Expert articles and wine tasting videos profiling wines from California, California wine regions, Napa Valley, Sonoma County, & more.
Ruby in color, clear and bright. The nose has red currants and spice. On the palate, this is easy drinking. Some Red currant fruit. Plenty of spice and lumber. No tannins. Light. Probably should have been drunk earlier as the oak seems to have outlasted the fruit though there is some fruit left.
Ruby/purple in color. The nose has cassis, cherries, cedar and spice. Medium to full bodied. On the palate, this has nice fruit in a more restrained mode. Cherries and cassis with cedar. Medium tannins. Decent balance. Slightly clipped finish. This is a more restrained style of Cab but drinks well right now. Not sure if it will make older bones so I would drink in the next five years.
Ruby/purple in color. The nose is very nice with black raspberries, black pepper some grilled meats and just a bit of bacon. On the palate, this is fully mature but not past. Black raspberry fruit layered with charred earth. Nice complexity. Good acidity. Still fresh. Nice finish. This wine is drinking great and much younger than I might have expected it to. Bottles vary though and I wouldn't wait too long on this one.
This is a very good, middle of the road, straight forward Zin (in a good way). Purple in color with some ruby swirls. The nose has dark cherries, raspberries, bramble and black pepper. Full bodied with a nice texture. Juicy black cherries and raspberries. Some depth. Drinking great but should age a bit and last a decade. Works with bigger foods or on its own. Delicious.
Another winner from this winery making lower alcohol, cooler climate wines from California. Purple in color. The nose has black raspberries, char, black olives and roasted herbs. On the palate, this is medium to full bodied. Black raspberries with an underlying char. Also some earthiness. Good acidity. Nice finish. Very food friendly with some potential upside over the next few years.
This is a former Wine Spectator Wine of the Year. It was nice to revisit this wine. It seems to be at peak and drinking as good as it will get. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has cherries, spice, chocolate and dried cherries. On the palate, this is full bodied with a lush texture. Just a wisp of tannins. Layers of chocolate covered cherries and slight earth. Long finish. Food friendly. Certainly one of the best California Merlot's I have had. Even Miles from Sideways would like it. It still has five to ten years, at least, left if well stored.
This is a $30 Napa Cab. While perhaps a good price point for Napa, that is not a cheap bottle. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, spice and fresh cut lumber. On the palate, this has one dimensional fruit but a fair amount of it. Lots of oak showing as well. Medium tannins. Not much acidity, this is made to enjoy on its own on the back deck. It is a solid wine for that purpose and for those who like fruit and oak, this is one to look for.
Beautiful Pinot Noir. Ruby with some purple swirls. The nose is great with bright cherries contrasted by an earthy, damp forest floor note. Also some spice. On the palate, this is tight but quite good. It needs at least five years or a long decant. Cherries, macerated cherries, layered tightly with damp earth and spice. Complex. Good balance. Long finish. Went quite well with food.
This is the first bottling by Kutch from this AVA. Perhaps not quite the focus as the Santa Cruz mountain version but still quite nice. That may be to being a different vintage or AVA. This is golden in color. The nose has pears, slight vanilla, some lemon and a slightly sweaty note to it. On the palate, this is of course young. The pears and slight lemons come thru. Some acidity but not a lot. It will be good to revisit this and see if it comes more together. That said, it is delicious now with depth to it. Worked very well at the dinner table.
My last bottle from this now defunct winery. Too bad as they made very good wine. This bottle certainly was. Purple in color. The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, roasted herbs and slight bacon fat. On the palate, this has juicy acidity. Black raspberry fruit. Light tannins. Some black olives. Good finish. Seems close to peak now. Works well with food.
