The 2020 Chardonnay Machado opens slowly to pretty notes of matchstick and lime leaves and needs a bit of aeration to give up nuances of lemongrass, saline, apricot and chalk. The palate is bursting with concentrated, ripe citrus fruits and offers mouthwatering acidity that calls you back to the glass again and again. It has a streak of herbal exoticism that adds to its appeal, a bit of anchoring textural grip and a long, evolving finish.

The 2020 Pinot Noir 459 has a medium ruby-purple color and an alluring blend of deep red and blue fruit: boysenberry, dried cranberry and dried red cherries open with time to cola, lemon peel and black tea. The medium-bodied palate is chalky and fresh with bursting red fruit character and a juicy, citrus-laced finish.

Medium ruby, the 2020 Pinot Noir 3D features very pure, ringing aromas of pomegranate, red cherries, orange zest, charcuterie and earth. The medium-bodied palate is elegant and fresh with chalky tannins, mouthwatering acidity and generous red fruit, finishing very long and layered. What an elegant expression!

This is my last bottle of this wine that I purchased way back in 2010, a couple of years before I launched my blog and, according to my notes, for which I got 15% off based on watching a podcast from Sadat X (the details are at best, blurry). I also opened another 2008 Clos Pepe, one from the mother ship (Clos Pepe Vineyards), and I have to say that this Siduri showed much, much better. Luscious fruit, balancing tannins, a hint of earth, and a whole lot of verve. I only have two more bottles left from the Adam Lee run Siduri, and that honestly makes me more than a little sad. Outstanding.

Medium ruby-purple, the 2020 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills, made with a high proportion of whole clusters, is scented of cranberries and raspberries with nuances of Earl Grey tea leaves and loads of spicy accents. The medium-bodied palate is chalky and bright with delicate flavors and an uplifted, citrus-tinged finish. This is very easy to drink!

The 2020 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills begins with a touch of matchstick reduction, requiring plenty of aeration. It unfolds slowly to warm white peaches and singular wafts of lychee and dried tarragon, an intriguing interplay of exoticism and savory reduction. The palate is still youthfully coiled with linear acidity, anchoring texture and an evolving finish that hints at more to come. Give it a few years in bottle to unwind.

The 20 Best Red Wines for Christmas
We’re really into the higher price points now where any wines have to really prove their worth, and this wonder certainly does because it’s one of the best we’ve had the joy of experiencing. The ultimate dreamy date-night Tuscan red, it’s an Italian French love affair with rich tannins and magically intense dark fruits. These seductively tangle with indulgent dark chocolate, ripe cherries, raspberries rolled in black pepper and dark, juicy plums. So much has been experienced before the embracing finish of cherry compote and warming cedar spice that echoes and echoes in the mouth. Pure romance, pure excellence. Save this special wine for an equally special night and you won’t be disappointed!

About $35, distributed in Illinois by Romano Brothers Beverage. Learn to love merlot again! Once America's top-selling red, the grape was pillaged by overplanting and an unfortunate rant in "Sideways," "I will not drink *#@* merlot!" This Merlot, along with the classic Bordeaux blend including cabernet sauvignon, was long-ripened to modify the grape's vegetal bitterness into pleasing mint, green tobacco and forest floor accents, enveloped by black cherry and plummy fruit. The soft entry extends on the palate to a pleasingly firm finish. The label represents the Roman Faunus (the Greek Pan), half man/ half goat, god of forests and fields, bringer of merriment and mischief. It also represents the duality of Tuscany's tradition paired with a modern "micro-cru" concept, i.e., pairing each grape with specific vineyards, which are vinified separately to express the unique expression of the land.

Slightly darker in colour, fuller in body, and a touch more on the dry side, this Pinot still qualifies as medium-bodied but carries more weight with plenty of black fruit on the nose. The flavour is a complex melange of sweet and sour cherries along with raspberry and that characteristic metallic finish. Its well-structured and lasting acidity would cut the richness of mushroom risotto or grilled pork beautifully.

This Merlot is crafted in a big, broad-shouldered style, with intense dark fruit, cherry, plum, herb, vanilla, chocolate and spicy oak. An impressive wine that will be equally at home at a casual barbecue with ribs, sausages or burgers or a formal roast beef dinner.

Christmas Gift Guide 2022
All that glitters may not be gold, but that doesn’t mean we don’t still want it on our Santa list. Here are top luxury Christmas ideas for you and yours…
Château Lassègue Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2015
For the main event, you’ll want a consummate all-rounder: a wine with enough structure and richness to match the smorgasbord of flavours on your Christmas dinner table without being so full bodied it takes over.
Welcome to Château Lassègue – an expressive Saint-Emilion Grand Cru that seems custom made for the festive period. You’ll find opulent layers of spiced black fruit preserves and chocolate-box bites. There’s plenty of plush tannins, but they’re balanced with fragrant acidity. It’s everything a claret should be.
Such quality is hardly a surprise as it’s made by celebrated Bordeaux blend master Pierre Seillan – who’s been at the top of his game for five decades.

