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

From on of the top Syrah vineyards in Santa Barbara County.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black raspberries, slight bacon fat, black olives and roasted herbs.  Wonderful texture.  Juicy acidity.  On the palate, black raspberry fruit with underlying char and slight dry earthiness.  This is delicious if a bit young.  This will get a bit better over the next few years.  Let it cellar for another five years and drink for ten to twelve after that.  It will drink great on its own and work well with roasted pork or even Indian food.  

This is a blend of 46% Syrah, 33% Grenache, and 21% Mourvedre from Paso Robles.  Inky purple, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black raspberries, roasted meats, black pepper and floral notes.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this has a great texture.  Velvety with precision.  Flavors of black raspberries with underlying roasted meats and some black pepper.  Very lively.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  A delicious wine that just about mature.  It should drink well for another ten to fifteen years.  A nice match with a burger or roasted veggies off the grill.  

This wine was made as an homage to Lucien Peyraud, the legendary winemaker for Domaine Tempier who helped establish the Bandol AOC.

Obviously young, but this is one of the best Petite Sirah's made in Napa.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has boysenberries, char, and spice.  Full bodied.  On the palate, the boysenberry over char comes thru.  This will need time.  Ideally at least another decade but at least five to seven.  It should drink well for twenty after that.  Delicious.  This will drink well on its own but a nice choice for Indian food or grilled meats off the grill.  

This is the base Pinot from Rhys.  Ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with cherries, slight black cherries, and slight sour cherries.  Medium bodied.  Some depth and complexity.  Still youthful.  On the palate, sour cherries and cherries  with slight char and spice.  Nice finish.  This is chugging along nicely.  It won't get better but should mature and continue to drink well for another ten to twelve years.  It drinks well on its own but will work better food.  Roasted chicken or duck is a nice choice.  

This is a nice, moderately priced California Cabernet.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, bell peppers, cherries and some spice.  Medium bodied with light tannins.  On the palate black cherry fruit with a touch of green bell pepper.  Moderate finish.  This drinks easily and although good on its own, is better with some food.  Chili is a nice match.  Drink over the next three to five years.  

This is 97% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot.  Inky purple, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with cassis, spice and slight tobacco.  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, nice cassis flavors.  Clean.  Not a lot of depth or complexity especially compared to the 2015 version of this wine.  Still, nice solid, easy drinking.  Drink over the next five to seven years.  A nice wine with sausage pizza.  

This is an excellent value in Napa Cabernet.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, spice and char.  Full bodied with a powerful texture.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, lots of cassis with some underlying char.  Nice depth.  This is still very young and needs another five to seven years to approach maturity.  It should be good for twelve to fifteen after that.  Drinks well on its own and will work well with braised meats.  

Expectations and hopes.  Its hard not to have them but they do affect ones enjoyment of wine.  This was an excellent wine but for whatever reason, vintage, cork, etc., was not up to expectations.  A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, spice and some cherries.  On the palate, this is amazingly integrated and smooth.  Cassis with some underlying spice.  Not as deep nor complex as this wine can get in other vintages.  That said, it drinks so easily, the bottle is drained quickly.  I

 This is a big California Chardonnay that checks in a 15.2% ABV.  It is made in a robust, over the top style that is not for everyone.  Light golden in color.  The nose has lemon curd, fresh cut lumber, butter and spice.  On the palate, there are earing oak tannins.  Also some nice yellow grapefruit.  Good acidity.