Very nice showing for this wine which seems to be at the younger side of peak right now.  Grown on the side of Mount Etna and made from Nero Mascalese.  It drinks very much like a smoky Pinot Noir.  Garnet in color.  The nose has cherries and underlying char.  On the palate, wispy tannins.  Lots of cherries with depth and concentration.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  This is a very interesting wine that demands contemplation but is also quite tasty.  Will work great with pasta, veggies and medium and lighter foods.  

This is a Bordeaux blend from Western Sicily.  It a nice affordable wine that is enjoyable and will hold and improve a bit for a few years in a good cellar.  It is a modern, internationally styled wine, but still has a certain continental quality to it.  Purple in color.  The nose has nice cherry fruit with a bit of spice and slight cedar.  On the palate, there are some tannins.  Nice cherry fruit.  Good acidity.  Nice finish.  Easy drinking and will work with a wide variety of foods.  It won't get much better, but perhaps a bit.  It should be drunk by 2025.  

Do you like affordable, easy drinking white wines?  Then look for this one.  This is authentic and as good as wine costing twice the price.  Will it blow your doors off?  Probably not, but for $15, you will have no regrets.  Food friendly or on its own.  Light copper gold in color.  The nose is great with minerals, mountain air (think cold and fresh) and a hint of lemon peel.  On the palate, this is refreshing.  Slightly more than lean texture.  Made for drinking young.  Lots of verve.  Good finish.  

Any time you get to try a Schrader wine it is a great night.  But, when you go to a friends house and see this open, well, it doesn't get much luckier than that.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is great with cassis, blueberries, charcoal, spice and slight graphite.  On the palate, this is precise and tight.  It opens slowly in the glass with firm tannins.  Cassis and blueberries carry thru but it seems bottomless.  This needs a long decant or better yet a decade in the cellar.  It is delicious now but so much upside.  Long finish.  It makes a wonderful cocktail but with some patience, this

So, Nils Venge has been making great wine in Napa for decades.  This is a family project and his son Kurt makes the wine.  IIRC, this is my first time trying this wine and it was amazing.  Inky purple in color.  The nose has cassis, cedar, smoke and the slightest graphite note.  On the palate, this is one of those wine with so much energy it seems every sip is a bit different than the last.  Of course, it is young and that will probably change as it settles down.  Firm tannins at the moments.  Juicy cassis fruit with some underlying char.  Clean with great balance.  Long finish.  This would

Consistently one of the better BdM's out there.  2012 was a good year if not stellar, but this wine was singing.  Pop and pour, it took about an hour to open up and was good to go.  Garnet in color.  The nose has cherries, tea leaves, and slight spice notes.  On the palate, this has slight tannins.  Nice cherry fruit.  Showing slight layering of fruit and forest floor.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  This will work with a wide variety of foods and really begs for food.  It is still on the youthful side bu no baby.  It won't get better but should mature nicely for the next decade.  Drink anyti

This is labeled as Red Wine, but it is a Port styled dessert wine from Sonoma.  A blend of 25% Tinto Cao, 25% Tinta Madeira, 25% Touriga Nacional, and 25% Sousão:  it checks in at 18.3% abv.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has a lot of alcohol along with some raisins and slight chocolate.  On the palate, this is slightly sweet.  Viscous.  Some cherry fruit.  A good bit of heat on the finish.  A very interesting take but a little goes a long way.  It is a members only wine.

Kapcsandy makes some of the best wines in Napa (and the world).  This one is a bit less well known.  It is a blend of 62% Cabernet Franc and 38% Merlot (so think the Cheval Blanc of Napa).  2011 was a difficult vintage but this wine is outstanding if perhaps not as good as the following vintages.  Purple in color.  The nose has black cherries, cigar tobacco and just a hint of bell pepper.  On the palate, this has a wonderful texture.  It is a bit more demur than typical Kapcsandy bottles, but it is drinking quite well.  Black cherry fruit with an underlying earthy/tobacco quality.  Light ta

This a very nice value in Cabernet Franc made from biodynamically grown grapes.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is nice.  2010 was a warmer vintage and that matters for Cab Franc.  If under ripe, it can be a bit green.  Very nice black cherry fruit along with some cigar tobacco.  On the palate, this has a nice texture.  The black cherry fruit carries thru.  Good acidity.  There is some forest floor which is nice.  This begs for food and worked well with middle eastern fare.  Good finish.  Drinking well now but should cruise thru the next ten years.