermelon. The mouth of medium-plus-bodied wine is rich, acidic, and balanced, with nice tannin, oily, and well-structured, showing all the fruit of the nose, along with guava, bitter orange, and lovely roasted almonds. The finish is long and tannic, but not overly so, more a mouthfeel than actual puckering, with great acidity, ripe fruit, and hints of more almonds. Nice work! Drink by 2026. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 12.5%)

2021 Shirah Bro-Deux, Knights Valley, Sonoma, CA – Score: 90 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is ripe, not candied, with ripe black and red fruit, squid ink, tar, iron shavings, dense foliage, intense fruit, and good freshness. The mouth of this full-bodied wine lacks the acidity I crave, it has some, with a dense and plush mouthfeel, it feels ripe and round a bit, with rich blackberry, plum, strawberry, and a nice focus, but that focus is lost in the lack of acidity. The finish is long ripe, and a bit candied with sweet baking spices, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, milk chocolate, and black fruit lingering long. Drink by 2028. (tasted February 2024) (in Santa Cruz, CA) (ABV = 14.8%)

2021 Shirah Nebbiolo, Paso Robles, CA – Score: 90 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is not ripe, it is fresh and balanced, with high-toned and intense cranberry, raspberry, tomato, and strawberry, with lovely floral notes, violet, and minerality. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is nice, with intense acidity, the acidity is almost astringent with its attack, followed by candied plum, dark cherry, intense tannin structure, rich salinity, and nice smoke. The finish is overpowering, too much acidity, with candied fruit, mineral, deep loam, and tobacco leaf. Drink from 2026 until 2030. (tasted February 2024) (in Santa Cruz, CA) (ABV = 14.3%)

Herzog Wine Cellars

I finally got my hands on the rest of the 2020 and 2021 Herzog wines and they continue to live up to the hype of the 2021 vintage. Clearly, some show a bit more edgy and special than others, but the theme of the incredible California vintage stays true. Many thanks to the Herzog team for helping me get my hands on these wines.

The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2021 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, Lake County, Special Reserve, Lake County, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is ripe to start, candied, with notes of plum and cherry liqueur, with loam, green notes, milk chocolate, and sweet spices. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is boring, ripe, and round, lacking the acidity I crave, many will like the tannin and bold flavors but I find the lack of complexity, acidity, and control, to grade this a below-average Herzog Cab. The finish is short, with milk chocolate, tobacco, and overripe fruit. Drink by 2028. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 15.5%)

2021 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, Dry Creek Valley, Single Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma, CA – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is red fruit, tart and juicy, with bright notes, and no high or low tones, it has deep Cali roots, and the wine is ripe, not as dirty or mineral-driven as I hoped, but still well-balanced, with green notes, roasted herb, sweet vanilla, sweet dill, and sweet root beer. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is ripe, deeply refreshing, tart, and balanced, with good acidity, and lovely mouthfeel, showing black cherry, dark plum, strawberry, nice loam, minerality, and a mouth-draping tannin structure that helps the plush mouthfeel. The acidity, minerality, and green notes bring this ripe wine together and lift it well. The finish is long, with good minerality, graphite, pencil shavings, ripe fruit, sweet tobacco, dark chocolate, vanilla, sweet spices, and more root beer. Nice! Drink from 2026 until 2033. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)

2021 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, Variations, Four, California (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is clean, a bit too much oak, but balanced, with raspberry, cherry, plum, sweet vanilla, roasted herb, and nice smoke. My overall take is – while I like the wine the oak is overpowering for my tastes. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is rich, toasty, and smoky, with good acidity, sweet cedar, sweet dill, coconut, sweet and roasted herbs, dark cherry, sweet plum, red currant, with a plush mouthfeel, but the sweet oak is really prominent, the roasted herbs, and nice green notes. The finish is long, red, tart, ripe, and balanced, with sweet herbs, sweet cedar, and sweet tobacco, nice! Drink from 2026 until 2031. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)

