California

• Amador County
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  • Atlas Peak
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• Sierra Foothills
• Sonoma County
  • Alexander Valley
  • Bennett Valley
  • Best of Sonoma
  • Dry Creek Valley
  • Fort Ross/Seaview
  • Moon Mountain
  • Pine Mountain - Cloverdale Peak
  • Russian River Valley
  • Sonoma Coast
  • Sonoma Mountain
  • Sonoma Valley
  • Knights Valley

A WOW wine to be sure.  Still very young.  The color is fascinating.  Almost a Day-Glo yellow/green in color.  Iridescent.  The nose has a lot of oak, toast and char but also some pineapple and a bit of citrus.  With air, minerality comes out and the oak integrates just a bit.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is big, ripe and sexy.  Citrus, some butterscotch and plenty of baking spice and char.  Long finish.  This is fantastic now (especially if you are not oak averse), but give it another decade  in the cellar and it will be flirting with a 100 score.  Either way, it should have at least

Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with cassis, black cherries, spice, lumber, and slight cedar.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, nice cassis fruit with some char.  Good balance.  Nice finish.  This is drinking well now and should continue for another seven to ten years.  A nice choice with a burger off the grill.  

Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is  nice with cassis, cedar, camphor and leather.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, plenty of cassis with some char.  Lots of depth.  Complex if still tight.  Nice finish.  This is drinking well now and should continue to for another ten to twelve years.  It might improve a bit more as it ages.  Nice on its own, this would work well with grilled meats.  

Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, slight black pepper and a hint of purple flowers.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, nice black raspberry fruit with some char.  Good acidity.  Nice finish.  This drinks easy and is tasty.  Drink over the next five to eight years.  A nice wine with a really good burger.  

Beautiful wine.  This is a proprietary blend from one of Napa's top producers.  Bettina is the name of the owner's wife.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with cassis, chocolate, slight coffee, dust and spice.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Nice balance.  On the palate, this is more on the elegant/Bordeaux style of Napa.  Cassis, black cherries, leather, and coffee with some underlying char.  Lively.  Long finish.  This is drinking well and should continue for another fifteen to twenty years.  Nice on its own, this will work with bigger foods such as P

This is a blend of 43% Grenache, 29% Mourvedre, 18% Syrah, and 10% Counoise from Paso Robles.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black cherries, minerals, char, slight spice and a bit or candied raspberries.  Full bodied.  Great balance.  Lots of energy.  On the palate, this is delicious.  No sign of the 15.8%abv.  Loads of black cherries, black raspberries with a slight char and plenty of minerality.  Long finish.  This is young but drinking well now.  It will get better though.  Drink over the next twenty years.  Great on its own, it nee

This is made with California grapes, shipped cold to Ohio for production.  It is one of the mysteries of wine as to why some many winemakers in California, struggle to produce Sangiovese, while in Tuscany (including Chianti), there are so many good ones and even a few great ones.  This is a nice wine but does not resemble the Chianti's in Italy.  But, that's ok.  Purple in color with some ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has dust and black cherries (so far, so good).  Medium bodied.  On the palate, the acidity does not come thru, but there is plenty of cherry fruit along wit

This is a blend of 60% Syrah, 30% Grenache and 10% Mourvedre.  Torrin wines are bruisers, but at age 13, this one is just starting to calm down a bit.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black cherries, black pepper, roasted meat and leather.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Loads of black raspberries and some plums with underlying char and a nice minerality.  Long finish.  This should drink well for another ten to fifteen years.  It is nice on its own and would work well with a beef stew.  

This is a blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc and 3% Malbec.  Garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cassis, dust and slight dishwasher note (not pleasant).  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Much better on the palate.  Cassis with a fair amount of oak.  Moderate finish.  This drinks easy on its own and would be nice with a burger or plate of pasta.  Drink over the next few years.  

One of the old guard from Napa.  This is their basic Zin which is actually a blend of 83% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, 3% Alicante, and 4% mixed reds.  This is a fine value.  Ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has bramble with a peppery note.  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, cherries and raspberries.  Easy finish.  This is drinkable without requiring contemplation.  Drink over the next couple of years.  A nice wine with foods off grill.