Offers a crisp, clean mix of citrus, green apple and white grapefruit flavors on a sleek, mouthwatering body. Drink now.

A few months ago, my very geeky wine friends hosted a “Pinot Party” at a local restaurant. We were all tasked with bringing a bottle of Pinot Noir –Old or New World– to share in a blind tasting competition of sorts. I grabbed a bottle of Zena Crown Vineyard’s “The Sum” from Eola-Amity Hills at local Miami wine shop, El Carajo. This was a new producer to me, but I usually enjoy Willamette Valley Pinots.
Sure enough, the wine was a hit, and honestly, my favorite bottle of the evening. In true Willamette style, the wine exhibits exactly the right balance of aromas and flavors between savory Pacific Northwest earth, and just-ripe cherries, along with a rich palate that is both silky and structurally strong.
I look forward to enjoying more from Zena Crown Vineyard in the future.
This is a great Pinot Noir!!

Honestly, an entire newspaper could be filled with advice on holiday food and wine pairings. So what follows must be considered an extremely edited, informal treatise. Take white wine, for example. Riesling, Sémillon, Pinot Gris: All have their place on the holiday table depending on the meal at hand.
But when comfort — and roast turkey— gets the call, it’s easy to uncork a bottle of rich, buttery Chardonnay. Well, KJ’s latest vintage Vintner’s Reserve Chard fits the bill. Big-time tropical fruit meets an underlying sweetness dabbed with vanilla and toast from barrel fermentation, yet the overall style is fresh with a lingering lick of baking spice to finish.
Bottom line: B, Bring on the candied yams and stuffing!

Giving to a foodie? This Bordeaux from 50-year old vines and a seventh-generation winemaking family is the ticket. Its bouquet has notes of violet. The palate is silky with red and black fruits, and the finish has nice round tannins. It's a fantastic food wine so, for an extra touch, print the winemaking family's recipe for Armagnac spiced pears, a holiday dish that pairs perfectly with the wine.

One of the original producers of quintessential, California Cabernet, Kendall Jackson is a small, family-owned estate in the north of Napa Valley that makes fabulous wines that are incredibly well-priced and easy to drink. It's an inky black, well-structured red with notes of damson, black cherry and cassis. Beautifully balanced and one that will sing with heavier meat dishes such as beef wellington or stews. Get it decanted to let it open up before drinking.

Pinot Noir is arguably the red grape to go with Christmas lunch as it's not heavy enough to send you to sleep, but it is flavoursome enough to stand up to turkey with all the trimmings. Russian River in California has quickly cemented its reputation for top quality Pinot Noir in recent years thanks to its ideal combination of weather and soils. The Hartford Court is silky smooth and intensely perfumed with notes of spiced, dark cherry compote, marzipan and earth. Stunning.

Durell is one of California’s truly great Chardonnay vineyards, and this wine shows superb depth and richness along with amazingly elegant mouth feel.

The 2019 Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay is a rich 100% barrel-fermented chardonnay full of sunny, fresh fruit flavours. Aromas of vanilla and honey create balance along with hints of toasted oak and butter. As the brand’s most popular release, it is the perfect selection to impress at any occasion this holiday season as it is approachable and exceptionally food-friendly. Super versatile, enjoy with Roasted Chicken, Roasted Turkey, Pork or Veal in Cream Sauce with Mushrooms, Mild Soft Cheeses, Lobster with Drawn Butter, Crab with Drawn Butter, Mushroom Risotto, and Poached Salmon, to name a few wonderful pairings!
Kendall-Jackson’s Vintner’s Reserve is a perfect “go-to” white wine to have on-hand and one that is sure to please your in-laws too.

