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Cristaldi Scores

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Vintage

Wine

Color

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2023

Auteur

Bacigalupi Vineyard Chardonnay

The Bacigalupi Vineyard is planted entirely to Old Wente clone, making it an easy sourcing choice for Kenneth. He notes that the site is warmer and typically the first fruit to come in—sometimes as early as late August. In 2023, he was especially pleased with the results, having picked a bit earlier. The fruit was pressed in the crush, using whole clusters with multiple press cycles, followed by a barrel selection of the native-fermented wine, which was aged for 15 months in 25–30% new French oak. The wine shows lovely, bright lemon-driven aromatics with excellent weight and tension. There’s perhaps a hint of lychee, but the profile is predominantly saline, layered with rich lemon and lime notes. Crisp orchard fruit carries through the palate, finishing long and expressive with loads of saline mineral character and vibrant freshness.

2023

Auteur

Durell Vineyard Chardonnay

With Durell Vineyard, Kenneth Juhasz works with the flatter section of the site near the riverbed, close to the town of Sonoma. He began working with Durell in 2008, initially producing Pinot Noir from the vineyard. This wine is whole-cluster pressed, allowing for gentler extraction from the intact clusters and resulting in greater finesse. Fermentations are native and carried out cold, with no malolactic fermentation, followed by 15 months of ageing in neutral, tight-grained, light-toast French oak. The nose is supremely elegant, offering notes of lemon, anise, and sea-spray minerality. On the palate, a lovely creamy mid-palate is supported by a core of citrus-kissed acid tension, finishing with crushed-rock minerality. The wine is both generous and refined, yet remains focused, vibrant, and precise. It is a beautiful expression of this exceptional site, owned by Three Sticks Wines founder Bill Price.

2023

Auteur

Gap's Crown Vineyard Bolt Block Pinot Noir

Kenneth Juhasz says he had first choice of this vineyard, blending some parcels but sourcing most of the fruit from what he calls the “Bolt Block,” a super-rocky section of the site. Made entirely from Dijon Clone 667, the wine builds in the glass with dark-fruit and cocoa nib intensity accented by elegant cedarwood notes. The texture is off the charts—velvety, silky, and satiny, nearly luscious yet still pure-fruited—finishing with an earthy richness and fruit-driven depth that complements the wine’s dark, brooding profile. Quite exceptional.

2023

Auteur

Green Acrers Chardonnay

The Green Acres Vineyard bottling builds with gorgeous richness and fragrance, marked by zesty lemon and ginger, lemon oil, and a chamomile-like depth on the medium-bodied palate. A saline-driven acidity runs through the wine, carrying a subtle white pepper note and lending palpable tension throughout. The grape clusters here are notably small, likely contributing to the wine’s concentration and energy. Aged for 15 months in 30% new French oak, the oak is beautifully integrated, allowing the wine to remain balanced, focused, and vibrant from start to finish. The site, located near the town of Sonoma and owned by the Sangiacomo family, was planted in 2001 and is now more than 20 years old.

2023

Auteur

Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay

In 2023, the fruit was destemmed before pressing and crushed, followed by native fermentations carried out cold, with no malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged for 15 months in neutral oak. It is strikingly aromatic and fresh, driven by floral, fragrant notes and a distinct sea-spray character. On the palate, there’s a wonderful lemon oil richness—something Kenneth attributes to the pressing style—building alongside beautifully smooth, velvety tannins. Layers of lemon zest, orange essence, and orchard fruit unfold through the mid-palate, finishing with lingering brightness and crispness from the wine’s highly expressive acidity. Importantly, that acidity is fully integrated—never sharp or jagged—resulting in a wine that feels seamless, elegant, and refined.

