The Latest Cristaldi Scores
Vintage
Wine
Color
Rating
Vintage
Wine
Color
Rating
Wonderfully rich baking-spice notes evoke walnut–cardamom pastry, French buttered croissant, and wet river stones, all wrapped around cherry and apple fruit. The mousse is incredibly frothy, building with beautiful lightness and textural lift, while hints of white truffle and a streak of saline acidity add a savory freshness that’s undeniably delicious.
This is an opulent, fruit-forward, and generous Cabernet Sauvignon that bursts with blue-fruit fireworks, graphite, and cedarwood nuances. Full-bodied and pleasure-packed, it’s teeming with robust tannins and finishes with notes of dark chocolate and lingering graphite minerality. Composed entirely of Cabernet Sauvignon from the North Coast, with all fruit sourced from vineyards in Mendocino County, it was aged in a combination of medium and heavy toast French oak, 20% new. Hedonistic and expressive, it’s best enjoyed now and over the next three to five years. Sean Minor Wines was founded in 2005 by husband-and-wife team Sean and Nicole Minor, and is still family-owned and operated. In 2023, their daughter, Elle Minor, joined the team as winemaker. Wines are made from a combination of estate fruit and fruit purchased from sustainably farmed sources throughout California.
From the Garys’ Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands comes this ripe-cherry-fruited, vanilla-laced, cedarwood-spiced Pinot Noir, bending around rich espresso-bean nuances and supple tannins. A plump, creamy mid-palate is lifted by zesty blood-orange acidity, leading to a lingering finish of warm Indian spice and vanilla-bean cream. Sumptuously refined.
Sourced entirely from Pisoni Vineyard and fermented in stainless steel and concrete with 8% whole cluster, then aged 14 months in 38% new French oak. This 2023 release is an absolute powerhouse, bursting with blue-fruit intensity, blackberry and sagebrush notes, and velvety tannins dusted with cocoa powder. Loamy earth adds depth and grounding. The finish carries impressive length, layered with dried spice, mild Indian spices and a dash of black sea salt.
Sourced from Premier Cru vineyards—Fourchaume and Vosgros, a small site on the northern side of the appellation. Aged for 11 months in 5% new French oak. This is a beautifully crafted white wine with a creamy mid-palate richness and a lingering Marcona almond character. White flowers, tangerine peel and lemon verbena add intrigue and complexity, while the finish is soft and carried by ripe orchard fruit with excellent mineral tension stretching through the length. The 2024 vintage was hit hard by hail, so there will be no 2024 bottling—stock up on this while you can.
This wine shows a superb structural framework and impressive length. Zesty acidity drives the palate, supported by wet-stone and graphite minerality, with almost chalky tannins giving fine definition. Fragrant red and black fruit notes mingle with warm brown spices, all carried on a long, persistent finish. Shy in its youth, this will benefit from patience—best to hold until 2027 before pulling any corks.
A powerhouse wine from a challenging Burgundy vintage. It shows tremendous concentration of red berry fruit alongside red earth, iron and loamy earth tones, with deep, woodsy spice. Perfumed rose-petal notes flood the mid-palate, while firm yet inviting apple-skin tannins frame the structure. The finish brings juicy richness and an elegant lift. Overall, this is a very charming wine and a lovely expression of Beaune Premier Cru—offering that upfront Kosta Browne–style generosity balanced by true Premier Cru tension.
Characteristically Santa Lucia Highlands in its bright, candied red-fruit profile and fabulous brown baking spices, yet this vintage shows less of the ultra-creamy texture typical of the region and more precision and tension. Aromas and flavors of crunchy apple-skin notes resonate, joined by clove and spiced plum, offering great length and generosity. Sourced from Garys’, Rosella’s, Pisoni, Sierra Mar and Soberanes. Fermented in stainless steel, oak and concrete, then aged 14 months in 43% new French oak.
A robust, full-throttle wine with gorgeous complexity and excellent mineral tension. Elegant mixed-berry fruit comes together with scorched earth and graphite, all supported by firm, confident tannins and expressive saline-tinged acidity. Notes of tangerine peel and grapefruit emerge on the long, woodsy, earthy finish. It hits all the marks right out of the gate and is great fun to drink in its youth, yet it has the structure to age gracefully.
This wine is framed by a beautifully balanced expression of fruit, spice and warmth. The mid-palate shows generous weight and plushness, enlivened by salty sea-spray notes and a wet-river-stone minerality. Hints of rose stem and rose petal lift the aromatics, while the palate offers cherry-pie spice and a touch of tension, feeling slightly coiled at this youthful stage. Excellent length, excellent tension—one to enjoy from 2027 onward.
