Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up on my doorstep asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have arrived recently.

This past week included a set of new releases from Rhys Vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Specifically, they’ve sent along their latest three wines from their Mt. Pajaro Vineyard, an 18.6-acre site in the southern part of the Santa Cruz Mountains on brown and black shale and sandstone. All three wines are excellent, with the Chardonnay being truly exceptional in its energy and dynamism. The Chenin Blanc was no slouch, and the Pinot Noir offered a beautiful umami character in addition to its bright fruit. The wines are sold to mailing list customers but can also be found on the secondary market.

I’m also reviewing the final two wines from the new collaborative portfolio between Aperture Cellars and Montage Resort outside of Healdsburg. Both the Sauvignon Blanc and the Cabernet Sauvignon are excellent examples of their respective varieties and are delicious. These newly released wines are apparently going to be available for guests of the resort or its restaurant to purchase, but are not, for now, going to be available to the public.

There are a few wine styles that I unequivocally adore, and one of those is white Pinot Noir. Which is to say, still white wines made from red Pinot Noir grapes. My first experience of this style was from Domaine Serene in Oregon, where winemaker Tony Rynders popularized the style. Now a number of people make it, including a newer label I’ve recently been introduced to: Adonna Wines in Sonoma. The winery is the project of Donna Kato, a successful biotech executive, philanthropist, and now vintner. The wines are made by the talented Ashley Holland. Their white Pinot Noir is the raciest of its kind that I’ve tried, leaning more towards what you’d expect from a vin clair from Champagne (i.e., a Blanc de Noirs before the bubbles), but as a self-professed acid freak, that was just fine with me.

I’ve got a few more random Portuguese white wines to recommend to you this week, including a lovely Arinto from Quinta da Murta, a Dão Encruzado from Casa de Passarella, and a nice Fernao Pires from Quinta do Casal Branco in the lesser-known Tejo region (formerly known as Ribatejo), just northeast of Lisbon. The most exciting of the group, however, was the old-vine white from Rui Roboredo Madeira, who makes wines in the mountainous Beira Interior region of Portugal, just on the border with Spain. This wine is an old-vine field blend of several indigenous varieties, among which are Fonte Cal, Rabo de Ovelha, and Síria (aka Roupeiro or Codega). I was unable to determine how old the vines are, however, or what the other grape varieties are in the vineyard.

We can end on a lovely red wine from Portugal this week, from the estimable Taboadella project by the Amorim family in the Dão region. Amorim is one of the giants of cork production in Portugal (and therefore the world). Taboadella is a special site that dates to before 1255, which is the first time there are clear historical records of the place. It was a site for wine production in the Roman era, and is today a 103-acre dry-farmed wine estate that produces a variety of indigenous grapes, including a small parcel of vines over 100 years old. The wine I’m recommending this week from Taboadella is their single-variety Touriga Nacional, which is perfumed, bright, and quite tasty.

Notes on all these wines below.

Tasting Notes

2023 Rhys Vineyards “Mt. Pajaro Vineyard” Chardonnay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Palest gold in the glass, this wine smells of lemon oil, struck flint, wet chalkboard, and pink grapefruit. In the mouth, electric acidity makes flavors of lemon peel, pomelo zest, lemon oil, and a faint piney flavor bright and mouthwatering. There’s a faint chalky texture that accompanies a deep stony quality, which turns ever-so-slightly saline in the finish. Outstanding. 13.3% alcohol. Score: between 9.5 and 10. Cost: $70. click to buy.

2023 Rhys Vineyards “Mt. Pajaro Vineyard” Chenin Blanc, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Pale gold in the glass, this wine smells of pear, pear skin, lanolin, and a hint of ginger. In the mouth, pear, candied ginger, grapefruit, and a touch of pear skin possess bright, juicy acidity and a faint stony quality as notes of ginger skin linger in the very long finish. Silky textured but wonderfully crisp. 13.5% alcohol. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $59. click to buy.