2023

Auteur

Labyrinth Vineyard Pinot Noir

Labyrinth Vineyard lies near the town of Forestville and is planted entirely to Pommard clone, organically farmed with tight vine spacing and low yields achieved through careful thinning. The wine builds in the glass with classic Pommard character—rich cherry and spiced plum fruit layered with deep, woodsy, almost truffle-like notes and loamy earth tones. Dark cherry flavors carry across the palate, joined by earthy humus nuances in a full-bodied wine with a rich mid-palate and exceptional length. I love this wine—it’s so delicious and full-flavored.

2023

Auteur

Savoy Vineyard Pinot Noir

The Savoy Vineyard bottling opens with fragrant forest berry aromatics and dark berry fruit, building on a foundation of very ripe, structured tannins. A saline-driven acid tension carries notes of blood orange and cherry, underscored by a distinct wet-slate mineral character. The site itself is rugged, and that ruggedness shows in the wine—but it remains remarkably delicious and expressive, anchored by a solid core of juicy dark berry fruit and spice. Long, layered, and generous, this was perhaps the most powerful and tannin-driven wine I tasted during my visit, yet still balanced and compelling. Aged in 60% new French oak for 15 months.

2023

Auteur

Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

In general, Kenneth Juhasz’s Chardonnay wines do not undergo malolactic fermentation. He works primarily with Old Wente Clone—virus-infected, low-yielding, and later-ripening, true Old Wente material. The grapes are night-harvested and hand-picked. Kenneth explains that it’s less about stem inclusion and more about solids and trace amounts of sulfides, which he likes. Some lots see stem inclusion, while others do not. All fermentations are carried out in barrel using tight-grained, lighter-toast oak, with roughly 20% new oak for the Sonoma Coast bottling; some single-vineyard wines see no new oak at all. Ferments are native, long, and cool, generally topping out at 55–60°F, with a bit of lees stirring. As soon as the wines are dry, he keeps them cold to inhibit malolactic conversion. He believes that when working with great sites, a great clone, and exceptional fruit, this approach yields the best results. The Sonoma Coast is a blend of several single-vineyard sites, including Durell, Green Acres, and Bacigalupi. The wine is aged for 15 months in oak prior to bottling. Because it does not undergo malolactic fermentation, he uses cross-flow filtration. The finished wine is lemony-bright, packed with energy and tension. Expressive cedarwood notes mingle with lemon and lime, alongside hints of Parmesan rind that become more embedded on the palate. Orchard fruit and citrus fruit intertwine, carried by bright crushed almond and white floral notes through the finish.

2023

Auteur

Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

The Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ages in 30% new French oak for 15 months, racked just once prior to bottling, with no fining or filtration. The resulting wine is robust yet balanced, marrying power and elegance with bright, crunchy red fruit layered with brown baking spices, a hint of caramel, and deep forest bark and spicebush notes. Tension builds across a luscious core of red berry fruit framed by grippy apple-skin tannins. Long and flavor-packed, the wine maintains impressive focus and energy despite its breadth and generosity on the palate. A blend of fruit from Labyrinth, Gap’s Crown, Starkey, and Balinard vineyards.

2023

Auteur

Wendling Vineyard Pinot Noir

Kenneth Juhasz’s ideal approach is to pick individual Pinot Noir clones separately and co-ferment them. At Wendling Vineyard, the mix includes Calera, La Tâche, and Vosne-Romanée suitcase selections, all rooted in the far northern reaches of Anderson Valley, near the Pacific Ocean, where the Navarro River empties into the sea. The vineyard is owned by Paul Ardzrooney, who also serves as the site’s vineyard manager. The resulting wine is powerful yet refined, built around rich, dark cherry fruit and elegant brown baking-spice notes. Fresh spicebush and redwood forest nuances add aromatic depth, while the palate shows greater dimension, supported by velvety tannins and delicate floral tones that weave seamlessly through the wine. The finish is long and fruit-driven, marked by blood orange oil and expressive acid tension. It’s a big wine, but delivered with poise, elegance, and restraint.

