The Wine Advocate – October 2025
October 2025
2022 Rattlesnake Rock Syrah (Estate) 95 points
2022 Coastview Vineyard Terraces Syrah 96 points
2022 Sixty-Two Terraces Syrah (Estate) 93 points
2021 Grizzly Grenache (Estate) 96 points
2023 Rodnick.farm Vineyard Pinot Noir 95+ points
2023 Ascona Vineyard Pinot Noir 94 points
2023 Lester Family Vineyard Pinot Noir 93 points
2023 Coastview Vineyard Pinot Noir 93+ points
2023 Rodnick.farm Vineyard Old Vine Mourvedre 93+ points
2023 Wirz Vineyard Old Vine Carignan 93 points
2022 Gabilan Mountains GSM 93 points
2022 Odeon Cabernet Sauvignon 92 points
2023 Old Corral Pinot Noir (Estate) 92+ points
2022 Homestead Block Roussanne (Estate) 92 points
2022 East Terraces Viognier (Estate) 90 points
2023 Rodnick.farm Vineyard Chenin Blanc 91 points
2022 Coastview Vineyard Chardonnay 92 points
Proprietor Bradley Brown and winemaker Blake Yarger have again crafted an extensive and remarkably consistent lineup that highlights some of California’s most remote and highest-altitude vineyards, particularly from the Santa Cruz Mountains, the upper reaches of Monterey County and San Benito. The lineup emphasizes the use of vertical pressing, whole-cluster fermentations and extended élevage, which significantly helps in achieving more successful integration than many producers who strictly retain high proportions of stems. Both Brown and Yarger note that a recent refinement in the bottling process has resulted in less shutdown immediately afterward—although it’s fair to say these wines still benefit from a few years of patience in the cellar.
This overview highlights the contrasting 2022 and 2023 vintages. The 2022 vintage was primarily affected by heat and inconsistency, with a major frost early in the season that significantly lowered yields in Monterey County. This was followed by a drought season with warm but not overly hot summer conditions. The 10-day Labor Day heat waves caused heat shock and halted ripening, but cooler temperatures extended hang time, enhancing the complexity and depth of the Rhône variety wines featured here. In contrast, the 2023 vintage experienced a long, mild growing season with the most abundant rainfall in a decade, resulting in wines with intense, soaring, floral aromatics and focused, fine-grained characteristics that beautifully complement the energy and vibrancy that define the entire range.
A solid array of white wines sets the stage for a stunning selection of Pinot Noirs from the coastal, Corralitos side of Santa Cruz, including one of its most sought-after sources, Ascona. These are brilliantly contrasted by two lively, mineral-driven bottlings from the Gabilan Mountains’ Coastview and Rodnick Farm, with the latter standing out this year for its spry tenacity and weightless depth. While the Pinot Noir selection is impressive, Big Basin’s signature is undeniably its Rhône varieties, led by the beautiful 2021 Grizzly Grenache, which follows the typical extended bottling period compared to the Syrah lineup. As always, the Rattlesnake Rock and Sixty-Two Terraces bottlings showcase estate vines that are among the most representative of the region, although this year, the standout Syrah is the stunning Coastview Terraces bottling.
2022 RATTLESNAKE ROCK SYRAH
The 2022 Syrah Rattlesnake Rock is a fantastic expression of California Syrah, opening with an immediately dazzling, Côte-Rôtie-esque bouquet of cracked pepper, rosemary, lavender and visceral accents of purple flowers, all set against a core of red and black fruits. The palate strikes a perfect midpoint between enveloping generosity and compact concentration, seamlessly transitioning into an immensely satisfying finish propelled by fine-grained tannins and myriad savory undertones. I look forward to seeing this evolve in bottle.
2022 COASTVIEW VINEYARD TERRACES SYRAH
The 2022 Syrah Coastview Vineyard Terraces offers up the most inky concentration yet balances it with a remarkably spry texture that elevates it to among the top wines of the impressive Big Basin portfolio. It introduces itself with an intense, lifted and focused bouquet of black and blue fruits, black olives and dried spices, juxtaposing the more floral aromatic profile of the Rattlesnake Rock bottling. The palate combines immense richness with equal measure of focus, concluding with a detailed, intense and impeccably balanced finish that lingers with chewy yet measured tannins. This more than merits some additional time in the cellar and should age effortlessly into its second decade.
2022 SIXTY-TWO TERRACES SYRAH
Aromas of charcoal, white pepper and olive brine mark the 2022 Syrah Sixty-Two Terraces, followed by a rich, sumptuous yet contained palate. It finishes with a dark, staining finish loaded with savory flavors and fine-grained tannins. It’s a beautiful and consistent example of what readers can expect from the stellar roster of Big Basin Syrahs.
2021 GRIZZLY GRENACHE
Just being released after the typical additional year of bottle aging, the 2021 Grenache Grizzly is expressive from the start, with gorgeous aromas of sweet and sour, dried strawberry, balsam, anise and violets. On the palate, it combines a sleek, seamless texture with weightless concentration and a sappy core, transitioning into an explosive, high-toned finish framed by refined tannins, searing minerality and retronasal herbal and floral complexity. This is a highlight of the Big Basin roster and gives a confident nod to the style of Commando G and Château Rayas.
