Love this merlot. Violets, roses, incense, and currants come to the fore on the nose. Full body and ultra-fine tannins that are so polished and integrated they become seamless and incredibly beautiful. Long and flavorful...

The Laguna Ridge soils have higher iron content, producing wines of great minerality. This Pinot flashes beautiful blue fruit aromatics with hints of cola and crushed slate. The palate is showy, with turned earth-based...

This is a Goldilocks porridge wine where everything from the lemony acidity to the sturdy tannins was “just right.” It is medium- bodied fare, with blackberry, Thai basil and orange-zest flavors. Violet and cinnamon-stick...

The aromas leap out of the glass. Wet earth, tapenade, green peppercorns, volcanic ash and tea leaves. Hints of orange peel. It’s electric on the palate, so savory, so earthy and so minerally, with stemmy and tea-like...

Super smooth and mouth-filling but also lacy and filigreed, the wine combines powerful, broad and ripe strawberries, red plums and cedar on a full body blanketed in soft tannins but with fresh acidity. Aged 18 months on...

Rich, fruity and generous, but also spicy, smoky and well-braced by acidity and moderate tannins. It’s a syrah that has it all, deep blackberry and blueberry flavors laced with white pepper, singed rosemary and black...

The appellation 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is a killer value that should be snatched up by readers. Ripe black fruits, roasted herbs, chocolate, and some spicy wood define the bouquet and it s full-bodied, has...

Juicy and inviting, with tasty raspberry and mulberry notes infused with pine forest, red tea and wet earth accents. Keeps the fleshy, juicy feel through the lightly toasted finish. Drink now through 2028. 21,000 cases made.

This sleek but powerful and concentrated wine offers enticing and deep black cherry, graphite and cocoa aromas followed by fine-grained tannins that tighten up as you sip. The wine is built for the long haul, needing time...

This wine is starting to show some age, but that's only making it more interesting, with soy, dried meat, mulberry and pepper aromas on the nose. Tertiary flavors of dried meat, soy and seaweed show on the briny palate as...

The 2016 Syrah Rodgers Creek Vineyard has classic Rhône-inspired markers of savory cured meats, black pepper, lavender, and black plum. It displays richness without weight and has fine structure throughout. Drink 2022-2035.

This is packed with waves of steeped plum, boysenberry compote and açaí reduction, dripping with fruit but keeping its form and detail thanks to underlying tar and graphite notes. Presents pretty violet and anise accents...

I loved the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, which I think is a step up over the 2018, although both 2019s show a much more elegant profile. Ripe currants, plums, roasted herbs, violets, and incense notes all shine in...

The 2018 Pinot Noir The Settler Cleary Ranch, aged in 38% new French oak, has a pale ruby-purple color and classic scents of tea leaves, earth, underbrush and laurel with a red berry core. The light-bodied palate has a...

This blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 18% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot shows a slightly reductive, meaty funk on the nose, offering charred beef, black pepper and asphalt aromas. That carries into the...

Instantly impressive, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Feather opens to silky, fresh and fleshy dark red and black fruit tones with picturesque rich and ripe notions that sashay out of the glass with elegance, power and...

The 2021 Pinot Noir Ryan has a medium ruby color and autumnal scents of truffle and forest floor, cinnamon and Earl Grey tea leaves complementing a core of wild berry fruit. (In 2021, the wine comes from the...

The 2022 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills comes from declassified fruit grown at Domaine de la Côte, plus purchased fruit from three other vineyards, including La Rinconada. It's a particularly complex and expressive iteration...

I've had several vintages of this wine and this is my favorite so far. Despite hitting 14.1% abv, it feels light on its feet, with a nice balance between gentle acidity and velvety tannins. Look for aromas and flavors of...

A jammy bomb of fruit, offering cherry pie and ripe raspberry flavors accented with toasty spice and briar notes as this energetic Zin zips along the zesty finish. Drink now through 2032. — T.F.

The 2021 Pinot Noir Anderson Valley, matured for 13 months in 38% new French oak, takes some time to shake off its cedary new oak and reveal red cherry, pipe tobacco and garrigue. The medium-bodied palate is chalky and...

Sourced primarily from Oak Knoll, the 2021 Zinfandel Black Chicken delivers briar-laced bramble-berry fruit, plus a decent dose of vanilla (maturation was in 25% new French oak). Full-bodied, it's creamy, ripe and lush...

The 2021 Dominus, 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, is opaque purple-black in color. It needs a lot of coaxing to lure out scents of freshly crushed blackcurrants, blackberry preserves, stewed plums, and...

As with almost all of the Syrahs here, the 2020 Syrah The Deal was not destemmed, saw an extended maceration, and spent 18 months in 40% new French puncheons. Deep ruby/purple-hued, it has an incredibly floral perfume of...

This wine substantially overdelivers on its price point, presenting a dark fruit profile, generous tannin and oak, and an expansive full-bodied style. Blended with 8% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, it is...

Features fig and blackberry paste notes that meld into a backdrop of alder, tobacco and warm loam elements, ending with a well-integrated swath of flavor on the finish. Delivers a lovely tug of earth. Best from 2021...