2021 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, Variations, Five, California (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is clean, a bit too much oak, but balanced, with raspberry, cherry, blackberry, boysenberry, sweet vanilla, roasted herb, rich anise, and nice smoke. My overall take is – while I like the wine the oak is overpowering for my tastes. Still a bit better than the Variations Four. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is rich, toasty, and smoky, with great acidity, better than Variations Four, with sweet cedar, sweet dill, sweet and roasted herbs, dark cherry, sweet black plum, blackberry, boysenberry, nice plush mouthfeel, less prominent oak, roasted herbs, and nice green notes. The finish is long, black and blue, tart, ripe, and balanced, with sweet herbs, sweet cedar, dark chocolate, anise, and sweet vanilla-covered tobacco, nice! Drink from 2026 until 2033. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)

2020 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, Clone Six, Chalk Hill, Limited Edition, Chalk Hill, Clone Six, Sonoma County – Score: 91+ (QPR: EVEN)
This wine needs to be cool, cellar-temp, to be drinkable. I wanted to like this wine but it comes across as too fat and round, both in the nose and mouth, and while the acidity is good, it is not enough and the alcohol hits you as well. The nose of this wine is a bit slow to open, but once it does, it shows ripe, round, not bright, with red, black, and blue fruit, cedar box, smoke, Star Anise, and tar. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is too round for me, it has enough acidity, but the wine is too uni-dimensional because of the roundness, with sweet oak, sweet basil, bay leaf, blackberry, plum, dark raspberry, ripe boysenberry, smoke, along with the plush mouth draping tannin. The finish is long, dark, and ripe, a bit too much for me, the heat shows as well, with enough acidity, graphite, green notes, sweet tobacco, leather, and smoke. Drink until 2033. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)

2021 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, American Oak, North Coast, CA (M) – Score: 92 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is fruity, with ripe blackberry, boysenberry, sweet oak, dark cherry, sweet spices, and milk chocolate. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is quite nice, balanced with great acidity, nice blackberry, plum, cassis, nice minerality, good vanilla, hickory, sweet oak, and sweet spices, all wrapped in sweet mouth-draping tannin. The finish is long, ripe, herbal, and smoky, with nice milk chocolate. Nice! Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 15%)

2022 Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon, French Barrel, North Coast, CA (M) – Score: 86 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose of this wine is a bit too oaky and hot for me, the heat and oak pop out, with blackberry, plum, boysenberry, rich smoke, and sweet spices. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is too ripe, too hot, and too much oak, with blackberry, plum, pomegranate, sweet tannin, and sweet spices. The finish is long, ripe, and sweet with sweet oak, sweet dill, milk chocolate, and sweet tobacco. Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 15.5%)

2021 Herzog Quartet, Reserve, California (M) – Score: 88 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is ripe, with dark cherry, plum, raspberry, sweet American oak, sweet vanilla, hickory, and green notes. The mouth of this medium-bodied is nice, with rich saline, cherry, raspberry, plum, earth, mouth-coating tannin, great acidity, rich green notes that throw me, and nice tannin. The finish is green, herbal, smoky, and red-fruited. Drink by 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14.5%)

Hagafen Cellars

On a separate bright and not yet Summer day, I made my way to Napa once again. This time it was to focus all my time on the latest wines from Hagafen Cellars. I was greeted very nicely and shown to a garden seat. I set up my computer with the external power plug and I was all ready to taste through the 20 dry wines. I skipped the sweet wines.

Shortly after I was into a few wines, Ernie Weir was very kind to come by and we had a wonderful conversation on wine and Napa and the Kosher wine market, as a whole. He told me of his trip to Israel where he volunteered his time, hands, and brain to the many winemakers and wineries that continue to suffer under the cloud of war. Bravo! Many thanks to Ernie for taking the time to meet with me!

Throughout the tasting I kept saying to myself that the wines are really expressive, showing good balance, and nice acidity. The fruit is Napa/Lodi/Sonoma/California, but the balanced wines show the care that one can get with careful study and effort.

In the end, I left with a case of wine, which is always the true test of what I think about the wines. I was really stunned by the white Prix wines, especially the 2021 Hagafen Sauvignon Blanc, Prix! I look forward to a three-way tasting, blind of course, with Benyo and others, of the high-end 2021 Cali Sauvignon Blanc wines from Hagafen, Covenant, and Marciano Estates. If I can get my hands on the non-Mevushal Gazin (2021) maybe I can throw that in as well! Bravo on the work, effort, and control shown throughout this tasting.

