Seriously packed, with dense black currant, plum and blackberry fruit flavors embedded with prodigious grip, this manages to have a sleek and well-defined feel. Reveals a long iron spine and flashes of anise and violet in the background. A lovely combination of power and purity. Best from 2024 through 2040.

Rumbles along with dark plum, black currant and blackberry reduction notes carried by a slightly chunky structure, with tar, dark tobacco and sweet bay leaf supporting the finish. Youthfully rugged and begging for some cellaring, but everything is there. Best from 2024 through 2038.

Delivers a gorgeous, generous mix of velvety dark chocolate-covered cherry, red licorice and mocha as well as hints of fresh mint, huckleberry and boysenberry at the core. This wine's power is matched by refinement and a long, expressive finish, where spicy notes linger. Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. Drink now through 2035.

Very dark and winey in profile, with steeped plum,blackberry and boysenberry fruit flavors laced withlicorice snap, bramble and apple wood. A tarry noteunderscores the finish, while the fruit drips. A big winebalanced by inner purity. Best from 2024 through 2038.

Stunning, with incredible vibrancy and concentration to the orange sherbet, lemon curd and ruby grapefruit flavors at the core. Features fresh-grated ginger, lemon thyme and salted melon on the finish. Drink now.

Halloween Candy and Wine Pairings You're Sure To Fall In Love With
A rich, oak filled and vanilla spiced California Chardonnay is a big wine to pair with any food. As far as candy pairings, it especially tastes great with Butterfingers. The crispy buttery layers inside the chocolate melt in your mouth with each sip of Chardonnay. You can also try Candy Corn as an additional pairing. The acidity in the wine breaks down the Candy Corn to a creamy and sugary delight.
SPLURGE! Penner Ash Chardonnay 2020

Located on the steep north facing slopes of the Warramate Ranges, the Sexton Vineyard is exposed and demanding. Being on the higher slopes, topsoil is thin and root systems have established themselves in shallow gravelly loams above a tough rocky clay base. Bunch yields set naturally low in this environment, resulting in intensely flavoured fruit with high skin to juice ratio.
The 2020 season was a bit of a rollercoaster and the cool Spring delivered very low yields across the Chardonnay blocks, primarily driven by tighter, smaller bunches – the consequence of which is naturally high acidity and fresh savoury flavours. Expect to be greeted with a fabulous nose of mixed citrus, sorbet and peach cobbler, while toasted nuts and aromas in abundance on the palate.

2018 Le Désir has a dark inky appearance with a violet hue that extends to the rim. The compelling characteristics of Cabernet Franc are expressed on the nose and palate with flavours of crunchy cranberry, ripe raspberry, red currant, dried sage, crushed mint, and cinnamon bark, followed by spice cake, subtle vanilla liquor, and singed toast. The persistent finish and bright acidity suggest the wine will continue to evolve in the cellar for many years to come.

Ripe plums, black cherry liquor and dried cassis provide sumptuous aromas while hints of orange peel, toasted allspice, fresh cinnamon bark and dried tea leaf beckon. A velvety, Merlot-driven mid-palate slowly opens into a multi-layered bouquet of red fruit, toasted baking spices, truffle and coffee bean. An iron-rich minerality provides a taut, complex structure, while fine-grained tannins and firm acidity grip the palate to sustain a long and elegant finish. This classic expression of Saint-Émilion offers a dual brightness and sophistication that will continue to improve for years to come.

A very serviceable and pleasing white wine with a softer fruit and green profile that should satisfy white wine drinkers who don’t gravitate towards Chardonnay or a more pungent style of Sauvignon Blanc.

Can there be a more comforting white wine than a California Chardonnay? Bring on the arguments, but when push comes to shove it’s near impossible to outdo the coddled joy preferred from a bottle of sun-kissed, robust Cali Chard. As Exhibit A see Freemark Abbey’s quintessential Napa Valley Chardonnay. Oozing ripeness and flavours of tropical and stone fruit, this rich white also does not shy away from evident oak influence — adding layers of wood toast and spice. Texture abounds in this rich but lively Chardonnay, which finishes with a lingering kiss of more peach and citrus.
Bottom line: B+, Comforting, classic Chard.

