Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant 2023

Bonny Doon has been making the case for Rhône varieties on California's Central Coast longer than most, and this biodynamically farmed 2023, Grenache-led at 69%, with Syrah, Cinsault, and a whisper of Petite Sirah, shows why. Wild strawberry and rhubarb up front, black pepper and tobacco underneath, all of it held together by genuinely beautiful structure rather than weight. At 14.5% it's expressive without being loud: Rhône blends don't have to come from the Rhône to make sense.