The 2021 Don Ernesto Zin may be the first Zinfandel I have liked in some time. I used to love Zinfandel but it has been a love-hate relationship for me over the past 8 years. Cali Zin is just too Cali for me! This one is a true delight showing the fruit needed in Zin but also the balance. Nice!

The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2023 Hagafen Sauvignon Blanc, Napa and Mendocino, CA (M) – Score: 90 (QPR: GREAT)
I tasted this one twice – the first time was very strange, it was all over the place. The second time was more of what I expected and was lovely. The nose of this wine starts with gooseberry, passion fruit, honeysuckle, lemon, lime, and smoke. The mouth is lovely, with good acidity, nice tension, guava, passion fruit, and gooseberry, not quite oily, with a nice mouthfeel, lovely flint, and a nice expression of Sauvignon Blanc for such a long season. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA & Hagafen Winery Napa Valley) (ABV = 13%)

2023 Hagafen Riesling, Dry, Napa Valley (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is fun, but it shows the RS, that the wine is meant to be dry, and while dry Riesling can be measured, the word dry is not regulated like Trocken. The nose of this wine shows its RS, with rich mango, papaya, lovely honeysuckle, lemon/lime, waxy notes, and some melon. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine has the sugar to thank for its fuller body, with honeysuckle, nice acidity, good melon, papaya, and grapefruit, but the real star of the show is the acidity, the mouthfeel, almost oily, and the nice texture. While I find the wine nice, and really enjoyable with spicy or acidic, AKA Vinagrete foods, the wine is not dry. Otherwise, enjoy! Drink until 2026. (tasted February 2024) (in San Jose, CA & Hagafen Winery Napa Valley) (ABV = 12.2%)

2022 Hagafen Chardonnay, Carneros, Sonoma, CA (M) – Score: 90 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is less ripe and less of an oak bomb than I have had from Hagafen, in the past, showing lovely bright fruit, nice sweet/toasty oak, lemon, yellow apple, Asian pear, and lovely bright pear. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is nice, with great acidity, and a bit too much sweet oak, but still lovely, with rich vanilla, sweet hickory, rich brioche and croissant, sweet apple, pear, and Asian sweet spices. The finish is long, ripe, and a bit candied, a bit more acid would have helped even out the hickory, and the vanilla also comes through on the long ripe finish. Drink by 2026. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Cellars, Napa Valley, CA) (ABV = 12.5%)

2021 Hagafen Chardonnay, Prix, Reserve, Oak Knoll, Napa Valley (M) – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is riper and shows more oak, showing rich brioche, croissant, red and yellow apple, sweet pear, and rich smoke. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is nice, showing great acidity, nice mouthfeel, great control of the oak usage, still with sweet vanilla, sweet hickory, sweet Asian pear, rich brioche, and a nice creamy texture that works well. The finish is long, with sweet Asian spices, vanilla, hickory, and leather, and refreshing notwithstanding the sweet oak. Nice! Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 12.5%)

2021 Hagafen Sauvignon Blanc, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 92+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is lovely, it shows the elegance that comes with oak applied to Sauvignon Blanc, it has the sweet spices, the rich salinity, rich gooseberry, guava, and sweet herbs. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is lovely, the best white so far of this tasting, 2021 was really a blessing for California, with sweet oak, sweet gooseberry, and guava, showing elegance, nice precision, with a balance of giving up the rich tension for elegance, with great acidity, very refreshing, and plush mouthfeel. The finish is long, refreshing, elegant, and smooth with more spices, acidity, saline, flint, and smoke. Bravo! Drin k by 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13.7%)

2020 Hagafen Brut Rose, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is fun, and fruity, with great minerality, nice smoke, not as much brioche/bread as I love, nor crazy mineral, still refreshing and bright and fruity, with orange peel, strawberry, and smoke. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine shows good acidity, and a plush mouthfeel, with medium-bubble mousse, a nice approach, refreshing, with cranberry, strawberry, quince, and rich smoke. The finish is long, refreshing fruity, and nice. Drink now. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 12.8%)

