Expert articles and wine tasting videos profiling wines from California, California wine regions, Napa Valley, Sonoma County, & more.
This is a nice value in Cabernet Sauvignon. Purple in color with ruby swirls. The nose is nice with cassis, slight vanilla, dust and spice. Full bodied. Light tannins. On the palate, this is a nice easy drinking Cab. Cassis and black cherries. Moderate finish. Drink over the next few years. A nice with with a (veggie) burger.
This producer is more known for their Pinots and Chards but now also produces an excellent Cab. Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is nice with cassis, spice, bell pepper and slight tobacco. Medium to full bodied. Medium tannins. On the palate, cassis, black cherries and bell pepper. Some depth. Nice texture. Good finish. This is drinking well now and should drink well for another ten to fifteen years. Nice on its own, this will work well with Szechuan beef.
This is their middle level Cabernet. Purple in color, some ruby at the rim, opaque and bright. The nose is great with cassis, coffee, graphite, dark chocolate and spice. Full bodied. Medium tannins. Good balance. On the palate, this is seriously good. Lush cassis, graphite and spice. This drinking great and should continue for ten to fifteen more years. Great on its own, it will work great with Prime Rib.
Detert is more known for it Cab Franc, but this was excellent as well. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with cassis, spice, coffee, and slight earthiness. Full bodied. Firm tannins. good balance. On the palate, this is delicious. Cassis, baking spice and slight tobacco. Deep. Long finish. Ripe but not a fruit bomb. Drinking well now, it will get better over the next five years. Drink over the next ten to fifteen years. Nice on its own, this will work well with pork chops.
When Jerry Lohr started planting Cabernet in Paso Robles in the 1970s most people thought he was crazy. But it turns out that Paso Robles has been quite an exceptional AVA for Cabernet in the Golden State. The combination of Jerry’s years of working with this grape is now seen inside this bottle. It offers wonderful dark fruits - blackberry boysenberry, and huckleberry with only slight elements of red fruit like black cherry and raspberry. On the back palate there is noticeable chocolate/tobacco notes.
Ladera launched in 1998 and has consistently produced impressive wines. For their 2020 Chardonnay, they aged the grapes sur lie in new French oak barrels for 15 months (58% of which were new), which means this definitely offers a creamier style, however it is well balanced so you get a classic Chardonnay, but a silky smooth one. This offers light pear, lemon chiffon, lime meringue, candied almond, slight resin, and hints of guava. This is a lovely, tactile wine that drinks beautifully with, or without food. 289 cases. ORIGIN: Russian River Valley. ALCOHOL: 14.1%
Luna made some nice wines. This was certainly one. Purple in color with some ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright. The nose has cherries, milk chocolate, spice, and slight plums. Medium to full bodied. On the palate, this is easy drinking but also has some depth. Chocolate covered cherries with a slight bit of undergrowth. Good finish. Nice on its own, this is a classic burger wine as well. Drink over the next ten years.
This is made from grapes on the terrace just south of the winery. At age 21, it is drinking beautifully. Purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is nice with black cherries, cassis and spice. Full bodied. Light tannins. On the palate black cherries and cassis. Clean. Nice complexity. Long finish. This should drink well for another five to eight years. It will work well with Lasagna.
Purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly clear and bright. The nose is very nice with black cherries, cassis, slight spice and slight black olives. Medium to full bodied. Light tannins. On the palate, this is still fresh and vibrant. Tasty. Some depth and complexity as it unwinds in the glass. Great balance. Good finish. Drinking well now, it should go another five to seven years with no trouble. Nice on its own, but better with food. It worked well with eggplant parmigiana.
This winery recently sold. While the former owners, Napa legends Carole Meredith and Steve Lagier, are entitled to work a bit less, the wines will be missed. Quality Syrah (and others) at very fair pricing. This one is no exception. 2009 was a good vintage provided the grapes were harvested before the early fall rains. It would appear these were. Purple in color, opaque and bright. The nose is nice with black raspberries, black pepper, slight gamey meats. Medium to full bodied. Very concentrated. On the palate, light tannins. Plenty of black raspberry fruit with some black pepper
