The Latest Cristaldi Scores
Vintage
Wine
Color
Rating
Vintage
Wine
Color
Rating
The Kobler Family Vineyards Syrah builds out of the glass with a heady dose of cocoa-powder character, woody notes, and earth, all interwoven with dark berry fruit and dusty minerality. The tannins are crisp and crunchy, with juicy dark fruit on the palate and building structure that turns a bit drying toward the woodsy finish.
The wine offers dark berry fruit, woodsy aromatics, dark loamy earth, and espresso bean, with the Viognier adding a touch of floral lift. On the medium-bodied palate, more Syrah character comes through as blackberry, black cherry, and subtle charcuterie notes that intermingle with the woodsy tones on the finish. Roughly 4–5% Viognier is blended back before bottling.
The use of a white Burgundy yeast helps to bring out more crème brûlée notes. Fermented in barrel and aged sur lie with bâtonnage for 10 months in 25% new French oak. The wine is rich, with a buttery profile and notes of banana panna cotta and pineapple on the nose, along with vanilla, butterscotch, and candied ginger spice. Lemon-oil richness adds to the silky, buttery texture. And while it’s undeniably opulent, it still carries some brighter fruit on the palate to keep it lifted.
A half-and-half blend of Pommard and Clone 777 from Bacigalupi Vineyard. The nose leans fairly savory, with a heady dose of cedarwood spice and white pepper. There’s plenty of tannin grip and texture, with juicy fruit on the palate that — for me — could be a touch riper, but for those who prefer a leaner, more focused Pinot with cool wet–river–rock character, this will hit the spot.
100% stainless-steel fermented and aged. This is the same fruit that once went to Donelan for their Viognier. Super aromatic, with white florals, jasmine, and honeysuckle, plus a hint of flinty minerality. The wine offers lemony accents, more florality, and a saline–acid brightness. It’s a bit leaner and racier than the Donelan versions, if you’re familiar with those. But this is exactly Mike Kobler’s focus — bringing more racy, focused, linear wines into the family’s portfolio — and this is a great example of that effort.
This rosé comes from the coldest spot on the property, between Forestville and Graton along Highway 116 in West Sonoma County—about ten miles west of Santa Rosa, perched on the ridge of the Green Valley. An old Victorian farmhouse sits on the site. The fruit is direct-pressed and fermented in stainless steel, and Mike Kobler took over winemaking in 2022. It’s a robust, full-throttle rosé—not for the faint of heart—with rich aromas of apricot and tangerine peel and a faint hint of bacon fat. The palate is fragrant and mid-weight, offering red-berry fruit layered with savory nuances. There’s good tension and energy, along with a long, deeply fruited finish. Mike’s grandfather retired to Dry Creek Valley in the early 1980s. An engineer by trade, he spent weekends putting young Mike to work in the vineyard whenever he came to visit. Mike went on to study economics and graduated in 2007—just in time for the 2008 market crash—so he pivoted into wine. Despite swearing he’d never enter the industry, he realized he liked the lifestyle, and his network of growers and winemakers proved invaluable. With help from his father, he built a business plan, and they dove in. They launched with a négociant model, and in 2011 produced their first wine from the family property. As Mike began asking around for grape contracts, the business grew steadily. His older brother, Brian Kobler, who had been a winemaker for 20 years, eventually came on board as well.
Calesa Vineyard, Clone 115 — a Petaluma Gap site perched on a high plateau with northwest-facing slopes and soils flecked with gravel and quartz. This Pinot shows lovely black-tea and white-pepper notes, cherry fruit, and smoky minerality, with a luscious core that’s deeply saline-driven. Sage, green tobacco, and clove add complexity, all wrapped in zesty mineral tension. Full-bodied and richly textured, with black-tea tones shaping the tannins and a lingering, layered finish.
From the Sebastopol Vineyard. Fermented in barrel with 40% new French oak and partial malolactic fermentation; five barrels produced. The wine is light and bright, full of crunchy orchard-fruit character — white peach and apricot — with great mid-palate richness and a chalky mineral note that lingers on the lengthy finish.
Ellen Lane Vineyard is surrounded by forest, and the wine from this site shows a richer, rounder profile — toasty oak spices, ripe orchard and stone fruits, and a creamy generosity. Juicy, ripe pear and white-floral notes carry through on the finish. Entirely Hudson clone. Sheree and Brian Thornsberry are the co-founders who launched the brand in 2021, sourcing fruit from prime sites throughout the Russian River Valley. Both come from finance backgrounds, and their focus is on single-vineyard, single-clone bottlings. They hired Ashley Herzberg as winemaker from day one; she also makes wine for the Bacigalupi family, CAST, and Amista. Sheree tells me that she and her husband have traveled to wine regions around the world and fell in love with the lifestyle. Innumero is Latin for “above and beyond the number.” They produce just under 1,000 cases annually. The wines are sold almost entirely DTC, with a handful of placements in Healdsburg restaurants.
From Bootlegger’s Hill Vineyard, this wine shows high-toned citrus fruit, cool stony minerality, and crushed sea-salt notes. It’s medium-bodied with absolutely racy acidity, offering lemon-peel freshness on the palate and a saline–acid richness. Cedarwood spice is well integrated, building into a subtle beeswax character, all carried by excellent freshness. Sourced from the Green Valley, where fog influence is strong and consistent.