2020 Hagafen Brut Cuvee, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
This is a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The nose of this wine is lovely with good apple, pear, strawberry, nice smoke, and sweet herbs, bright and enjoyable. The mouth of this medium-bodied is fun, bright, ripe, and balanced, with a lovely small-bubble mousse, nice mouthfeel, rich acidity, nice sweet fruit, strawberry, raspberry, peach, and smoke. The finish is long, and tart, with a nice mouthfeel, and smoke. Refreshing. Drink now. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 12.8%)

2022 Hagafen Pinot Noir, 50% Napa Valley & 50% Sonoma County (M) – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER)
The wine is a blend of Sonoma and Napa, nice! The nose of this wine is so bright and expressive, with great raspberry, strawberry, nice sweet oak, and good expression. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is rich, expressive, layered, and elegant, some of the best Pinot from the Hagafen label in some time, with rich raspberry, strawberry, cranberry, nice smoke, refreshing, with a lovely and lovely approach. Bravo! The finish is long, the oak is well integrated, showing nice smoke, leather, rich saline, fruity, and dirty, nice! Drink by 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13.5%)

2020 Hagafen Pinot Noir, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91+ (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is lovely, and ripe red fruit, with good fruit, sweet oak, nice fruit focus, sweet herbs, sweet spices, hickory, and sweet dill. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is nice, it has acidity, but it could have used a bit more, with a nice red fruit focus, of strawberry, raspberry, sweet mocha, sweet oak, and a nice plush mouthfeel, with a chocolate focus and nice weight. The finish is long, ripe, spicy, and smoky, with some dirt, sweet spices, sweet herbs, mint, sage, cloves, and sweet milk chocolate. Nice! Drink by 2027 (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13%)

2021 Hagafen Merlot, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 92+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is lovely, with a kiss of oak, bright, earthy, with sweet spices, sweet red fruit, no black or blue fruit here, great control, another 2021 hit! The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is another WINNER, showing great control, finesse, and elegance, but so bright, precise, and refreshing, with great fruit focus, nice sweet oak, rich strawberry, dark plum, raspberry, with rich saline, smoke, loam, dirt, and great acidity. The mouth is great with cacoa, plum, and sweet spices, awesome! The finish is long, ripe, and balanced, with more cacoa, leather, sweet spices, nutmeg, licorice, and rich loam. Bravo! Drink until 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13.3%)

2018 Hagafen Merlot, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this 2018 Merlot is well-balanced for a 15.1% ABV wine with nice smoke, earth, spices, red and black fruit, and cocoa, nice! The mouth of this full-bodied wine is intense, layered, rich, extracted, and lovely! The acidity has really come out now, the complexity, extraction, and density are on point, with nice smoke, plum, blackberry, earth, iron shavings, sweet tannin, loam, and good fruit focus. The finish is long, ripe, not candied, with great acidity, control, and expression, leather, cocoa, and rich earth. Nice!! Drink until 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 15.1%)

2021 Don Ernesto Ah-ha Zinfandel, Lodi, CA (M) – Score: 91+ (QPR: WINNER)
This is a winning Zinfandel, with great red fruit, ripe, raspberry, pomegranate, dragon fruit, hints of tart/bright orange, and orange peel, with sweet oak, and some tar. Nice!! The mouth of this bright, layered, not extracted medium-plus-bodied Zinfandel, is juicy, balanced, and ripe, with balanced and juicy boysenberry, raspberry, cacoa, sweet oak, sweet smoke, loam, cloves, and sweet spices, that give way to leather, and more spices. Nice! The finish is long, ripe, layered, and smoky, with blue and red fruit, leather, and dark chocolate. Really nice! Drink by 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 14.3%)

2021 Hagafen Don Ernesto Oh!, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
This has to be the lightest Oh! I have ever tasted, 2021 gives and takes. The nose of this wine is red, with hints of blue, but really tart, bright, and not what I expect from Oh!, still very nice with almond paste, and sweet spices. The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is nice, a bit simple to start, with raspberry, strawberry, smoke, sweet herbs, and a nice approach, with great acidity, that is what really stands out, the mouthfeel comes out with time, a nice overall mouthfeel and approach as it opens. Nice! The finish is long, tart, and balanced, showing great acidity, mouthfeel, and a nice bite! Drink by 2026. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13%)