Vintage

Wine

Type

Color

Rating

$

2023

Producer

Name

The Bacigalupi Vineyard is planted entirely to Old Wente clone, making it an easy sourcing choice for Kenneth. He notes that the site is warmer and typically the first fruit to come in—sometimes as early as late August. In 2023, he was especially pleased with the results, having picked a bit earlier. The fruit was pressed in the crush, using whole clusters with multiple press cycles, followed by a barrel selection of the native-fermented wine, which was aged for 15 months in 25–30% new French oak. The wine shows lovely, bright lemon-driven aromatics with excellent weight and tension. There’s perhaps a hint of lychee, but the profile is predominantly saline, layered with rich lemon and lime notes. Crisp orchard fruit carries through the palate, finishing long and expressive with loads of saline mineral character and vibrant freshness.

2023

Producer

Name

With Durell Vineyard, Kenneth Juhasz works with the flatter section of the site near the riverbed, close to the town of Sonoma. He began working with Durell in 2008, initially producing Pinot Noir from the vineyard. This wine is whole-cluster pressed, allowing for gentler extraction from the intact clusters and resulting in greater finesse. Fermentations are native and carried out cold, with no malolactic fermentation, followed by 15 months of ageing in neutral, tight-grained, light-toast French oak. The nose is supremely elegant, offering notes of lemon, anise, and sea-spray minerality. On the palate, a lovely creamy mid-palate is supported by a core of citrus-kissed acid tension, finishing with crushed-rock minerality. The wine is both generous and refined, yet remains focused, vibrant, and precise. It is a beautiful expression of this exceptional site, owned by Three Sticks Wines founder Bill Price.

2023

Producer

Name

Kenneth Juhasz says he had first choice of this vineyard, blending some parcels but sourcing most of the fruit from what he calls the “Bolt Block,” a super-rocky section of the site. Made entirely from Dijon Clone 667, the wine builds in the glass with dark-fruit and cocoa nib intensity accented by elegant cedarwood notes. The texture is off the charts—velvety, silky, and satiny, nearly luscious yet still pure-fruited—finishing with an earthy richness and fruit-driven depth that complements the wine’s dark, brooding profile. Quite exceptional.

2023

Producer

Name

The Green Acres Vineyard bottling builds with gorgeous richness and fragrance, marked by zesty lemon and ginger, lemon oil, and a chamomile-like depth on the medium-bodied palate. A saline-driven acidity runs through the wine, carrying a subtle white pepper note and lending palpable tension throughout. The grape clusters here are notably small, likely contributing to the wine’s concentration and energy. Aged for 15 months in 30% new French oak, the oak is beautifully integrated, allowing the wine to remain balanced, focused, and vibrant from start to finish. The site, located near the town of Sonoma and owned by the Sangiacomo family, was planted in 2001 and is now more than 20 years old.

2023

Producer

Name

In 2023, the fruit was destemmed before pressing and crushed, followed by native fermentations carried out cold, with no malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged for 15 months in neutral oak. It is strikingly aromatic and fresh, driven by floral, fragrant notes and a distinct sea-spray character. On the palate, there’s a wonderful lemon oil richness—something Kenneth attributes to the pressing style—building alongside beautifully smooth, velvety tannins. Layers of lemon zest, orange essence, and orchard fruit unfold through the mid-palate, finishing with lingering brightness and crispness from the wine’s highly expressive acidity. Importantly, that acidity is fully integrated—never sharp or jagged—resulting in a wine that feels seamless, elegant, and refined.

2023

Producer

Name

Labyrinth Vineyard lies near the town of Forestville and is planted entirely to Pommard clone, organically farmed with tight vine spacing and low yields achieved through careful thinning. The wine builds in the glass with classic Pommard character—rich cherry and spiced plum fruit layered with deep, woodsy, almost truffle-like notes and loamy earth tones. Dark cherry flavors carry across the palate, joined by earthy humus nuances in a full-bodied wine with a rich mid-palate and exceptional length. I love this wine—it’s so delicious and full-flavored.

