$29.99 6+ bottles (code: 6saves2)

95 points Vinous Media
Drinking window: 2026 - 2032
The 2024 Cinsault (Lodi) emerges from Bechtold, the oldest Cinsault vineyard in the world. Black cherry, gravel, incense, tobacco, licorice, lavender and espresso give the 2024 its somber, almost brooding personality. This potent, muscular Cinsault needs time to be at its finest, but it is seriously impressive, even in the early going.

These may very well be the finest wines I have ever tasted from Tegan Passalacqua at Sandlands. The wines have always been compelling, but they have never soared so high. Passalacqua sources fruit from a wide collection of sites, many of them historic. Reds are done with 100% stems (except for Zinfandel) and aged in neutral wood. Whites are done with a similarly minimalist aesthetic. The combination of a slightly warmer year and somewhat reduced yields helped produce an absolutely stellar set of wines. The Mataro (Contra Costa County) and Red Table Wine (Contra Costa County) are among the most impressive wines of the year, with many others just behind. The 2023 Carricante, from Rhys' Centennial Mountain vineyard, is another stunner. Readers who have access to these wines should be thrilled. Best of all, prices remain exceptionally fair. These are world-class wines all the way. - Galloni Jan 26