How do you pique the interest of a Master Sommelier? A well-priced Bordeaux blend from California is a great start, but when the back label reveals a single-vineyard source and states “made with minimal intervention to let the vines, soil, and weather speak through,” you’ve got my undivided attention.

When I first moved to California over a decade ago, I had a lot of preconceived notions that turned out to be fantastically wrong: My image of California wine country was that of a rich-guy playground full of “luxury brands,” but discovering authentic, small-batch labels like Thee & Thou quickly changed my tune. They’re among the swiftly growing, buzzed-about cohort of natural/natural-leaning producers and their “minimalist” approach proves it: You won’t find commercial yeasts or enzymes, nor a whiff of new oak, in John Donaghue’s wines—and as for fining and filtering, the thought would never cross his mind. What John’s doing here is not groundbreaking, but the results most certainly are. Today’s 2019 Cabernet-Merlot blend has already evolved into an exceptionally pure, lifted, invitingly juicy red without any “natty” defects. “Dévoilée” is a paragon of new-age California wine, and as long as it costs this little, I’ll back it with as much fervor as possible! 

Born in San Francisco and quite literally raised as a high-rise engineer, John Donaghue spent his former years peering out at the surrounding wine country until finally making the leap into the industry in 2010. He started off with consecutive harvests at Clos Saron in the Sierra Foothills and, by the second year, he produced his own wine. For the past decade, he’s sourced small amounts of top-quality fruit from this sprawling AVA while adhering to a minimal intervention mindset in the winery.    

In the fall of 2019, after harvesting Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from the “Red Paws Vineyard” in the Sierra Foothills, John gently transported his crop to a crush facility on San Francisco’s Treasure Island. Upon completing a spontaneous, native-yeast fermentation without any sulfur additions, the resulting wine (60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot) was transferred into old French barrels for 12 months of undisturbed aging. It was bottled with a tiny dose of sulfur. All the writing and label design was hand-drawn by 96-year-old artist and family friend, Carol Lutz. 

Because of the wine’s natural constitution, we recommend a 30-minute decant to allow it to stretch its legs and blow off the small prickle. In the glass, Thee & Thou’s 2019 “Dévoilée” pours a radiant ruby with bright magenta reflections and effuses bright, super-high-toned aromas of candied cherry, crushed red plum, black raspberry, and cranberry alongside tobacco leaf, damp rose, menthol, and crushed earth. The palate (only 13.4% alcohol!) offers up plump yet structured layers of vivid red-black berries and a soft core of crushed minerals that pop due to the wine’s beautiful acidity. I’m certain this will age gracefully over the next five years but I can assure you none of the bottles I take home will survive that long. Enjoy often, with good friends and attitudes. Cheers!