Preserved lemon, spice, fennel and honey. Bright and crunchy, with flesh and savoury flavours, cool acidity and chalky texture, long finish. Super release.

A wine with pureness and finesse, showing wonderful length and brightness. Dark berries, cherries and dried citrus. It's long and lively. Orange peel and other citrus notes at the end. Lots of minerality.

The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford was scheduled to be bottled in January 2024, so I tasted a barrel sample during my visit. A blend of fruit from Sycamore, Bosché and Red Barn Ranch, it offers up copious cherries with an undercurrent of mocha on the nose. It's medium to full-bodied, richly tannic and concentrated but still somewhat approachable, with a long, softly dusty finish.

Coming 50% Bosche and the rest from the Sycamore and Red Barn vineyards, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc that spent 21 months in 63% new French oak. This inky-hued 2021 has a killer nose of black and blue fruits to go with textbook tobacco, lead pencil, darker chocolate, and baking spice-like aromas and flavors. Rich, full-bodied, and concentrated, with fine tannins, it's a smoking bottle of wine at the price.

The darkest and inkiest of the lineup, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Jackson Estate Hawkeye Mountain offers a forward calling card of graphite, black plum, and wild herbs. Fleshy and full-bodied, it has ample structure, with a fresh spine of acidity and is toasty with sweet oak spice of cedar and vanilla. It’s going to need time but should prove to be a powerful, age-worthy wine with 10 or more years ahead of it.

The 2019 Winemaster's Blend, tasted as a barrel sample, has a deep ruby-purple color and cassis aromas with savory accents of tobacco leaves, aniseed, hoisin, graphite and cast iron, plus wafts of violets. Full-bodied and powerful, the palate's ripe, lush fruits are balanced by grainy tannins and bursts of fresh acidity that elevate the long finish. 400 cases will be made after maturing for 20 months in 40% new French oak.

The 2019 Stature Cabernet Sauvignon, tasted as a barrel sample, has an opaque ruby-purple color and scents of black cherry jam, blueberries, milk chocolate, pie spices and mint leaves. The full-bodied palate is elegant and floral, with finely grained tannins, juicy acidity and a long, spicy finish. 125 cases will be made after 26 months in 85% new French oak.

I tasted the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Poet's Peak as a finished barrel sample. Opaque ruby-purple in color, it is bursting with pure aromas of blueberries, black cherry jam, cedar and violets with wafts of fragrant sage and lavender. Full-bodied, the palate offers powdery tannins, bright acidity and a long, perfumed finish. It will be bottled after 20 months in 45% new French oak; 550 cases will be made.

I tasted the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Jackson Estate Hawkeye Mountain as a barrel sample. It will mature in 60% new French oak for 20 months and is due to be bottled in August 2022. Opaque ruby-purple in color, it has aromas of cassis, tobacco leaves and violets, with a youthful frame of cedar and sweet spice. The full-bodied palate is grainy, fresh and fragrant at this stage, finishing with gregarious floral perfume.

Fresh, bright and with a little freshly grated dark chocolate, white pepper and crushed rose petals and lilac alongside the intense blueberries, brambles, black cherries and crushed raspberries. There is a lovely aromatic complexity here and no discernible oak influence other than a little bit of roasted coffee bean. In the mouth we have an impressive limpidity and viscosity. The palate is dominated by the cool tranquillity of the Cabernet Franc which it is lovely to have here at 35%. There’s a touch of graphite too and a wild garrigue herbal element. The tannins are supple and svelte and this has good compactness and density. The finish is long and this exudes balance and harmony. Deeply impressive in the context of this – indeed, any – vintage.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesComposed of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2019 Red Blend Knights Valley was tasted as a finished-blend tank sample. A brand-new wine from Anakota, portions of the wine come from the Helena Montana and Dakota vineyards with 20% coming from a parcel of old vines next to the estate, and a dash of Petit Verdot has been added. It spent 12 months in French oak, 20% new.Deep garnet-purple in color, it leaps from the glass with chocolate-covered cherries, boysenberries and black currant pastilles scents plus hints of sautéed herbs, crushed rocks and garrigue. Medium to full-bodied, the palate gives firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness with loads of bright, crunchy black fruit flavors, finishing long and savory.

Wine of the Week It was a bit shocking to realize that I only had six bottles of Siduri left in the cellar. For years, this was my go-to CA Pinot as both the wines and the story were compelling (Adam and Diane met in a while working at the mall, made a wine, submitted it to Robert Parker and scored a mid-90), but so is the vineyard and wine: dark berry fruit (that is ever-so-slightly stewed), black pepper, and a bit of Christmas spice, this is an incredible Clos Pepe, even close to a dozen years out from vintage. Rich, unctuous, but also tart and playful, This is amazing. Excellent.

