Last year, on our 15th anniversary, we participated in our first SoCoBA, the prestigious Sonoma County Barrel Auction, held annually for select members of the trade. We won a couple of AWESOME lots and the first of those came and went FAST last February. We had to wait MONTHS for this next one as it’s the kind of BIG WINE that needs TIME.

Leaving no stone unturned, and no drop untasted, we had sleuthed each and every lot. Alas, we uncovered not just the best-tasting ones to snatch up, but also those that ended up delivering the best value, too. As unique as they come, our winnings showcase the absolute best that Sonoma can grow and make. North Bay Business Journal reported that “the auction featured special one-time lots to entice buyers, some of whom represented international markets from Nordic countries, as well as Asia” which turned the competition up a few notches…”* Among those was Carol Shelton’s collaboration with Steve Heller.

We really don’t have the space here to list all Carol Shelton’s accolades. She’s a true legend. A few noteworthy ones include The André Tchelistcheff Award in 1993, Winemaker of the Year by Press Democrat in 1999, San Francisco Chronicle in 2005, and NorthBay biz in 2022 and 2023. “A winemaker since 1978…” expounds Wine Industry Advisor “…Shelton is well known in the industry as a maker of world-class single-vineyard Zinfandels as well as a variety of other exceptional wines…”

And H•L•R Cellars as collaborator, lest we forget! This tiny little youthful boutique winery sits atop Diamond Mountain and contributed by growing the dominant awesomeness of Petit Verdot in the blend that comes from a plot contiguous to the winery falling on the Sonoma side of the mountain, the newer and hot Fountaingrove District to be exact. Attaining optimal ripeness above the clouds is obviously not an issue for this otherwise hard to work with yet awarding as can be varietal.

Not Too Petite? Could have easily named it Godzilla! Yet in all its sheer immensity, this wine somehow is elegant and graceful (Shelton, hello?) with sweet and savory in exquisite balance like a tightrope walker. The YUM FACTOR is thru the roof of our palates, while the depth and complexity are PhD theses on their own. The $200 estimate for the intrinsic value here falls conservative, it’s sublime stuff. We thought of opening a second, and third bottles to MAKE SURE it’s the best Petit/Petite blend we’ve ever had… hard brakes had to be applied to hold ourselves back.

Oh, lastly, only 5 cases made (minus a bottle we had to drink one to write this, sorry!)

Hope you make it to checkout fast enough…