2021 Hagafen Syrah, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 90 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is ripe, black, and blue, with sweet spices, sweet oak, sweet dill, and milk chocolate. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is nice, with great acidity, the milk chocolate and oak are a bit too much for me but they will calm, with sweet spices, sweet herbs, raspberry, blueberry, nice tannin, and sweet orange notes. The finish is long, tannic, and ripe, with sweet notes that come from the oak, it throws me. Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 12.9%)

2018 Hagafen Syrah, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is ripe, with notes of black tea, roasted animal, ripe and candied blue fruit, rich smoke, floral violet notes, loads of sweet oak, sweet dill, and more jammy fruit. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, and layered, with enough acidity, with boysenberry, and ripe strawberry, making for a refreshing mouthfeel, with a good tannin structure, and nice smoke. The finish is long, tart, ripe, and well-made, very nice overall! Drink by 2026. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 14%)

2019 Hagafen Cabernet Franc, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is ripe, the 2019 vintage though is controlled, with bright fruit, nice smoke, tar, roasted animal, minerality, loam, red and black fruit, and dense smoke. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, with great acidity, a bit too much fruit, for me right now, that will work itself out, with blackberry, plum, boysenberry, smoke, rich mouth-draping tannin, sweet oak, intense expression, with some extraction, loam, and intense coffee grinds. The finish is long, ripe, layered, and dense, with more coffee, leather, sweet spices, sweet tobacco, and loads of loam. Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 14.6%)

2021 Hagafen Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is anise-central, lovely, and has an overall fruit-focused approach, with rich salinity, red and black fruit, sweet oak, iron shavings, minerality, and smoke. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is nice, with great acidity, nice smoke, nice cacoa, blackberry, and cassis, with a rich mouth-coating tannin, sweet dill, sweet oak, a nice Cab expression, showing less extraction, more precision, and nice fruit. The finish is long, ripe, and balanced, with the acidity lifting the wine, the saline, and graphite helping, and the oak, and fruit rounding it out, Nice! Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13.2%)

2018 Hagafen Cabernet Sauvignon, Prix, Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER)
The nose of this wine is lovely, with rich anise, heavy oak, rich saline, loam, dirt, black and blue fruit, roasted herbs, and sweet spices, nice! The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is lovely, unique for a Napa Cabernet, this is not a blockbuster Cab, this is balanced, with piercing acidity, still lovely sweet oak, balanced with blackberry, cassis, plum, raspberry, and iron shavings, that give way to graphite, loam, and sweet smoke. The finish is long, balanced, and fun. Drink by 2027. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 15.2%)

2018 Hagafen Melange, Prix. Reserve, Napa Valley, CA (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine will always throw me, other than in the early days, as the oak is overpowering, still, it is professional and expressive with sweet oak, elegance, black and blue fruit, anise, sweet herbs, cacoa, and hints of oolong/black tea. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, tannic, and balanced, with good acidity, and smoke, showing draping tannin, the oak screams right now, with time it will calm and show a more candied but balanced approach. The finish is long, ripe, candied, smoky, dirty, and earthy, yet balanced, with rich leather, sweet tobacco, milk chocolate, and loads of sweet tannin. Drink by 2028. (tasted April 2024) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 14.7)

2021 Hagafen Family Vineyard Red Blend, Napa Valley (M) – Score: 91 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose of this wine is just overpowered by oak, the fruit is there to make this work, but the oak really sticks out, with black, blue, and red fruit, some anise, roasted animal, sweet spices, vanilla, cinnamon, and hints of floral notes in the background. The mouth of this full-bodied wine is ripe, layered, and concentrated, with good acidity, but the oak is overpowering, showing intense smoke, sweet oak, sweet dill, vanilla, cinnamon, blackberry, plum, raspberry, anise, and mouth-draping tannin. The finish is long, cocoa-driven, with milk-chocolate-covered marzipan, smoke, roasted animal, and fleeting rosehip. Drink until 2028. (tasted November 2023) (in Hagafen Winery, Napa Valley) (ABV = 13%)