Wine of the Day: La Crema Brut Rose Sparkling Wine
The countdown is on, and bubbles will be popping! Christmas is almost here, along with a fabulous new year, and one item is required for both, bubbles. From Russian River Valley La Crema crafts a luscious, lively, traditional method Brut Rose. The sparkling wine blends 73% Pinot Noir with 27% Chardonnay, both of which are whole-cluster pressed ensuring freshness is maintained throughout the vibrant wine. Aged for 2 years en triage (on the lees/yeasts) giving a light biscuit and blanched almond note to the aromatic sparkler. The bubble opens with aromas of fresh wildflowers and apple blossom, followed by layers of lemon curd, creamy toasted meringue, red berries, and baked apple. Balanced and bright, there is a focused mineral note that is carried throughout, melding harmoniously with the fruity, creamy layers. A perfect way to toast the holiday. #Cheers

The wine has a gorgeous nose. All botanicals, florals, berries, wet leaves, earth which is dewy and freshly turned. And then there’s a wow factor on the palate which is massive, complex, labyrinthine in its layers and nuances. Like a peacock somehow, a glimpse of the glory of its tail awaiting the years to open to full beauty. This wine will take years. It is dark, powerful, brooding, beyond words beautiful.

Tasting this gives you a glimpse of what is to come from the 2018. Supremely grand and elegant, a much broader structure as the tannins have relaxed their grip, the net has opened and with it, given access to the pathways of flavour which are energised by the freshness of acidity. Complex chains of flavour make this a difficult wine to categorise or even describe. What is clear is that the wine is beginning to unfurl, giving a glimpse of the beauty and array of flavours and sensations to come. The very essence of desire.

Such a pretty nose, floral, redolent also of autumn fruits and damsons, which over time in the glass releases the more oak driven mocha notes. The palate is compact, dense, the tannins are remarkably silky despite the youthfulness, the fruit is intensely ripe but not sweet. The overall impression is one of a circular wine, plush, hedonistic in the making, the flavours still in motion, becoming darker as they progress through the palate. There’s a freshness, a ‘tingle’ almost to the acidity mirroring the earlier picking regime, the efforts taken in the vineyard and at harvest to capture the essential freshness of Sonoma. The wine ends on black liquorice and coffee and the finish is seemingly endless – cut short only by the next wine. It’s a baby for sure.

With time, this Cabernet is now beginning to reveal its cornucopia of autumn fruits on the nose; black currants, plum, figs, red and blue berries. The palate is equally packed with flavour. However, the tannins remain upright, structural, imposing even, less rounded out than in La Muse or Le Désir. There is a delicious, savoury note to this wine, making it immensely appetising despite its firmness. It is drinking now, with a little help from a good steak, but has really only just begun its journey to ultimate pleasure.

Right from the start, this wine tells you exactly what it is all about, all Cabernet class, cassis, green leaf on the nose and pure, compelling graphite on the palate. This is an immensely powerful wine of regal stature. Statuesque but dynamic thanks to the seam of fresh acidity running through it like a current of air, the tannins are beautifully managed but are uncompromising at this stage. There is a denseness to the wine at this stage. The overall impression is one of monolithic splendour, like the greatest of Bordeaux Pauillacs.

Immediately on the nose, there is a beautiful freshness, more of the classic Merlot leafiness, like freshly picked berries. The texture is plush, silky, packed tannins that have melted into each other to create spongy layers of goodness. The flavours are reminiscent of plum compote with a hit of spice and premium baker’s cocoa nibs. The intensity of youth is just beginning to fade to a more harmonious, elegant adulthood. The finish is long, concentrated and lasting, leaving the palate perfumed with red fruit and rose petals.

This slightly opaque and deep purple colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Arrowood opens with a spiced plum and black cherry bouquet with hints of clove. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied with medium acidity. The flavor profile is a black currant and plum blend with notes of oak and minerality. I also detected hints of craisin and cinnamon spice. The finish is dry and its flavors and gentle fine tannins drift away nicely. This Cab would pair well with beef tenderloin and a red wine shiitake sauce on a baguette.

Father and son vignerons—Pierre and Nicolas Seillan produce this selection at Château Lassègue where ornate sundials adorn the façade of the 18th century château. This symbol of perfect sun exposure represents the message of the wines from the estate and can be found on the label. Lassègue is the flagship wine of the estate and is Saint-Émilion at its most opulent. Old vines grow on the south/southwest hills which are the prolongation of the Côte de Saint-Émilion, and whose soils of clay and limestone add exquisite minerality to their fruit. Rich, aromatic Cabernet Franc married to the dense concentration of old vine Merlot and seasoned with a touch of Cabernet Sauvignon results in a wine that is at once powerful and elegant.