2025 Aperture Cellars “Montage Estate Vineyard” Sauvignon Blanc, Alexander Valley, Sonoma, California
Palest gold in color, this wine smells of gooseberries and candied green apple. In the mouth, passionfruit and green apple mix with just a hint of cut grass as excellent acidity keeps things brisk and bright. That bitter grassy note lingers pleasantly in the finish as the cheeks pucker. 13.9% alcohol. Score: around 9. Cost: $n/a

2024 Adonna “White – Canfield Vineyard” Pinot Noir Blanc, Russian River Valley, Sonoma, California
Light bronze in the glass, this wine smells of Rainer cherries, orange peel, and a hint of unripe apricot. In the mouth, orange peel and unripe apricot flavors mix with pomelo pith and a bright, zingy acidity. Lean and crisp, with a silky texture and nice citrusy finish. Aged for 9 months in neutral French oak. 40 cases made. 11% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $65.

2024 Quinta da Murta “The Wine of Shakespeare” Arinto, Bucelas, Lisboa, Portugal
Pale straw gold in the glass, this wine smells of white flowers, lemon pith, pear, and a hint of grapefruit. In the mouth, pear and grapefruit mix with citrus pith and grapefruit oil. Bright, juicy, and crisp. There’s some sunny warmth here in the finish. Aged on the lees for 12 months in stainless steel. 12.3% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $??

2024 Casa da Passarella Encruzado, Dão, Portugal
Light gold in the glass, this wine smells of white flowers, lemon pith, and pastry cream. In the mouth, pear and pastry cream, white flowers, and citrus pith flavors have a nice acidity and a floral quality that lingers in the finish. 75% fermented in concrete tanks, the rest in new oak. 13% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $??

2023 Quinta do Casal Branco “Falcoaria Vinhas Velhas” Fernão Pires, Tejo, Portugal
Light gold in the glass, this wine smells of citrus pith and unripe apples. In the mouth, tart greenish apples, citrus pith, and wet pavement mix with a nice chalky texture on the palate. Lean and bright. Vines more than 65 years old. Aged 11 months in 30% new French oak. 12% alcohol. Score: around 8.5. Cost: $??

2024 Rui Roboredo Madeira “Beyra Vinhas Velhas” White Blend, Beira Interior, Portugal
Light gold in the glass, this wine smells of white flowers, lemon peel, and a hint of struck flint and green herbs. In the mouth, lime zest and lime juice mix with lemon oil and grapefruit. Stony and bright with a hint of crushed nuts and sweet oak lingering in the finish. A blend of Fonte Cal, Rabo de Ovelha, Síria and others. Aged for 6 months in French oak. 13% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $18. click to buy.

2023 Rhys Vineyards “Mt. Pajaro Vineyard” Pinot Noir, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Medium garnet in the glass, this wine smells of raspberries, cranberries, and a hint of cola. In the mouth, powdery tannins coat the mouth as flavors of raspberries, earth, a touch of soy sauce, and redwood bark move across the palate. Excellent acidity, with a nice foresty depth to the wine. Lovely balance and energy. 14.2% alcohol. Score: between 9 and 9.5. Cost: $79. click to buy.

2023 Aperture Cellars “Montage Estate Vineyard” Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, Sonoma, California
Very dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of black cherries, plums, tobacco, and flowers. In the mouth, fleecy tannins coat the mouth as juicy flavors of black cherry, cherry, and plum mix with dried herbs and a touch of dried flowers. Notes of dried herbs linger in the finish. Excellent acidity. 14.5% alcohol. Overly heavy bottle weighing 1.55 kg when full. Score: around 9. Cost: $n/a

2022 Taboadella Touriga Nacional, Dão, Portugal
Dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of bergamot, black cherry, blackberry, and chopped green herbs with a hint of mintiness. In the mouth, bright and juicy black cherry, blackberry, and black tea flavors mix with citrus peel and dried herbs. Fine-grained fleecy tannins coat the mouth and stiffen slightly with time. Notes of black tea and earth linger in the finish with a hint of sweet oak. Excellent acidity. Aged in French oak for 10 months, 20% of it new, 80% of it second use, larger format barrels. 13.5% alcohol. Score: between 8.5 and 9. Cost: $28. click to buy.