Reviews
90 POINTS - 2005 Saxon Brown Flora Ranch Syrah, Chalk Hill
"Vivid ruby-red, Smoky dark berry, tobacco and bacon fat aromas offer varietally accurate pungency and very good clarity. Peppery and sharply focused, with racy red and dark berry flavors, gentle tannins and good mineral lift. Leaves a strong floral pastille quality behind on the long, sappy finish. Very syrah."
91 POINTS - 2006 Saxon Brown Pinot Noir Durell Vineyard Hayfield Block Sonoma Valley "Not much is held back in this very well-crafted and generous Pinot Noir. Its black cherry, chalk and somewhat berryish aromas are nicely concentrated, and its ripe, well-fruited flavors are carried by a supple, slightly fleshy, full-bodied texture. IT is an easy to drink wine that needs no further aging to be fully enjoyed yet will not fade soon if one were to put some away for a few years of cellaring."
90 POINTS - 2006 Saxon Brown Chardonnay Durell Vineyard, Sonoma Valley
"This full-blown bottling begs the question of what is too much when it comes to ripeness and rich oak, but for all of its sweet spice and evident extract, it is amazingly fruity and surprisingly well-balanced. It absolutely demands drinking with appropriately rich foods, and while it is certain to swamp the likes of milder poultry and seafoods, it is sure to shine when teamed up with well-seasoned fish stews or pastas bathed in flavorful cream sauces."
93 POINTS - 2004 Parmelee-Hill Zinfandel
"Led in the nose by lots of juicy, well-ripened berries with plenty of creamy oak filling in all of the spaces, this very successful wine balances its very obvious ripeness against a most generous measure of fruit and comes up a resounding winner. From front to back it is nicely balanced and shows nary a hint of softness along the way, and the scant heat that peeks through in the finish is well-buffered by its continuous fruit. It is, in short, a deeply filled Zin that will marry comfortably with foods, and it cannot do other than get better if allowed a few years of bottle age."
93 points – 2001 Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel
"The intensity and complexity of fruit off these 100-year-old vines reflects beautifully the character and attraction of true "old-vine" Zinfandel."
“Truly a Fine Wine” – 1999 Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel
San Francisco Chronicle
Top 100 Wines of the Year – 2003 Casa Santinamaria Semillon
“Made from 75 year old vines, this unoaked wine is lively and at the same time rich with mouthwatering tropical fruit, pear and citrus flavors ”
92 points, "Searingly Beautiful"– 2003 Parmelee- Hill Syrah
93 points – 2004 Parmelee- Hill Zinfandel
"From fruit picked next to the famed Durell Vineyard, Jeff Gaffner makes a bright and booming gem."