2023 RODNICK.FARM VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
A clear standout in the Big Basin roster, the 2023 Pinot Noir Rodnick Farm Vineyard is the most aromatically complex Pinot Noir of the range, combining a mix of red and black fruits, dried herbs, citrus rinds, underbrush and lifted floral top notes with increasing harmony and volume. The palate is dense, supple and compact yet retains the silky precision characteristic of the roster, culminating in an intense, glacial and multidimensional finish that combines immense saturation, weightless concentration, a driving mineral presence and an additional round of gorgeous floral tones. This stunning wine deserves another year or two in bottle, and it should evolve well past its first decade.
2023 ASCONA VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
The 2023 Pinot Noir Ascona Vineyard presents an alluring, floral bouquet and a slightly darker fruit profile compared to the other Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir offerings from Big Basin. The palate is supple and deftly concentrated, anchored with a firm, tensile core that releases to a grippy, expansive finish that continues to blossom and gain mineral drive with aeration. I suspect this will be among the longest-lived of the Big Basin Pinot Noirs, and I look forward to following its development.
2023 LESTER FAMILY VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
Beaming, bright and poised throughout, the 2021 Pinot Noir Lester Family Vineyard is a textbook example of this Corralitos site. Citrus-tinged red fruits intermingle with forest floor and dried flower notes on the nose, leading to a silky, spry and precise palate with a lifted, cleansing finish. It was fermented with 100% whole cluster and aged in barrel for 18 months, a combination that seems to particularly suit this site. This should be a beautiful wine to watch over the next 7-8 years, if not longer.
2023 COASTVIEW VINEYARD PINOT NOIR
The 2023 Pinot Noir Coastview Vineyard opens with aromas of red and blue fruits accented by anise and mushroom, followed by a delicious, vibrant palate that blends juicy succulence with a firm, structured core. The finish is long and layered, emphasizing a mineral-driven energy that lingers with floral notes and savory undertones
2023 RODNICK.FARM VINEYARD OLD VINE MOURVEDRE
Always one of the more singular wines in the extensive Big Basin roster, the 2023 Mourvèdre Old Vine Rodnick Farm Vineyard combines a red and black fruited core with herbal, bramble and leathery flourishes, all delivered with a comparatively nimble touch relative to many examples of the variety in California. The palate echoes with a plush, enveloping texture buttressed by a remarkably sturdy, upright core before closing with a soaring, mineral-focused finish and a pleasantly charred undercurrent.
2023 WIRZ VINEYARD OLD VINE CARIGNAN
The 2023 Carignan Old Vine Wirz Vineyard leads with an even-keeled, dark-fruited bouquet with licorice, cardamom and a touch of tobacco. The palate strikes a midpoint between plush generosity and spry energy, culminating in a lively, juicy finish underpinned by gentle yet persistent tannins, savory flavors and a sturdy core of mineral notes—a delicious combination of quenching accessibility and understated tenacity.
2022 GABILAN MOUNTAINS GSM
The 2022 GSM Gabilan Mountains is a beautiful representation of the style at Big Basin, which puts equal focus on soaring aromatics, purity of fruit and assertive yet elegant structure. A harmonious nose of dark fruits, meaty flourishes, dried herbs and purple flowers is followed by a medium-bodied, seamless palate and a long finish that combines lush fruits and mineral presence. This is a blend of 57% Grenache, 32% Syrah and 11% Mourvèdre.
2022 ODEON CABERNET SAUVIGNON
Following the previous vintage’s exclusive composition of Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2022 Odeon (Syrah / Cabernet) returns to its classic blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon from Betchart Vineyard and 38% Syrah from Rattlesnake Rock Vineyard. It opens with a lush, powerful nose of black fruits, dried herbs and graphite, set against a woodsy backdrop. This is followed by a voluptuous, intensely concentrated palate and a similarly decadent, luscious finish that showcases an impressive degree of finesse. It’s a seductive and delicious wine, though it stands out as an outlier in the otherwise slender and mineral-driven Big Basin roster.
2023 OLD CORRAL PINOT NOIR
A more savory and spice-driven bouquet introduces the 2023 Pinot Noir Old Corral, followed by an elegantly concentrated palate that retains the silky, spry energy that permeates the Big Basin lineup. It finishes with the deciduous firm, mountainous structure endemic to this site, compounded in a noticeable but balanced way by the retention of whole clusters. This will benefit from a bit of time in bottle to further congeal, and it should drink beautifully through its 10th birthday.
2022 HOMESTEAD BLOCK ROUSSANNE
The 2022 Roussanne Homestead Block leads with a powerful, crystalline bouquet of chamomile, jasmine, peach and cured meat, followed by a satiny, seamless palate. It finishes with a balanced, uncommonly bright and tangy finish, enlivened by a faint but persistent undertone of minerality.
2022 EAST TERRACES VIOGNIER
The 2023 Viognier East Terraces opens with a nuanced bouquet that makes for an atypical expression of the variety, gradually unfolding an exotic, floral character that remains admirably restrained. The palate captures the textural weight and opulence of the variety, concluding with a balanced and composed finish.
2023 RODNICK.FARM VINEYARD CHENIN BLANC
The 2023 Chenin Blanc Rodnick Farm Vineyard is quite aromatic and lifted this year, with aromas of dried white flowers, beeswax, crushed stone and nectarine notes emanating from the glass. The palate is svelte, slender and focused, concluding with a high-toned finish that lingers with the region’s characteristic mineral clarity.
2022 COASTVIEW VINEYARD CHARDONNAY
The 2022 Chardonnay Coastview Vineyard beautifully combines airy, floral notes with a round, orchard and stone-fruited backdrop, developing dried spice and accents with aeration. The plate is ample, polished and a touch oily, concluding with a saturated finish that retains vibrancy and focus.