2023

Producer

Name

The Savoy Vineyard bottling opens with fragrant forest berry aromatics and dark berry fruit, building on a foundation of very ripe, structured tannins. A saline-driven acid tension carries notes of blood orange and cherry, underscored by a distinct wet-slate mineral character. The site itself is rugged, and that ruggedness shows in the wine—but it remains remarkably delicious and expressive, anchored by a solid core of juicy dark berry fruit and spice. Long, layered, and generous, this was perhaps the most powerful and tannin-driven wine I tasted during my visit, yet still balanced and compelling. Aged in 60% new French oak for 15 months.

2023

Producer

Name

In general, Kenneth Juhasz’s Chardonnay wines do not undergo malolactic fermentation. He works primarily with Old Wente Clone—virus-infected, low-yielding, and later-ripening, true Old Wente material. The grapes are night-harvested and hand-picked. Kenneth explains that it’s less about stem inclusion and more about solids and trace amounts of sulfides, which he likes. Some lots see stem inclusion, while others do not. All fermentations are carried out in barrel using tight-grained, lighter-toast oak, with roughly 20% new oak for the Sonoma Coast bottling; some single-vineyard wines see no new oak at all. Ferments are native, long, and cool, generally topping out at 55–60°F, with a bit of lees stirring. As soon as the wines are dry, he keeps them cold to inhibit malolactic conversion. He believes that when working with great sites, a great clone, and exceptional fruit, this approach yields the best results. The Sonoma Coast is a blend of several single-vineyard sites, including Durell, Green Acres, and Bacigalupi. The wine is aged for 15 months in oak prior to bottling. Because it does not undergo malolactic fermentation, he uses cross-flow filtration. The finished wine is lemony-bright, packed with energy and tension. Expressive cedarwood notes mingle with lemon and lime, alongside hints of Parmesan rind that become more embedded on the palate. Orchard fruit and citrus fruit intertwine, carried by bright crushed almond and white floral notes through the finish.

2023

Producer

Name

The Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ages in 30% new French oak for 15 months, racked just once prior to bottling, with no fining or filtration. The resulting wine is robust yet balanced, marrying power and elegance with bright, crunchy red fruit layered with brown baking spices, a hint of caramel, and deep forest bark and spicebush notes. Tension builds across a luscious core of red berry fruit framed by grippy apple-skin tannins. Long and flavor-packed, the wine maintains impressive focus and energy despite its breadth and generosity on the palate. A blend of fruit from Labyrinth, Gap’s Crown, Starkey, and Balinard vineyards.

2023

Producer

Name

Kenneth Juhasz’s ideal approach is to pick individual Pinot Noir clones separately and co-ferment them. At Wendling Vineyard, the mix includes Calera, La Tâche, and Vosne-Romanée suitcase selections, all rooted in the far northern reaches of Anderson Valley, near the Pacific Ocean, where the Navarro River empties into the sea. The vineyard is owned by Paul Ardzrooney, who also serves as the site’s vineyard manager. The resulting wine is powerful yet refined, built around rich, dark cherry fruit and elegant brown baking-spice notes. Fresh spicebush and redwood forest nuances add aromatic depth, while the palate shows greater dimension, supported by velvety tannins and delicate floral tones that weave seamlessly through the wine. The finish is long and fruit-driven, marked by blood orange oil and expressive acid tension. It’s a big wine, but delivered with poise, elegance, and restraint.

Vintage

Wine

Type

Rating

$

2023

2023 Auteur Bacigalupi Vineyard Chardonnay

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Durell Vineyard Chardonnay

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Gap’s Crown Vineyard Bolt Block Pinot Noir

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Green Acrers Chardonnay

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Labyrinth Vineyard Pinot Noir

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Savoy Vineyard Pinot Noir

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Still Wine

$$

2023

2023 Auteur Wendling Vineyard Pinot Noir

Still Wine

$$

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