94 Points | Wine Enthusiast Magazine: "Elegant and silky, this medium-bodied wine is carried by aromas of cinnamon and dried currant. The palate brings tones of mineral, plum and black tea, with a lightly tannic texture and a good dose of acidity. The wine has a distinct personality and showcases the high-elevation El Dorado appellation's suitability for Rhône varieties." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
94 Points & Editor's Choice Wine Enthusiast
93 Points & Editor's Choice Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "This wine tastes bold and assertive, pushing smoky oak and vanilla flavors close to the edge but rescuing them with attractive ripe flavors of blackberry and black cherry. The wine is full bodied, layered and mouthcoating, supported by moderate tannins that melt into the bold flavors." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
93 Pts Wine Enthusiast | Holiday Wine Club Release
92 Points Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "[T]his subtle and complex wine combines peach and vanilla flavors with fig, crushed rock and bright acidity. The creamy mouthfeel stays well balanced as lemon and crisp apple notes come forward on the mid-palate and linger through the finish."
92 Pts Wine Enthusiast | Anniversary Club Release
92 Points Wine&Spirits Magazine | "Skinner sources fruit from vines at a wide range of altitudes, from 1,300 to 3,000 feet, focusing mostly on grapes from Fenaughty and Sumu Kaw. This wine comes across as light and brisk, with a texture that’s just generous enough to mellow the cool spiciness and floral strawberry flavors. Fresh and pretty, it’s a lovely match for chicken liver mousse or most anything on a charcuterie plate." Wine&Spirits Magazine
92 pts Wine&Spirits | Harvest Wine Club Release
92 Points Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "This classy wine offers a mix of spice rack and black cherry aromas, with rich plum, earth and rhubarb flavors. There is balance between ripeness of fruit and tension from the tannins and acidity. It stands on it own as a beautifully complex but not heavy wine." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
92 pts Wine Enthusiast | Winter Wine Club Release
92 Points Wine&Spirits Magazine | "This grows at Skinner’s Stoney Creek estate in Fair Play, where the petite sirah ranges from ten to 20 years old. It accounts for 86 percent of the blend, augmented with small amounts of counoise, syrah, viognier, grenache and mourvedre. Those other grapes may help to leaven petite’s tannins, which have mellowed over the course of two years in French oak (55 percent new) and a year in bottle. What’s left are scents of rocks and flowers, along with the chewy grape-skin tannins of petite. The wine is as black as you might expect; it’s also crunchy, and the floral notes keep coming on the finish. This should develop well with six to eight more years in bottle"
92 pts Wine&Spirits | Holiday Wine Club Release
92 Points Wine&Spirits Magazine | "Focused on syrah, grenache and mourvedre from Skinner’s Stoney Creek estate, this wine’s full-on richness emphasizes bright strawberry scents, succulent cherry flavors and a pretty, earthy scent that brings to mind freshly turned garden soil. One-third of the lot ages in new French oak, lending a toasty scent to underline the wine’s warm generosity. Decant it for grilled quail."
92 pts Wine&Spirits | Anniversary Club Release
91 Points Wine&Spirits Magazine | "This makes a bright and airy first impression, with mountain-grown freshness to its sweet strawberry flavors. It’s a blend of mostly grenache, with some mourvedre and syrah, most of it purchased fruit. Oak adds a smoky element, but it’s the green-peppercorn spice and brisk strawberry fruit that lasts."
91 pts Wine&Spirts | Anniversary Club Release
91 Points Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "This will be an outstanding dinner wine when a roast or steak is on the menu. It has a good, gripping texture and firm acidity that will stand up well to fatty dishes. A nice core of blackberry and black-cherry flavors is surrounded by hints of clove and cinnamon." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
91 pts Wine Enthusiast | Anniversary Club Release
90 Points Wine&Spirits Magazine | "As a young wine it’s a big bruiser, focused [...] black-skinned fruit, with notes of chocolate, anise and black pepper trailing those tannins in the end. Brisk, tough and powerful, this is a mouth-filling red to decant for slow-braised short ribs"
90 pts Wine&Spirits | Anniversary Club Release
90 Points Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "Fruity and vibrant, this crisp and clean wine brings fresh green apples to the aroma and an almost citrus character to the flavors, which have floral and almond accents too. It shows medium body and a nicely round texture balanced by good acidity." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
90 pts Wine Enthusiast | Harvest Wine Club Release
90 Points Wine Enthusiast Magazine | "This full-bodied wine has a high ripeness factor and also a solid structure of fruit acidity and moderate tannins to nicely support the jammy raspberry and blackberry flavors that are so tempting." Reviewed by Jim Gordon
90 Pts Wine Enthusiast | Winter Wine Club Release
