Josh Cellars Pinot Noir California Red Wine

The name tells you two things. Pinot Noir gives the grape, California gives the state, and there the specifics stop: no county, no valley, no single vineyard we can confirm. Beyond the grape and the state, the one confirmed detail concerns the brand. By the winery's own account, Joseph Carr created the brand in 2007, naming it for his father, Josh. In our September 2026 checks, we observed a price as high as $24.99 at one store.

Pinot Noir is a thin-skinned red that category guides place lighter in color and with less tannin than Cabernet, with red cherry and plum, though those guides note ripeness and site can make it darker. None of that describes this particular bottle. An average of 4.41 out of five, from 17 shopper ratings, puts it below the 4.71 median across the wines we cover. In those same September 2026 checks, one store had this Pinot Noir at $14.99.

Our call: if you buy on the maker's story, there is something real here; by the winery's own account, Joseph Carr created the brand in his father's name. Pass if you buy on shopper ratings, since the average sits below the middle of the rated wines we cover and the count is a start rather than a settled record.

The Grocery Store Wine Desk · written Sep 16, 2026 from our research file for this wine. Numbers reflect our latest checks.