Super fragrant, showing orange peel, cranberry and cherry fruit with wild sagebrush spice. Cocoa-powder tannins, sweet baking spices and pomegranate-seed crunch add texture and lift. The 2023 vintage carries medium- to full-bodied richness, layered with raspberry and gentle vanilla notes—some of that plushness coming from Clone 828—while the Pisoni clone and 777 contribute freshness and energy. A beautifully balanced Rosella’s.
A wonderful balance of power and elegance, showing savory notes of pine forest, saddle leather, black sea salt and redwood bark. Firm tannins and saline acidity frame the core, while violets, plum spice, vanilla and warm brown spices add lift and complexity. Rich conifer tones linger in the glass, joined by more leather and scorched earth. Pristine, expressive and power-driven.
This vintage of Convene’s Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands is sourced from Escolle Vineyard, and it’s so unmistakably SLH in character: lush, supple, and boldly fruited. The nose reveals dark tones of blue and black fruit, layered with briary undertones and rich Asian spice. On the palate, it’s full and generous, with ripe dark fruit and velvety tannins that melt seamlessly into subtle notes of cocoa powder and black truffle on the finish.
This wine is incredibly precise in 2023, showing that characteristic full-bodied, satiny palate feel with layers of cherry and plum fruit. A saline-acid freshness runs through it, accented by blood orange, tangerine peel, and cocoa-powder tannins that frame this classic Michael Browne expression. I’d hold it for a few years and start pulling corks in late 2026 or early 2027. Clones: Pisoni, Pommard, Calera, Mariafeld, 667. Aged 15 months in 40% new French oak, 15% once-used French oak, and 45% neutral French oak.
This is a wonderfully crunchy red- and black-fruited Pinot Noir. That texture carries onto the palate with a velvety, satiny quality, delivering a ripe, juicy, mineral-laced expression layered with dark forest pine, earth, and wet slate. The fruit is weighty yet pure—ripe, clean, and edged with crisp apple-skin tannins. Freshness drives the finish, accented by rich cedarwood and warm baking spices. Clones: Wadenswil, Pommard, 667. Aged 15 months in 38% new French oak, 28% once-used French oak, and 34% neutral French oak.
From a high-elevation site with mixed aspects forming a bit of an amphitheater, rooted in diatomaceous earth and clay. Michael Browne loves the energy and movement of Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir—“it travels the palate,” he says—and winemaker Cabell Coursey adds that “there’s a nervous energy to Sta. Rita Hills.” This wine has that in spades. It’s nervy, yet plush through the mid-palate, with crunchy, candied red berry fruit and warm baking spice. Juicy blood-orange acidity brings real tension and lift, carrying that signature nervy energy from start to finish. Clones: 667, 777, 115, Pommard. Aged 15 months in 41% new French oak, 17% once-used French oak, and 42% neutral French oak.
The Chehalem Mountain Vineyard, near the top of the Chehalem Mountain AVA, sits at 400 feet and is planted mostly on volcanic soils. No whole cluster here, but plenty of tannin comes from a one-third saignée bleed, which concentrates the skin-to-juice ratio. This wine has a good amount of grip, showcasing the firm tannins that come from grapes grown on this steep hillside. There’s marionberry and crunchy farmers’ market–ripe red fruit, layered with richer volcanic mineral character, lovely caramel and clove-spice notes, and an overall fragrance that’s both sumptuous and inviting.
From the Eola Springs Vineyard in Oregon. Aged 18 months in 50% new French oak. No whole cluster here, but plenty of tannin comes from a one-third saignée bleed, which concentrates the skin-to-juice ratio. Jesse Katz likes the skin tannin this site delivers, and the technique helps those tannins stick. The wine is vivid, offering crunchy red fruit and conifer notes — that bright pine-forest character that’s so enticing from this area. The spice on the palate is lavish and rich, with smoked paprika and warm brown-baking-spice accents wrapped around ripe cherry fruit. The tannins are smooth and velvety, incredibly rich and flavorful, with a freshness factor that’s hard to beat.
The Chehalem Mountain Vineyard, near the top of the Chehalem Mountain AVA, sits at 400 feet and is planted mostly on volcanic soils. Aged 18 months in 50% new French oak, this is a serious wine that benefits from a little air. It builds in the glass with bright orchard fruit, crisp green-apple skin, and delicate white-floral and warm brown-baking-spice notes. Absolutely pretty, completely crushable, and wonderfully mineral on the lengthy finish.
From the Eola Springs Vineyard in Oregon. Aged 18 months in 50% new French oak. This is a very focused, very linear Chardonnay — clean, crisp, and intensely mineral-driven, with a cool wet-river-stone quality and a touch of pulverized chalk. Whispers of lemon and lime citrus mingle with white flowers, subtle almond, fennel blossom, and a hint of anise. Very lovely. Very pristine.
