The Continuum Napa Valley Sage Mountain Vineyard 2018 was our top U.S. red wine of 2021, finishing second on our Top 100 list. (Photo by JamesSuckling.com)
Over the last 12 months we rated more than 4,500 American wines across six states on the Eastern Seaboard and West Coast, covering multiple regions and countless terroirs. They all confirmed one thing: modern U.S. wines have never shown better, coast to coast.
Our Top American wine of 2021 is Aubert Chardonnay Napa Valley Sugar Shack Estate Vineyard 2019. This is the second year in a row we have named a chardonnay as the top U.S. wine, which reinforces our belief that chardonnay is the most exciting grape in America, from California to Oregon to Virginia’s Shenandoah. Cabernet sauvignon and pinot make incredible wines, but they’re both focused mostly on the West Coast. Great chardonnay can be made just about anywhere in America, and more and more are being bottled.
You may remember Sugar Shack being our No. 2 pick in 2020, but this year it made the great leap forward into the top spot. Mark Aubert has crafted a perfect example of what is possible with patience, great fruit, and thoughtful winemaking, all expressed to the highest degree. “Precision in viticulture and winemaking lets us do everything at just the right time,” Aubert explained during our sit-down tasting with him in October.
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There are no compromises in Aubert’s winemaking process. The wines are exactly as he envisions them to be, and this year, Sugar Shack goes above and beyond. From unparalleled wood management to ripeness levels to acidity, Aubert dialed in exactly the best of his terroir and style. At just $100 a bottle, it’s hard to imagine a better value.
Beyond our top wine of 2021, this year’s list really highlights the greatness of the 2018 vintage in Napa Valley. If you love the wines of the most famous American wine region, you won’t want to miss adding some of the best 2018 reds to your cellar. It is perhaps the greatest modern vintage, offering reds of unprecedented balance, harmony and structure.
Yes, the 2016s showcase structure, and the 2013s richness, yet the complexity and energy in the best 2018’s are really something special. Winemakers are prioritizing a lively and harmonious style that simultaneously looks to the future of the region and reflects parts of the rich history of the most famous AVA in the United States. Many of the standouts remind James of Napa’s greatest wines from the 1960s and 70s.
Our top red wine of 2021 is Continuum Napa Valley Sage Mountain Vineyard 2018. James feels it exemplifies everything we adore about the 2018 vintage. There is so much depth, complexity and pure excitement, all coming together in a balanced and succinct package.
Continuum continues to wow us year after year – the 2016 Continuum was our U.S. Wine of the Year in 2019. This producer has shown that it is now a touchstone for greatness in Napa Valley, and its 2018s illustrate this brilliantly. Plus, it’s from the family that arguably put Napa on the map, the Mondavis. Tim Mondavi and his daughters constantly set the standard for fine winemaking in the valley.
Sonoma County is another top AVA that is seeing unparalleled success in its world-class pinot noir and chardonnay. On the West Coast, cool growing conditions, a trend toward lower intervention and spot-on wood management are yielding some of the most elegant and exemplary pinot noirs and chardonnay you can find anywhere. Many of these will redefine your image of California wines.
2018 CONTINUUM: James chats with Tim and Carissa Mondavi on JamesSuckling.com’s top U.S. red wine in 2021.
STELLAR PINOT: Tom Gerrie of Cristom discusses with Associate Editor Claire Nesbitt how Oregon has put pinot noir on the winemaking map.
SONOMA, OREGON AND WASHINGTON
While 2018 is a clear standout for Napa, in Sonoma the differences between 2018 and 2019 are more a question of inherent attributes rather than quality. 2018 shows incredible concentration and power due to the warm, steady growing season, while 2019 shows more delicacy and nuance given overall cooler weather. RAEN Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Fort Ross-Seaview Sea Field Vineyard 2019 and Littorai Pinot Noir Sonoma County Sonoma Coast The Haven Vineyard 2019 are certainly lovely examples of the phenomenal quality that pinot noir can be taken to in Sonoma Coast, as well as the overall charm and finesse of the 2019 vintage. Needless to say they both make us excited for the future of the AVA. Expect to see more of our thoughts on the matter in an upcoming report on Sonoma wines.
This upward trajectory is clear across Oregon and Washington AVAs too, with Cristom Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Jessie Vineyard 2018 being given the No. 9 slot. Coming in at $65 a bottle, it is almost impossible to find a terroir-driven wine made to such high standards for a better price.
“People are not quite as daring or willing to take a risk as we are,” Tom Gerrie, the owner and winemaker of Cristom, said in explaining how they use knowledge of old-world techniques while remaining totally attuned to the time and place they are in and that dedication to their locale and personal style shows.
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Not only has Oregon at large shown it is one of the world’s great pinot noir producing regions, but stellar chardonnays soon may be just as synonymous with the state, with names like 00 Wines and Bergstrom helping lead the charge. Oregon was once known for pinot gris as the white of choice, but folks like Cristom have now long since grafted over to Chardonnay because of the exciting natural proclivity it has for excellence, particularly in the Willamette Valley.
Looking northward to Washington, their fantastic cabernet sauvignons are well documented and many appear on this year’s Top 100, but we have never seen such exciting syrahs being offered before. Christophe Baron of Cayuse Vineyards said regarding the bright future of syrah in Washington State: “It [syrah] wants to take terroir and turn it into wine… it breathes place.” We agree. Many top producers are listening closely to their land and letting the weather, the grape and the climate dictate the wine they end up creating. The results are wines with more purity of fruit and earnest energy, such as K Vintners Syrah Yakima Valley Motor City Kitty 2018, which expresses all of these traits and more. At $35, it’s also a bonafide steal.
Over on the East Coast, 2019 and 2020 tended to be great years, allowing producers in Virginia and New York’s Finger Lakes and Long Island to make deliciously balanced wines. These are regions that have made huge headway – and so many wonderful wines – in the last decade, as we have reported. Early Mountain Chardonnay Virginia Quaker Run Vineyard 2019 is the only East Coast wine on our Top 100 U.S. list this year. But lately we’ve tasted so many beautiful wines from New York’s Finger Lakes and other east coast regions, as well as from Texas and the Southwest, as we have detailed in recent reports. We are so bullish on the growing quality and focused winemaking beyond the West Coast that we are significantly expanding our tasting coverage of this in 2022.
American wine is an exciting story, and it is getting even better every vintage.
– Nathan Slone, Associate Editor
The list of wines below is comprised of bottles tasted and rated in 2021 by the tasters at JamesSuckling.com. You can sort the wines below by vintage, score and alphabetically by winery name. You can also search for specific wines in the search bar.
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