Frog’s Leap rarely submits wines for review and has, for the most part, abstained from using third party accolades to convince others of our value. And while the sales team laments this position, our winemakers tend to stand firm on their position — well aware that the pursuit of ratings has been known to result in subtle (and not so subtle) shifts in winemaking styles. When asked directly, John wrote this, “To my mind, if you are so concerned about what a critic might say about your wine you are not totally free to make it the way you feel is fit — I’ve seen it happen. A winemaker gets a glowing review and gets addicted to that glow and feels compelled to repeat what cannot be repeated.”
So when we recently enjoyed a spate of excellent reviews from highly regarded wine critic, Antonio Galloni (as well as being the only domestic wine in the top five of the Vinous Top 100 Wines of 2025) it was both extremely gratifying, and honestly a little nerve-wracking. Our goal is always to make the wines we wish to make (hence our deep commitment to Merlot) and hope that people enjoy them. But ultimately we’d be fibbing if we didn’t acknowledge that it felt damn good to be seen and respected for what we value in winemaking. The Vinous reviews provided beautiful descriptions of the wines, accurate information about how they were made, and ultimately extremely flattering numbers any winemaker would be proud to share — and so we have, here.
