The Secret Wine Project You Loved is Back for Round II and Better Than Ever

2024 Anonymous Wine Collective Russian River Valley Chardonnay (Elsewhere $75) ($21.95)

Ryan Woodhouse | K&L Domestic Wine Buyer

I'm thrilled with how the 2024 Anonymous Russian River Chardonnay came together. I feel very fortunate to have built relationships that get us access to wine of this pedigree and quality. The wine even at this young stage has incredible balance and nuance. The crystalline orchard fruit is interwoven with saline minerals, floral lift, and a perfect little hint of struct flint. You can feel the old Wente clone's power and exotic fruit, but also vibrant acidity and freshness. A classy, subtle oak framing completes the wine that will only improve for the next several years and will age for 6-8 with ease...probably more. I can't give too much away, but this was made by a truly iconic producer in this region, sourced from two very well-known vineyards, and is world-class in every sense. This wine would cost you anywhere from $65-$90 a bottle under its typical label! This will go fast.

Aaron Hughes | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

This is our second round of these Anonymous Wine Collective offerings, and honestly I'm super psyched for these. Last time the wines were great, they sold amazingly, and I heard a lot of really incorrect guesses for what they were, it was great all around. This time however, our Domestic Buyer Extraordinaire, Ryan Woodhouse, was much more involved in the actual process of putting these wines together into what you've been presented. This Chardonnay is nothing less than amazing, the nose is really pretty with white flowers surrounded by a very classic sweet green apple and lemon, with a backbone of softly toasted oak and oak spice. The palate, however, is where it really shines. There's this amazing mouthfeel that's lush and opulent and just tastes expensive. More of the same sort of more crunchy green apple, lemon, and more of that toasty oak but with nary a smidge of butter to be tasted, instead there's a really nice line of acidity brushing through the whole thing. This is absolutely amazing and if these are the quality of wine that we're going to be offering through the Anonymous Wine Collective, just wow color me super impressed.

Mariah Mier | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

Our Anonymous line is back again with even more extraordinary offerings! This chardonnay is an absolute steal for this price and is currently bursting with fresh, bright and youthful aromas against a rich, creamy palate with focused acidity. This will only keep getting better in the cellar and will certainly age beautifully.

K&L Notes: The 2024 Anonymous Russian River Chardonnay was made for us by one of the most highly regarded and critically acclaimed winemakers in the country. The wine comes from two highly renowned vineyards in two different sub-regions of the Russian River. One vineyard is out near the small town of Occidental. The mature vines are grown in very powdery, moondust-like Goldridge soils. This vineyard is one of the most highly acclaimed in the region. The second portion of the blend is from a vineyard in the hills above the famed Westside Road,where a who's who of the most famous estates in the region are located. Here the soils are more gravelly with some volcanic elements intermixed with the coarse loam. Fruit was carefully hand-picked at night. Whole-cluster pressed, fermented with native yeast in French oak barrels (25% new), and rested on its lees for 10 months.

2024 Anonymous Wine Collective Russian River Valley Pinot Noir (Elsewhere $90) ($24.95)

Ryan Woodhouse | K&L Domestic Wine Buyer

The 2024 Anonymous Russian River Valley Pinot Noir was actually a very happy coincidence that came about because of the Chardonnay. While visiting the winery looking at potential blends for the Anonymous Chardonnay, a conversation came up about a parcel of Pinot Noir that was also available. A few barrel samples later I was all-in on the Pinot Noir in addition to the Chardonnay that was the original impetus for the collaboration. This Pinot is simply stunning. Again, even as a brand new, recently bottled wine, it is absolutely explosive aromatically. Redolent with ripe forest berries, dried floral notes, baking spice, maraschino cherry, and warm earth notes. Plush in texture with silky fine tannins. Great lift and freshness with lots of length on the palate, a hallmark of these old heritage clones of Pinot Noir. This is a benchmark expression of the famed Westside Road sub-region of Russian River. The power of our Anonymous label to deliver unbeatable value is on full display here. The exact same fruit that's in this bottle is currently selling under a different label for $120 a bottle. Other blends of this vineyard site and neighboring blocks are consistently over $90. 

