Battle of the $50 California Wines

Because $50 is the new $30, or because I’m now a snob, I’ve been thinking about clearing out the cheaper cellar defenders I’ve bought up over the years and replacing them with wines that wow me ever time. Not wines that are “oh, that’s pretty good for $25” but wines that are "holy crap, that’s amazing for $50.

What are the $40-$60 California wines that blow your mind rather consistently? Vintage not important, because we want consistency. All varietals fair game. Big or small, whatever your tastes.

Here are a few that are at the top of my list:

Chappellet Signature Cabernet ($55 – $46 or so with wine club)

Myriad Napa Valley Cabernet ($55) – drinking this one as I type. 2013. Amazing.

Mending Wall Petite Syrah ($55)

Outpost Zinfandel ($50)

Looking forward to your lists!

Ridge Estate Cab fits right in there.

Arnot-Roberts Clary Ranch Syrah

Turley zins always hit for the $$ for me. Herman Story is another winery ($40ish/btl) that is always on for my palate.

Yep
Copain Baker too

Vincent Arroyo’s Petite Sirahs.

Ridge estate cab. I think 50% of my wb posts say ridge and 50% of those say estate cab.

It also has the huge benefit that it actually exists and stands a fair chance of being delivered.

Drifting a bit but I just had a bottle of 2010 Sociando Mallet last night, next to a 2012 Napanook can, and it nearly made me want to abandon California entirely for Bordeaux…

MacLaren “Atoosa” Syrah

I concur.

Black Sears zin - Replaced Outpost as “greatest zin made in California from Napa fruit (so as not to insult Carlisle”

Becklyn Cabernet - $60 from the guy who gets 100 points for Myriad

Ceritas Chardonnay

Benovia pinot and chardonnay - way under the radar here.

shhhhhhhh.

I feel like the wind gap Syrah and chard punch well above their weights too. Not killer value in global terms but defo for California.

Lillian Syrah (CC pricing)

Most of the best Zinfandel from the greatest vineyards are in the $38-$50 range. Some less. Carlisle, Bedrock, Turley, Scherrer (less) Ridge, Ravenswood, Biale, Limerick Lane, Radio Coteau, etc.

I so love this Chateau. Any notes for us? I have the 2010 but buried.

Dehlinger Claret. Delightful and elegant RRV Cab.

Laurel Glen Cab. Otherwise this is a country/price combo I try to avoid. Not saying there are not good candidates, but $50 USD gets you some very fine juice from other locations around the globe as others have mentioned.

Nicora: GSM, Grenache and Syrah. High $40’s.
They also do a Rousanne, Viogner blend that’s very good as well.

Benoit’s Teeter Totter