This is 100% Pommard from Bootlegger’s Hill—a robust, rich and powerful red wine with classic Pommard character. Dark blue and black fruits lead, layered with elegant cedarwood notes and a full-bodied richness that builds across a velvety palate. There’s good energy and tension supporting the clone’s naturally richer profile, framed by a broad-shouldered tannin structure. Definitely one for the cellar.
Little Boot Vineyard sits not far from Bootlegger’s Hill and spans about 7 acres. It’s also a source for Patz & Hall. Planted entirely to Calera Clone, the fruit is fermented in stainless steel, with some whole cluster, and aged 12 months in roughly 50% new French oak. The wine is super expressive, with crunchy red-berry fruit and vivid Chinese five-spice. Terrifically cool and precise, showing crunchy cherry, cranberry, and pomegranate-seed character alongside loamy earth notes and a graphite-like minerality on the zesty blood-orange finish.
This is the first Pinot Noir Innumero has produced from Bacigalupi Vineyard, made entirely from Wente Clone. Fermented in stainless steel, then pressed to barrel and aged in 50% new French oak. The nose is wonderfully alluring — candied cherry fruit, warm baking spices, blood orange, and cocoa-powder notes — all building into a medium- to full-bodied palate. Excellent fruit weight and depth, with dark-berry richness, spice, a touch of leather, and loamy earth. A nicely complex and thoroughly delicious Pinot Noir.
This is 100% Pommard from Bootlegger’s Hill — a robust, rich, and powerful Pinot Noir with classic Pommard character. Darker blue and black fruits lead the way, supported by elegant cedarwood notes and a full-bodied richness that builds across the velvety palate. There’s excellent energy and tension here, balancing the inherently richer nature of the Pommard clone, with a broad-shouldered tannin profile that signals real aging potential. Definitely one for the cellar.
Sourced from Calesa Vineyard, a Petaluma Gap site perched on a high plateau with northwest-facing slopes and soils flecked with gravel and quartz. This is quite pretty — a flinty, mineral-driven wine interwoven with citrus peel and salinity, elegant cedarwood spice, and a cool acid crunch. Ripe yellow apple and pear join crushed Marcona almonds, a hint of vanilla, and good phenolic grip. Clone Dijon 76 — fragrant and laser-focused. Just gorgeous. Venge and team produce only about 150 cases of this barrel-fermented Chardonnay, made with native yeast and native malo, aged 15 months in 40% new French oak. All night-picked, whole-cluster pressed, given a two-day settle, then treated with a small sulfur adjustment before native-yeast fermentation. Some lots underwent native malolactic fermentation. Bâtonnage starts with more frequent stirring and tapers off as the wines age. Bottled unfiltered and unfined.
From Hambrecht Vineyard at the top of Dry Creek Road, aged 16 months in three-year–dried American oak barrels. The soils here are volcanic, and it shows on the palate with an ironstone mineral character threaded through dark-berry fruit, loamy earth, and finely woven oak spices. High-toned herbal notes of sage and a touch of umami — even a whisper of soy — carry through the lengthy, savory finish.
From Richard Dinner Vineyard, a site long sourced by Paul Hobbs. The berries here are tiny, and they deliver a great deal of concentration and richness. The higher percentage of new French oak brings everything into balance, folding in sweet French-pastry and buttered-brioche notes that culminate in a full-bodied richness on the palate and a long, toasty finish. All night-picked, whole-cluster pressed, given a two-day settle, then treated with a small sulfur adjustment before native-yeast fermentation. Some lots underwent native malolactic fermentation. Bâtonnage starts with more frequent stirring and tapers off as the wines age in roughly 60% new French oak for 15 months. Bottled unfiltered and unfined.
This 100% Chardonnay is blended from several vineyard sources that highlight the diversity and depth of the Russian River Valley. Aged for 10 months on primary lees in 30% new French oak. It isn’t shy with its oak use, but it’s beautifully integrated. The wine opens with aromas that transport you to a French bakery—lavish butter croissant and toasty brioche notes abound. Beneath that lies a wealth of citrus, lemon oil, lemon curd, and crème brûlée, all adding a sense of sweetness before finishing crisp, bone-dry, and marked by a welcome saline acid tension. Gary Farrell Winery has been a pioneer of the Russian River Valley wine scene for over 40 years.
This 100% Chardonnay comes from two blocks within the Rocchioli-Allen Vineyard, an iconic site planted just south of the Rochioli Vineyard. Aged for 10 months in 35% new French oak. It’s a full-throttle Chardonnay brimming with toasty brioche and salted lemon peel, layered with apricot, white peach, and charred pineapple on the palate. For all its richness, the wine retains excellent, cooling acidity—a hallmark of this exceptional site. Gary Farrell Winery has been a pioneer of the Russian River Valley wine scene for over 40 years.
This 100% Pinot Noir is sourced from a collection of exceptional Sonoma vineyards, including Gap’s Crown, Lancel Creek, Terra de Promissio, and Durell. Aged for 10 months in 35% new French oak, the 2023 vintage marks the inaugural release of this wine—and what a debut it is. A Pinot Noir fireworks display of red cherry, clove, and mild Indian spices bursts across the palate, supported by firm, taut tannins with an iron edge, underscored by blood orange acidity and framed by a red floral and sweet-spice finish. Gary Farrell Winery has been a pioneer of the Russian River Valley wine scene for over 40 years.