The Mt. Brave similarly takes a lot of time to really come out of its shell. The modestly boastful nose includes black cherry, muddled strawberry, black licorice, mulling spice, and black plum. Full bodied with broad, lush, and finely grained tannins and juicy acid, the youthful structure and significant chew and depth indicates a long positive evolution ahead. Flavors include salty plum, cigar tobacco, dark cherry, blackberry, tar, and cassis. Far too young to fully enjoy right now, I wouldn’t touch this until at least 2026 and can easily see it reaching the height of its evolution around 2030.

The nose of the La Jota is at half mast, showing sweet blackberry and plum, black currant, blueberry, and clove. Full bodied, the structure is a nice combination of precise acid and broad and soft tannin. The longer it’s in the mouth, the more grit and chew that develops (and becomes mouth coating). Red plum and cherry, blackberry, raspberry, violet, tamari, and black tea are all pronounced in the flavor profile. This shows, if barely, primary development and is one to cellar for at least seven or eight years, if not fifteen to twenty if you can wait that long.

Pale straw in the glass with lemon curd and vanilla in the glass. Yum. The palate is similar, with plenty of fruit and that vanilla aspect, but there is also a boatload of acidity, which serves to hold it all together. Yes, Copain is now a part of a corporate conglomerate, but the wines continue to perform at a very high level. Very nice. Excellent.

Mid-weight, middle of the California stylistic road taken, a cabernet sauvignon amalgamated from many sources crafted in a square peg through a square hole way. Nothing forced, taken for granted, nor excess make-up neither. Just honest to Murphy Goode-ness, chock full of flavour and a chocolate-vanilla swirl. Just a shade too much sugar (6 g/L) but this too is a choice run straight down the centre.

This a dandy, well priced cabernet that provides authenticity in a price band where that is often compromised by too much sweetness. This captures forward, ripe blackcurrant jam with fresh herbs/cedar bough and wood spice. It is medium-full bodied, a touch sinewy but still full of California warmth, smooth texture and generosity. Well balanced and very drinkable now, or over the next three years.

La Crema is well known for its chardonnays (and pinot noirs) made in California’s Sonoma Coast appellation. From time to time, we see other labels from the portfolio, like this concentrated and inviting chardonnay from the Russian River Valley. Made in a medium-bodied and layered style, this offers attractive apple and citrus fruit with cream, toast and spicy accents. It has the generous nature you’d expect from California without losing focus or freshness on the palate. Drink now to 2025.

Such a beautiful example of mountain fruit with spice, red and black berries, herbs, juniper flowers and elegance.

Another expression of mountain fruit, yet a very different one. This one is a force of nature – I tasted red fruit, dried plum, earth, herbs and graphite and chocolate.

Delivers a dense, concentrated laser beam of flavor, with fleshy ripe peach, Bartlett pear and salted Crenshaw melon showing accents of lemon zest. Packs a crisp mineral edge, with hints of spice and oolong tea on the long, mouthwatering finish. Drink now through 2027.

Another big version, but the great brambly mountain fruit and acidity give it some nice balance.

Not only does winemaker Shane Moore produce fantastic Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but his 2014 Blanc de Blancs from Yamhill-Carlton is stunning, an estate-grown gem with aromas that are reminiscent of warm scones, brioche, lemon clotted cream, and mineral. The palate is lively and fresh, with fantastic concentration and propulsiveness to flavors of lemon oils, phyllo dough just out of the oven, brown butter, and green apples.

You know a wine’s great when it doesn’t last a second day. That was definitely the case with this subtle, mellow wine with deep, dense flavors, aromas and textures. Flinty yet slightly fruity with hints of blackberry pie and roasted cherries, this light, bright wine tasted terrific straight out of the bottle and three hours later. Sorry I can’t tell you what it tasted like the next day. This wine was just too good not to finish.

I realize this wine’s price crosses over into the three-figure territory. But if you’re searching for an inky, dark, intense wine, you’ll hopefully enjoy this magical merlot as much as I did. Its voluptuous texture reminds me of thick velvet and cotton candy. Flavor wise, this wine contains generous helpings of melted blackberries and roasted cherries. Best of all, this wine somehow manages to be smooth and subtle while also being bigger, bolder and louder than the other merlots on this list. Definitely a wine worth splurging on for special occasions.

Winemaker Chris Carpenter draws the best from the grapes grown in Mt. Veeder’s high elevations through rocky soils perched on steep slopes. Big in body, rich in style, it has dense blackberry and mineral notes.