California

• Amador County
  • Shenandoah Valley
• Carmel Valley
• Carneros
• Central Coast
  • Edna Valley
  • Mt. Harlan
  • Paso Robles
• Contra Costa County
• El Dorado County
• Lake County
• Lodi
• Mendocino
  • Anderson Valley
  • Yorkville Highlands
• Monterey
• Napa Valley
  • Atlas Peak
  • Best of Napa
  • Calistoga
  • Conn Valley
  • Diamond Mountain
  • Howell Mountain
  • Mt. Veeder
  • Oak Knoll
  • Oakville
  • Pope Valley
  • Rutherford
  • Spring Mountain
  • St. Helena
  • Stags Leap
  • Yountville
• North Coast
• Santa Barbara
  • Santa Lucia Highlands
  • Santa Rita Hills
  • Santa Ynez Valley
• Santa Cruz
• Santa Maria Valley
• 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

This is a blend of 84% Cab Sauvignon, 8% Malbec, 5% Petit Verdot, and 3% Merlot.  It doesn't seem fair to call this a second wine as it stands on its own as an amazing wine.  2017 was a challenging vintage yet this wine is excellent.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, dust, pencil lead, chocolate and floral notes.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, this has depth and complexity.  Cassis, black cherries and plums with underlying spice and slight tobacco.  Great balance.  Long finish.  This will still get better but should drink well for the next twelve

Yes, this is very young, but what a great opportunity to try a limited wine so soon.  This is one of the great cult wines of Napa!  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is tight but opens to show cassis, pencil lead, blueberries, chocolate, spice, smoke and minerality.  Firm tannins.  An impressive velvety texture.  On the palate, this is ripe.  Slightly sweet but not residual sugar.  Cassis, blueberries, coffee and spice with underlying minerality.  Enough acidity to cut through and keep the palate from being tired.  Ideally, this gets another ten to twenty years in the cella

Shafer Hillside is a First Growth of American wines.  It has a long track record and always outstanding.  And, made in quantities that the average wine lover can find.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, graphite, spice, leather and chocolate.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Great, rich texture.  This is still drinking young but also it is delicious.  Flavors of cassis, blueberries, and slight chocolate with underlying spice and tea leaves.  Long finish.  This will improve with more cellar time.  Either way, it should drink well for another twenty years.  This woul

The regular Caymus tends to be a love/hate wine, but the Special Select is a different wine completely and one that just about everyone loves.  It is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with cassis, blueberries, tobacco and spice.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  Dense texture.  On the palate, this is deep with cassis and spice.  Long finish.  Delicious.  This is still showing young and while drinking well now, another five years in the cellar would help it out.  Either way, drink over the next fifteen to twenty years.  

Spectacular showing for this bottle.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, spice, slightly earthy along with some leathery notes.  Full bodied.

I was skeptical about this being alive, but that is why you pull the cork.  At age 39, this has life and fruit left.  Ruby in color, lighter at the rim, mostly opaque and modestly bright.  The nose shows cassis, earthiness and slight bell pepper.  With air, a slight "twiggy" note comes out.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, black cherries.  Slightly sweet.  Some complexity.  While certainly past peak, an impressive showing nevertheless.  Still, this should be consumed sooner than later.  

This is Screaming Eagle's Merlot based wine.  This year the blend is 61% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc.  It is still young and tight and took some time to open.  That said, it was delicious. Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, cherries, dark chocolate, violets and a bit of earthiness.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, this has a lush texture.  Black cherries and cherries with some chocolate and char.  Great balance.  Long finish.

Three Palms is unquestionably the most well-known and famous Merlot in the United States. That Duckhorn has made a commitment to Merlot for decades is to be applauded. This iteration beautifully spells out why they have made that commitment. The deftly handled balance of fruit, acidity, tannin and oak is simply marvelous. Black cherry, blackberry, boysenberry and huckleberry lead off, followed by back notes of black cherry, plum, anise, and cocoa powder. Aged for 18 months in predominately new French oak. ORIGIN: Napa Valley. ALCOHOL: 14.5%

This wine has always been one of the outstanding performers in the Cuvaison portfolio and year after year is a wine that never ceases to impress. It is also one of those Chardonnays that makes you rethink Chardonnay because it is so beautifully balanced, so definitely handled, that it surpasses what most of us know about Chardonnay. Yes you’ll find light lemon-lime, green apple, kiwi, guava notes, but also viscosity and minerality. It also possesses a slight resin and stone fruit quality and maturity of fruit. That these vines are just 20 years old suggests there are great vintages ahead.

The name Pisoni is well known in the Monterey area and the Lucy label is of part of brothers Jeff and Mark Pisoni’s wide variety of offerings. A blend of 70% pinot gris and 30% pinot blanc, the result is a sum that is far greater than its parts. Wonderfully crisp and flavorful this offers muted notes of lemon-lime, guava, resin, red delicious apple, and nectarine. There’s an ever so slight tartness on the tongue, solid acidity and a uniqueness that just might make this your new go-to white. Native yeast fermentation leads to aging in neutral barrels for a lithe viscosity.