2021 Padis Vineyards Brilliance, Napa Valley (M) – Score: 83 (QPR: POOR)
The nose of this wine is too round, not bright but almost balanced, the issue is the cooked fruit. The mouth and nose are cooked with tobacco, plum, and earth, a classic mevushal Cab, no thanks. (tasted February 2024) (in KFWE, NJ) (ABV = 14%)

Twin Suns

I tasted these two wines at the Jewish Link Tasting event in New Jersey. The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2023 Twin Suns Buttery Chardonnay, California (M) – Score: 88 (QPR: GOOD)
This wine shows good acidity, with good fruit, and a nice mouthfeel, showing apple, pear, and sweet spices. (tasted February 2024) (in Jewish Link Wine Tasting, NJ) (ABV = 14%)

2021 Twin Suns Cabernet Sauvignon, California (M) – Score: 90 (QPR: GREAT)
This wine is nice enough, round, mevushal, with good acidity, nice tannin, ripe blackberry, raspberry, nice graphite, with a good mouthfeel. Drink now. (tasted February 2024) (in Jewish Link Wine Tasting, NJ) (ABV = 13.8%)

Mayacamas Winery

I ordered these wines from the winery and while I had higher hopes for them, I did temper my hopes knowing the process these wines go through. Mayacamus is a famous Cali winery that was bought by the Schottenstein family of Columbus, Ohio.

I have tasted other instances of the Mayacamus wines and they are all made in the Cali-style of winemaking, AKA, over the top, and in your face. A perfect example is the Sauvignon Blanc. It is so artificially acidulated it is painful. It starts off right on the edge but within a few hours the fruit falls off, just a bit, and the acidulation is so over the top, it is like drinking fake lemon juice. Sad.

The Chardonnay is fine, lacking much punch, but overall, acceptable. The Rose is nice but for the price, there are better options from Cali and elsewhere in the world.

The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2023 Mayacamas Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 90+ (QPR: EVEN)
The nose of this wine is shows good fruit, but muted, with gooseberry, honeysuckle, fresh grass, flint, and sweet Asian Pear. The mouth of this medium-plus-bodied wine is where things start to go wrong, at the beginning, the acidity is right on the edge of of intense, maybe the most acid-driven white I have ever had, showing gooseberry, minerality, lemon/lime, Asian pear, yellow plum, rich saline, green olive tapenade, lemongrass, and rich smoke. I feel the intense acidity is a bit fake and when tasted after a day it sticks out so poorly I could not drink it. Before the fake acidity took over, the finish was nice with flint, saline, and more green olives. Sadly, I cannot recommend this wine other than to say, try it if you wish. Drink now. (tasted March 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 13.33%)

2023 Mayacamas Rose, Grenache, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 91 (QPR: GREAT)
The nose of this wine is clean, with no pith, no bitterness, just lovely fruit, strawberry & cream, nice minerality, good gooseberry, peach, apricot, and pear. The mouth of this medium-bodied rose is nice, it shows good fruit, great acidity, and nice freshness, with gooseberry, ripe strawberry & cream, pomelo, peach, lovely saline, a nice attack, with good fruit focus, wrapped in salinity and minerality, very nice. The finish is long, tart, refreshing, and enjoyable, with good saline, flint, rock, and fruit lingering long. Nice! Drink now. (tasted March 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 13.33%)

2022 Mayacamas Chardonnay, Mount Veeder, Napa Valley, CA – Score: 91 (QPR: GOOD)
This is a clean, not oak-driven wine, with good brightness, and no butterscotch, showing clean apple, pear, peach, hibiscus flower, orange blossom, oolong tea, and sweet oak notes.
The mouth of this medium-bodied wine is not as rich as I had hoped, but the acidity is on point, with a clean line, and nice controlled oak usage, showing a very French oak style, with lovely saline, orange notes, sweet oak, Golden Delicious Apple, sweet Asian pear, and a creamy but not milky mouthfeel.
The finish is long, tart, almost plush, not there, wishing for more, with lovely rock, smoke, and saline, more hibiscus and oolong, and sweet oak/acidity lingering long. Nice! Drink until 2026. (tasted March 2024) (in San Jose, CA) (ABV = 14%)