Wine Enthusiast Reviews by year

Published In Print And On The Magazine’s Website

2020

Annia, Napa Valley White White – 96 POINTS (TOP 100 WINE OF 2021) Dan Petroski’s perennially delightful blend of 61% Tocai Friulano, 27% Ribolla Gialla and 12% Chardonnay from Hyde Vineyard stands out in its melding of floral, grippy composure and earthy intensity. Lemon candy, peach and white flower combine around ethereal accents of salt and slate.

Gemina, California White Wine – 95 POINTS Made from 75% Pinot Bianco and 25% Greco from vineyards in Carneros and the Russian River Valley, this white is whole-cluster pressed and fed indigenous yeast before hanging out six months in 100% neutral French oak. Fresh and sleek on the palate, it is bright and crisp in flavors of fig and sea spray.

Sauvignon Blanc – 94 POINTS Made from fruit grown in Pope Valley and Carneros, this is a lifted, elegant and persistently fresh white. It was whole-cluster pressed then barrel fermented with indigenous yeast and aged for six months. A flinty palate presents flavors of wet stone, cucumber and ocean spray.

Hyde Vineyards Chardonnay – 97 POINTS From a great vintage for Napa Valley white wines, this structured and delicious bottling shows bright bursts of citrus, slate and lemon peel. The oak is present yet well-behaved, adding spice and tension it all.

2019

Annia, Napa Valley White White – 95 POINTS This is a consistently beautiful and beguiling white wine, a blend of Tocai Friulano, Ribolla Gialla and Chardonnay, the latter from Hyde Vineyards. Structured, mineral-driven and explosive in flavors of lemon zest, green apple and wet stone, it is a wine well worth stocking.

Gemina, California White Wine – 94 POINTS A rare, beautifully conceived blend of Napa Valley Pinot Bianco and Sonoma County Greco, Gemina is refreshing and hugely memorable in crunchy fruit and freshness. Slatey, with a taste of the ocean, it evolves in the glass to impart a fleshy lushness of fig.

Sauvignon Blanc – 95 POINTS (TOP 100 WINE OF 2020) This is winemaker Dan Petroski’s nod to the Sauvignons of northern Italy. Lemony and sleek, it conjures notes of wet stone, brine and complex, layered acidity, with a lasting tease of green apple and lemongrass.

Hyde Vineyards Chardonnay – 97 POINTS This is a barrel-fermented and -aged white from the famous grower site in Carneros, which does justice to its soulful sense of place. Brioche and nutmeg aromas lead to a midpalate of succulent green apple, pear and oak, with lifted, bright and layered acidity. Complex and completely delicious, it remains focused and balanced throughout.

2018

Annia, Napa Valley White White – 97 POINTS (TOP 100 WINE OF 2019) Made from 48% Tocai Friulano, 41% Ribolla Gialla and 11% Chardonnay, this is fresh and floral in tones of lemon rind, white flower and green apple. Fermented in both French oak and stainless steel, it is structured yet vibrant, gorgeously aromatic and remarkably long-lasting on the palate.

Gemina, California White Wine – 96 POINTS Gemina is 69% Pinot Grigio and 31% Greco, from two vineyards, one in St. Helena and the other in Santa Rosa. With the goal of showcasing both northern and southern Italian inspiration, it deals in fresh lemon peel, white flower and gravelly texture, while being well structured and enduringly fresh. This is a truly lovely, revelatory wine.

Sauvignon Blanc – 95 POINTS For his own label, Larkmead winemaker Dan Petroski looks to northern Italy for inspiration, sourcing from Napa Valley vineyards he admires (ones with the warmest days and coolest nights) to produce this 100% varietal beauty. Robustly fruity and flinty, it shows apricot, lemongrass, wet stone and wraparound acidity that buzzes in freshness.

Hyde Vineyards Chardonnay – 94 POINTS From the famous site in Carneros, the block sourced by the producer consists of Musque clone Chardonnay, planted in the early 1990s and a portion of it also goes into his Annia white blend. Opening in a whiff of confection, it offers steely acidity and a textured taste of lemon rind, grapefruit and white peach, layered and balanced in every sense of the word.

2017

Annia, Napa Valley White White – 94 POINTS (TOP 100 WINE OF 2018) This is a refreshingly stunning blend of 55% Ribolla Gialla, 39% Tocai Friulano and 6% Chardonnay, the latter (from Hyde Vineyard) finding unexpected companionship with its Napa-grown Italian counterparts. Waxy and floral, it tastes of green apple and white peach, with a plush midpalate and lasting tension of vibrant acidity.

Gemina, California White Wine – 95 POINTS Wow, this is a beautiful wine. A blend of 77% Pinot Grigio from the Napa Valley’s Chiles Valley and 23% Greco from Russian River Valley, winemaker Dan Petroski melds them both together into a floral and fresh explosion of vivid flavor. Tart apricot and peach meet freshly squeezed lemon as balanced acidity lingers masterfully on the finish.

Sauvignon Blanc – 94 POINTS Floral and stony, this impressively complex and memorable white has a thirst-quenching grasp of gravelly minerality, a core element built around bold, beautiful flavors of fig, Meyer lemon and tangerine.

Hyde Vineyards Chardonnay – 94 POINTS Spicy lemongrass, ginger and high-toned acidity immediately invite one in to this vineyard-designated white, a study in grainy texture and a light touch of oak. Green apple and lemon-drop flavors tease the palate effortlessly, evolving constantly in the glass.