Wines worth splurging on, holiday gift ideas
Oregon has been on a roll the past few years, consistently producing outstanding Pinot Noirs, one year after another since 2014. This voluptuous 2018 Pinot Noir from Penner-Ash Wine Cellars is another stunning wine from another great vintage. Made with grapes from the Yamhill-Carlton subregion in the widely-respected Willamette Valley famous for its complex Pinot Noirs, this wine hits all the right notes – bright yet subtle fresh berry flavors, a hint of toasted almond, vanilla and fresh herbs mixed with a dash of roasted figs. An outstanding wine that will drink well for at least the next 10 years.

Wines worth splurging on, holiday gift ideas
Fans of austere, red wines will love this understated yet intense red wine from France’s Saint Emilion subregion in Bordeaux. Made with a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from 40 to 50-year-old vines in limestone-rich soil, then aged for in French Oak for 12 months, this wine has a flinty yet earthy finish, with notes of dried blackberries and roasted almonds as well as a slightly smoky finish and a dash of sea salt. The only problem you’ll probably have with this wine is you might be tempted to age it for another 5 to 10 years. But good luck resisting the urge to open this wine right away.

Silky, balanced, fresh.
From under the umbrella of Jackson Family Wines, this plush Penner~Ash Pinot is an outstanding wine with fragrant notes of cedar and dried violets, sun warmed raspberries and cherry spiked with star anise. It's a fresh and balanced red woven with flavours of berries and earth, white pepper, anise and tealeaf. Silky, bright and elegant.

This medium purple colored Syrah from Copain opens with a moist pipe tobacco and black cherry bouquet with hints of leather, craisin and cinnamon. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied with medium acidity. It is also balanced and savory. The flavor profile is a pronounced oak influenced pomegranate and stony minerality blend with notes of craisin. I also detected hints of red raspberry and cinnamon mixed in. The finish is dry and its dusty tannins and fruit flavors sail away nicely and last for a considerable amount of time. This red fruit-based Syrah would pair well with Shaking Beef from the Slanted Door (San Francisco) or with bratwurst sliders on pretzel buns.

Wine of the Day: Willakenzie Tourdion Cuvee Blanc
Though there are likely not many wineries that blend Pinot Noir with Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc, but they should, as Willamette Valley’s Willakenzie Estate reveals with their luscious, lively Willakenzie Tourdion Cuvee Blanc. Inspired by the wines of France’s Alsace region, known for crafting stellar Grand Cru wines from the varieties, although usually as single varietal wines, Tourdion gracefully marries 45% Pinot Noir (pressed shortly after harvest to ensure the skins do not impart too much of their color into the delicate juice), 33% Pinot Blanc, and 22% Pinot Gris, from fruit grown throughout Willkenzie’s expansive estate filled with varying elevations, soil types, sun exposures, and microclimates. Each variety is harvested separately, whole-cluster pressed to maintain vibrant freshness, fermented and aged on the lees in neutral oak, giving a hint of creaminess and texture to the layered wine. The resulting wine is aromatic and inviting, opening with layers of orange blossom and lemon blossom, with subtle herbal notes, and spice, followed by notes of creamy lemon box pie, mandarin, melon, and a smokey mineral note of crushed stone. #Cheers

The 2018 Les Voisins is equally notable. It has more opulent pear and apple notes.

This well-respected winery draws grapes from Anderson Valley to make two distinct chardonnays – Les Voisins and this DuPratt. We liked this one in particular because of its special qualities that come from grapes grown on a small vineyard atop a ridge at 1,550 feet. It bares good acidity and austere character that make it a good match with food.

Eucalyptus and peony, the merest hint of liquorice and redcurrant make for a layered and complex nose. The palate is light but profound, tracing a clear and pristine outline of finest tannin, contouring the fruit with exactitude. This is vivid, bright, intense but oh so translucent. Bravo.