The perfect introductory to Monterey pinot, the Caramel road label comes mainly from the Panorama Vineyard. Look for a round, silky texture full of red fruit, black cherry, and cola dusted in baking spices. Fruity, charming, and easy to sip, it will be a hit with consumers looking for lighter, juicy, soft red wine. It is certified sustainable and ready to drink.

Winemaker Chris Carpenter turns out one hit after the other for this property, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary. Not many winemakers can produce a cabernet franc that can stand on its own without massive assistance from other grape varieties. But from the grape grown in mountain vineyards, he gets concentration, complexity and depth. Violet and dried herbal aromas give way to blackberry and black cherry flavors with a touch of kirsch.

The 2020 Yarra Valley chardonnay, a blend of grapes from three of Giant Steps’ single vineyards, is a vibrant wine with persistent lime, green apple and pear flavours, with a touch of vanilla. A very fresh style.

21 Bottles Of Wine We're Buying To Survive This Holiday Season
This bottle has flavors of lemon meringue, wild strawberries, fresh ginger on the palate and a vibrant lingering finish that will be sure to whet appetites.

Luxurious aromas of red cherry sorbet, strawberry, light tar, dark mint and a slightly dank herb are cut by smashed stone on the incredibly complex nose of this bottling, arguably this brand’s best of this vintage. A bright, tonguetingling, long-lingering acidity sails through forest floor and tarragon flavors that give complexity to that core of ripe red cherry on the palate.

Lovely aromas of strawberry compote, soft mint and an array of baking spices lure the nose into this bottling. The polished red fruit flavors of the palate range from cherry compote to strawberry sorbet to darker hints of berry. But it’s that zippy, fresh acidity and tense tannic energy that push this into vibrantly delicious levels.

A glossy, vanilla-and-spiced oak sentinel stands guard over this Cab-Shiraz blend from a top McLaren Vale vineyard. It’s not wholly intrusive, but it makes itself known, as do the characteristics of supple dark berry fruit and chocolate with undertones of mint and spice. The palate is equally rich and broad shouldered, with plump, concentrated fruit and spicy, powerful but well-placed tannins. An infant now, it should age gracefully and slowly. Drink 2024 until well into the 2030s.

This single vineyard beauty, from a restrained and acid-driven Chardonnay vintage in the Yarra Valley, leads with reductive flint and nut characters. They’re woven in with more delicate aromas like stone fruit, waxy lemon, white spice, orchard blossoms and wet stones. Toasty oak is there too, but it’s well tucked. The mouthfeel is beautifully balanced, with prickly, citrusy acidity and supportive oak. Precise yet still characterful, this is an excellent, food friendly example of modern Aussie Chard. Drink now–2032.

This renowned Yarra Valley winery has ventured outside Victoria and into Tasmania. This bottling bears the Giant Steps signature but walks to a distinctly different beat. It’s layered and spicy with brambly red currant, cranberry and blueberry fruit backed by subtle chocolaty oak, white pepper and violets on their stems. There’s heft to the palate, with concentrated fruit, spicy, chiseled tannins and barrel influence. An expressive bottling, well-made with longevity in mind. Drink now–2032.

Ripe and fruit-driven, with a big wave of warmed cassis and plum coulis flavors dotted with violet, anise and tobacco notes. Shows good underlying juicy energy, too. Drink now through 2030. 558 cases made.

Neither oak spices nor tannins dominate this medium-bodied wine, allowing the grape variety’s complex, savory characters of black currants and bay leaves to shine through, backed by a supple texture and light, integrated tannins.

This full-bodied, powerful and tannic wine exerts a big force on the palate, gripping very ripe blackberry and black cherries with a firm, tooth-drying texture. Time will mellow it, but the muscularity will remain. Best from 2028.

On part of the traditional Onkaparinga
lands of the Kaurna people, Yangarra
respectfully tends its Rhône varieties
using biodynamic principles. This wine,
from very old bush-pruned Grenache is
sensational. Deep garnet in hue, the wine
exhibits ripe cherry and plum fruit with
cedarwood and herbes de Provence
accents. The vibrant fruit and oak
flavours on the palate are framed by
silky tannins and fresh acidity leading to
a lingering finish. Complex, layered and
textured, this is a great wine for lamb
chops with garlic, served with a
redcurrant jelly