California

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Wow.  This is in a great place right now (and has been for a while).  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is classic, Californian, and amazing.  Cassis, blueberries, pencil lead, spice and slight chocolate.  Amazing texture.  Full bodied.  Racy yet, powerful.  There are light to medium tannins.  At age 12, this is still not yet at full maturity.  Flavors of cassis, blueberries, slight chocolate and char.  Great balance.  Long finish.  One of the great wines of the world.  

Another winner from Denner.  A blend of 96% Syrah, 2% Roussanne, 2% Viognier.  Inky purple in color, a thin ruby rim.  The nose is big and warm.  Black raspberries, black pepper, slight roasted meats, slight black olives.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Full bodied.  Black raspberry fruit, roasted meats and herbs and a bit of black pepper.  Lush texture.  Long finish.  This is easy to drink.  On its own, this is perfect, however, it will continue to evolve over the next five to seven years and be more complex and food friendly.  It will go well with roasts and meat casseroles.  

This is an excellent cooler climate Syrah.  Reasonably priced too.  Purple in color.  The nose has boysenberries, leather, roasted herbs and an interesting camphor note.  Full bodied.  On the palate, the boysenberries come thru over a bed of char and slight earthiness.  This needs two or three more years to peak and then should be good for another ten to twelve after that.  It will pair well with roasts and grilled foods and also Indian cuisine.  

Russell Bevan's wines are outstanding but they can get expensive.  This is expensive too, but half the price of his single vineyard releases.  Purple in color with some ruby swirls.  The nose has cassis, cedar, slight tobacco and spice.  Young, of course with firm tannins.  Wonderful lush texture.  Lots of juicy cassis fruit with some graphite and char.  Long finish.  This is delicious now but will continue to improve for the next five to ten years and be good for ten to twenty after that.  It will go well with roasts or heavier dishes.  

This is a blend of grapes from Steiner Ranch, Devoto Vineyard, Walker Vine Hill and Perli Vineyard.  It is middle of the road on a California Pinot Noir scale.  Ruby in color with some purple swirls.  On the nose, this has nice cherries with some raspberries along with some nutmeg.  Medium to full bodied.  Nice texture.  The raspberries are more prevalent on the nose and even some boysenberries.  A bit of tea leaves underneath.  Good finish.  An interesting Pinot with some level of complexity.  It probably won't get better but should last another ten to fifteen years at it mature and trades

This is the home vineyard of winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown.  His single vineyard wines Cabs are (for now) some of the most attractively priced top wines from Napa.  This wine has really improved since release and it was excellent back then.  Deep purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has cassis, blueberries, cloves and a slight menthol note.  On the palate, this has light to medium tannins.  Layers of cassis and blueberries with slight tobacco and cigar box.  A slight menthol note on the long finish.  This is drinking great but will continue to mature.  Maybe another 7 to ten years un

Although this is a California Syrah, Lillian is an Oregon producer.  This is great.  Inky purple in color.  The nose has black raspberries, gamey meats, roasted herbs, slight black olives.  On the palate, this is delicious.  it has complexity and depth too.  Black raspberry fruit with slight earthiness and a bit of grilled meats.  Long finish.  This is just about at peak now.  Light tannins.  Wonderful texture.  Juicy fruit.  Long finish.  It should be hear for another ten years or so.  It will work great with roasted fowl or meats or grilled foods.  

This is a delicious Syrah from the North side of the Hudson vineyard.  Bedrock made two different Hudson vineyard Syrahs.  This is drinking quite well now.  Purple in color.  The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, slight roasted herbs and hints of bacon fat.  On the palate, this has juicy boysenberries with some black olives and slight grilled meats.  Very interesting and very delicious.  Good balance.  Long finish.  It took about an hour in the glass to really open up.  Maybe another year or two until peak.  A nice match to roasts and also to Indian or Thai foods.  

This wine has really taken a long time to come around, but is now drinking great.  This is there basic Syrah.  Purple in color, deep ruby at the rim.  The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, grilled meats and slight roasted herb.  On the palate, this is deep and complex.  Lovely medium bodied texture.  Black raspberry fruit layered with dry, charred earth.  Good finish.  This should continue to drink well for another ten to fifteen years.  A great match with Indian food, it should also work well with casseroles or roasts.  

Ulises Valvez was one of the great American success stories in the wine world.  An immigrant to this country, he built his vineyard and winery into a top notch winery.  Sadly, he passed away a couple of years ago at far too young of an age.  His winery carries on.  This is a Zinfandel blend that also has 17% Peite Sirah and 5% Grenache.  The vineyard was originally planted in 1888 and hand farmed by Ulises Valdez since 1988.  There are some very old vines.  Purple in color.  The nose has black cherries, some raspberries, a bit of spice and bramble.  Nice texture.  Juicy acidity.  There is s