Allison Lyzenga

8.9

Deep ruby/purple; pronounced intensity aromas of blueberry jam, dried black plum, juicy blackberry, vanilla, cream, toast; dry, medium acid, medium ripe tannins, high alcohol, full body, pronounced intensity flavors consistent with aromas; a big jammy wine but well balanced with structure and oak, very hot — 5 years ago

Allison Lyzenga

9.2

Medium pink; medium plus intensity aromas of ripe strawberries, raspberry, red currant, mushroom, forest floor, limestone mineral; dry, medium acid, high alcohol, full body, medium plus intensity flavors consistent with aromas; long finish, ripe red fruit and funky earthy perfume fills palate, big wine but well balanced, outstanding — 6 years ago

Tobin Trevarthen

9.3

Goldenrod in color. Honeyed cantaloupe. Velvety. Big bold flavors. Oh my. — 7 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.0

Oh my give it 5 more years y’all — 7 years ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.0

Clearly more weight than the 2016 Helluva. 14%. Drinkable right now too. I don’t think these wines need to be aged. More purple than the Helluva. Quite rich and spicy. More CA in style. Mostly dark fruit. — 7 years ago

Randy Fuller

9.4

Aged for 16 months in 25% new oak barrels, this wine displays all the right notes of that exposure and is not overblown. Only three barrels of this wine were made - some 60 barrels - and it hits 12.9% abv. It is praised as an elegant wine, the kind Pinot Noir lovers love to love. Medium dark, this medium weight wine shows a nose of cola, black tea, orange peel and spices. The palate is smooth and almost silky. The tannins are just enough and the acidity is perfect. Tart berries, tea notes and spice flavors all play in harmony. The wine is smooth without laying down, exciting without being boorish. — 8 years ago

Tree Kilpatrick

9.7

Everything I love in Amador Zin. Fruit is beyond the standard berry jam of some. Tastes of Marion berries and Bing cherry. Chewy and zingy too. Nice stuff. — 10 years ago

Dawn Beatty

9.3

Dinner on the waterfront. — 11 years ago

with Kayode

Chip Forsythe

10

The story on the back is what sold me, and the wine is amazing! — 11 years ago

Aaron Means

9.5

A great wine should have a great story and "The Black Chicken" has both. Superb Zin, one of the top Bottlings of Zin in America. — 11 years ago

J Chechik

9.3

Besides having a great, cool label - Herman Story wines are so spectacular. This is not your standard “red blend” & the Tempranillo/Petit Verdot give a great complexity. Easily paired w/ a huge range of food. — 5 years ago

Turd Ferguson

8.9

Considerably better with a few years on it. Spatlese level sugar with nice acid and decent complexity. Green apples. — 6 years ago

Parker Campanella

9.7

Light gold color. Best viognier I’ve ever had. Strong nectarine, honey, and buttered toast on the scent. Taste is tangy melon, followed by floral and earthy mineral notes, with a surprisingly spicy finish. So complicated. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.2

Today was my annual hosting of the Wednesday Wine Committee. There was 1 sparkler, 3 whites, 4 reds and 1 dessert, all provided by me. Tasted blind, as always.

I served this blind as the first red out of four in a flight of all cab francs. Every person in the room guessed Pinot based on color, and it’s hard to disagree. Certainly more translucent in color compared to most dark Cab francs. Chinon like and as far as the style of the wine itself, I think it’s also Chinon at its core with just a touch of new world flare. Not sure I’ve had such a floral cab franc. Lavender and rhubarb and the finish did a great job of requiring you to get another sip to analyze. Nice complexity. Nothing vegetal or green about this. One of the lightest cab francs I’ve had, and pairs well with lighter style meats. — 7 years ago

with Dan, Andrew and 3 others

Jake Rubash

9.4

This might be my favorite Grenache to date! Such a complete wine. 1hr decant — 8 years ago

Sarah Stierch

Food & Wine Editor Sonoma Valley Sun

9.6

Best rose of the year — 10 years ago

Dorrie Wortley

9.0

Great wine at a good price, and enjoyed the story, so much that I'ld like to see what the 18 other crimes are. — 10 years ago

with Jayme

Michael Herzog

9.0

Dense. Great with a ribeye. Fruit explosion... — 11 years ago

Terral Graybill

9.5

Good love the story of the name, — 11 years ago

Jim McCusker

9.2

From Russell From of Herman Story. Love his wines. This is one we probably should have had a year or two ago. Still really good, but a lot of the vibrancy that makes grenache so spectacular has largely fallen away. — 5 years ago

with Vanessa

Frank Heinz

9.4

Linda Rudolph brought this to us from South Africa — 6 years ago

Kirk F

9.2

A richly textured wine aging gracefully. A slathering of almond, honeysuckle and tropical flavors coat the palate entirely. Still so delicious! — 7 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.4

A powerhouse - always delivers. Open/decant well in advance. — 7 years ago

Ben Edwards

9.2

A replacement for the Pairing as a Marry Edwards regular bottle. Definitely sharper and less pronounced stone fruit, but nicely balanced and went well with all dinner courses. Bottles went too fast to see how they opened, so questionable still as a stand-alone (probably great); high marks for elevating the usual crisp white wine dishes. — 8 years ago

Eric Naslund

9.4

High alcohol yes but spectacular. Is it possible to be robust and delicate at once? Russel Fromme proves yes! — 10 years ago

Ross Cobb

Owner/Winemaker Cobb Wines, Winemaker Hirsch Vineyards, Claypool Cellars, Banshee Wines

9.0

Still fresh and tasty — 10 years ago

Alison Story

TexaCali Ali - Owner of www.texacaliwine.com & Co-Owner of the upcoming www.smithstorywinecellars.com

9.0

steady complexity after 5 months in bottle, on the brighter side of the Chardonnay wheel for sure. — 10 years ago

Pablo Kovacs

9.0

Love this wine, love the story more. — 11 years ago

Martí Rogalski

9.0

Cheesy scent, delicate taste, not too@sulohuric — 11 years ago

Greg Ovalle

9.6

This vineyard had their entire crop destroyed by hail so 35+ local vineyards all chipped in and contributed grapes for this vintage -- great story and great dry rose — 13 years ago