Aaron Hughes | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

Another member of our second round of Anonymous Wine Collective, and wow what another stunner we have here. The nose on this wine is so incredibly gorgeous, there's lots of lovely rose petals, dusty pie cherry, and cranberry. The palate is light and lithe, but with a really pretty depth of fruit. This is super pretty and classic, lots of lush and sweet cherry on this and nothing very crunchy but really nice and pleasant. This has depth and structure and it's still incredibly young, with time this is going to deepen even further. The first set of wines we had, were fully ready to go and bottle when we acquired them, but with this batch our Domestic Guv'nor, Ryan Woodhouse, really outdid himself by having a hand in the putting together of the final product and then having that bottled - these are all extraordinary wines that outperform their price point by crazy amounts.

Mariah Mier | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

2024 has been shaping up to be a superb vintage for Russian River and this pinot noir is no exception. The lush profile of the fruit is balanced by a savory, spicy backdrop of incredible depth. This lovely wine will continue to gain complexity in the cellar, if you can wait that long!

2023 Anonymous Wine Collective "Hillside Block 92" Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon (Elsewhere $150) ($49.95)

Ryan Woodhouse | K&L Domestic Wine Buyer

I’ve dreamed of making this wine ever since I first walked this vineyard several years ago. The vineyard is truly one of the most dramatic and singular sites in the Napa Valley. High in the eastern Oakville hills, this vineyard is incredibly steep with radically rocky soils. The 2023 Anonymous "Hillside Block 92" Oakville Cab is a singular wine that really shows the qualities of the site and character of the vintage.

It’s sourced from a single, incredibly steep hillside parcel of vines with some of the most radically rocky soils I've ever seen in any vineyard on the planet. Frankly, this site looks almost too difficult to farm. The vines struggle almost as much as the folks who have to farm it entirely by hand! It's easy to imagine the roots snaking around pure basalt boulders on their way down into the red volcanic loam. It boasts a panoramic view across the Oakville Valley floor, several hundred feet below—this west-facing terrace is among many of the most famed vineyards in all of Napa, having produced several 100-point wines. Directly above, heading up the mountain, sits Pritchard Hill and many more iconic estates.

From a site like this you might expect pure, unbridled power and richness; however, the cool and moderate 2023 vintage allowed the fruit here to remain nicely balanced. The wine was also raised entirely in four 500L French oak puncheon casks. These double-size barrels impart less oak flavor and allow less oxygen to breathe through the extra-thick oak staves. The result is a wine that's quite linear and fresh.

Given that the wine hails from the eastern Oakville hills, it's actually quite a Bordeaux-like expression of Cabernet with floral violet notes, bright fruit, a fine but grippy tannin structure, subtle barrel spice, and lots of graphite and volcanic mineral tinges.

Having tasted the individual components and composite blend from barrel and now the finished wine, I do believe that in a few weeks to a few months the wine will fill out a little more in the mid-palate and show more density of fruit. It certainly loves a good 2–3 hour decant if you're drinking it right away to allow the wine to gain volume in the glass.

Ideally, give this wine a couple of months to round out in bottle (there's no rush) and enjoy anytime over the next 10–15 years. The winery's own bottling from this vineyard sells for $150+.

Aaron Hughes | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

While it was just a touch muted when it was first opened, a couple hours later boy does this bottle of our new Anonymous Wine Collective Cabernet Sauvignon absolutely sing out in the glass. There's so much going on in the nose, a really dense and intense bramble-fruit coulis, black cherry compote, freshly cut fennel, a high toned sort of volcanic minerality and then lots of violets and a touch of hyacinth. The palate is rich and full, with surprisingly fine and integrated tannins, this is some really A++ winemaking to make something this rich this approachable already. There's a good amount of structure, with dark fruit, and a really nice kind of leathery savory note in the middle keeping it from being just too much. Thank you, Mr. Woodhouse for bringing this wine to us, I owe you a beer if you notice this and mention it.

Mariah Mier | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: July 15, 2025

Fans of Oakville are sure to love the unmistakably bold-styled cab. A foundation of blue and black fruit with touches of graphite, sandalwood, and clove. Don't miss the chance of adding this gem to your cellar!