This medium purple colored Zinfandel opens with a fragrant red raspberry, pomegranate, and ripe red plum bouquet with a hint of balsam. On the palate, this wine is full bodied with medium plus acidity. The mouthfeel is balanced, bright, and juicy. The flavor profile is fruit forward, featuring strawberry, clove, and red raspberry with notes of chalky minerality and red plum. We also detected hints of triple sec, black cherry, and black tea. The finish is dry, and its moderate tannins are nicely extended. The Tasting Panel would pair this Zin with duck confit, a pepper encrusted venison, or with shrimp and grits.

This medium garnet colored Pinot Noir from Hartford Court is terrific. It opens with a mild red raspberry and red cherry licorice bouquet with hints of black tea and violets. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied with gentle acidity. The mouthfeel is soft, smooth, and very well-balanced. The flavor profile is red plum and cranberry blend with hints of clove, red cherry, minerality, and dried herbs. The finish is dry, and its flavors and soft gentle tannins are nicely extended. The Panel would pair this Pinot with oven roasted cherry chicken with rosemary or braised rabbit.

This pale straw-colored Chardonnay from Stonestreet opens with a fragrant pineapple, oak, and dried coconut flake bouquet. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied with nicely integrated minerality. The mouthfeel is very smooth and balanced. The flavor profile is a tasty pineapple and oak blend with notes of honey and Bartlett pear. I also detected hints of butter and mango in the aftertaste. The finish is dry, and its flavors linger and last for a very long time. This Chard is best enjoyed on its own and it will not last very long with a group that like this style of Chard!

Saturated medium ruby. Great super-ripe aromas of blackberry, violet, roast coffee, chicory and minerals. A huge, mouthfilling wine that coats every square millimeter of the mouth. Offers great sweetness and flavor intensity without any excess weight, thanks to the perfectly integrated acidity. Finishes with big toothdusting tannins and great persistence and thrust. I'd love to slip a sample of this in a tasting of St. Emilion wines.

A revelation. Reminiscent of a Sonoma version of Dalla Valle's Napa classic, Maya, it boasts a saturated purple color as well as aromas of creosote, charcoal, blackberries, currants, licorice, and toasty oak. There is enormous concentration and mass in the mouth, a great, multilayered mid-palate, a sweet tannin in the long, seamless finish. This prodigious 2001 oozes with complexity as well as flavor. What an achievement! Anticipated maturity: 2005-2030.

The 2018 La Muse, 90% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Malbec, is floral, elegant and light on its feet for such a rich wine. Hillside vineyards in Chalk Hill, Alexander Valley, Knights Valley and Bennett Valley confer structure and a good bit of savory intensity. The 2018 is full of intrigue, that much is clear.

Full, bright ruby. Aromas of blackcurrant, espresso and spice, lifted by a perfumed violet component. Silky and compellingly sweet; may not be as fat as the '99, but this is extremely stylish and aromatic, thanks to the addition of the cabernet franc. Wonderfully delineated and vibrant in the mouth. Finishes extremely long and subtle, with thoroughly suave tannins. The Verite wines appear destined to become California collectibles.

Saturated ruby to the rim. Aromas of blackberry, minerals, violet, licorice and mint. Dense, thick and silky; a large-scaled wine that somehow remains light on its feet. Finishes with utterly compelling floral perfume and superb spicy length. A wine of great finesse and potential.

The 2016 La Muse is a dark, inward wine that shows a bit more power and overall tannin than is often the case with this wine. The 2016 is shaping up be an especially somber La Muse. I imagine the 2016 will also be very slow to mature. Today, it is quite forbidding.

Today, the 2013 Le Désir is the least showy of the three Vérité wines, but then again Cabernet Franc is often quite slow to reveal itself. At this stage, what comes through most is a remarkable sense of silkiness and nuance. Finely sculpted fruit and fabulous overall balance are among some of the other signatures. For such a big wine, the Le Désir is remarkably delicate.

Another huge wine, the 2013 La Muse is endowed with serious power and overall structure, especially compared to the 2012 tasted alongside it. Sweet tobacco, grilled herbs, cedar and smoke add considerable nuance. There is plenty of fruit and overall richness, but the imposing tannic heft is going to demand considerable cellaring. -

Verité's 2012 Le Desir is huge and bombastic today. The 2012 has the highest percentage of Cabernet Franc of any of the three vintages in this tasting, which may be the reason it comes across as not fully put together at this stage. The aromatics are nowhere near expressive at this stage, instead, what stands out is the intensity and primary quality of the fruit, along with the wine's dense, full-bodied personality. Time is going to be of the essence with the 2012.

Medium ruby. Knockout nose combines black cherry, minerals, dusty spices and wild herbs. Wonderfully deep and sweet, with a creaminess leavened by inner-palate violet perfume. The lowest in acidity and highest in pH of this trio of wines and it shows. The palate-staining finish is broad, chewy and dense, with lingering spice and herbal nuances and lovely floral persistence. Today the wine's tannins are buried in fruit.