The 2018 Pinot Noir Docker Hill from a site in Mendocino, is brisk, finely cut and full of character. Bright red/purplish fruit, blood orange, cinnamon and spice are all finely sketched. Deceptively medium in body, the 2018 has terrific energy and tons of class. It is a typically nervy Pinot from this part of Northern California.

The 2017 Armoniza is a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 14% Malbec, all from Knights Valley. The flavors are bold and punchy in this super-expressive, vibrant red. I would cellar the 2017 for at least a few years, as the acids are bright while the tannins are searing. There is plenty of fruit behind that, but it needs time to emerge.

Checking in as a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the dense purple-hued 2017 Red Wine gives up classic 2017 savory red and black fruits as well as lots of chalky minerality, notes of lead pencil, graphite, and tobacco, full-bodied richness and depth, and building yet polished tannins. This gorgeous 2017 has some charm today yet will benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age and have two decades of overall longevity.

The 2019 Zinfandel Fanucchi-Wood Road Vineyard is a darker, slightly more earthy release that has darker berry and blue fruits to go with medium to full body, a structured, tannic mouthfeel, nicely integrated acidity, and a big finish. It's going to benefit from a year or two of bottle age yet keep nicely through 2031 if stored correctly.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesThe 2018 Pinot Noir Marin County was aged for 16 months in French oak barrels, 44% new. Pale ruby-purple colored, it leaps from the glass with vibrant black raspberries, pomegranate and Bing cherries notes followed by nuances of underbrush, wild sage and truffles. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant and refreshing with tightly wound red berry and earthy layers and fine-grained tannins, finishing with an herbal lift.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesThe 2018 Pinot Noir Jennifer’s was aged for 16 months in French oak barrels, 35% new. Pale to medium ruby-purple colored, it bursts with juicy raspberries, Morello cherries and pomegranate notes plus hints of rhubarb, dried Provence herbs and lavender. Medium-bodied, the palate is soft-spoken and elegantly played with a plush texture and lively finish.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesThis is a new vineyard source for Hartford Court, located in Mendocino County. The 2018 Pinot Noir Docker Hill was aged for 15 months in French oak barrels, 28% new. It gives up gregarious notes of raspberry preserves, Morello cherries and red currants with suggestions of underbrush, lavender and bay leaves. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has great tension and is wonderfully nuanced with loads of red berry and earthy layers textured by fine-grained tannins, finishing with a lively lift.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesComposed of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Merlot, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Bosché Vineyard was aged 27 months in French oak barrels, 68% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it delivers scents of Black Forest cake, black currant jelly and blueberry pie with hints of dusty soil, dried lavender and unsmoked cigars. Medium to full-bodied, it has a firm, grainy texture and lovely freshness while chock-full of black fruit preserves, finishing long with mineral suggestions.

The 2018 Pinot Noir Upland has a medium ruby-purple color and touches of flint on the nose, opening slowly to perfumed red and black berry fruits. The medium-bodied palate is firm and very juicy, packed to the gills with earth-accented fruits, and it finishes long and flavorful. Give it another 2-3 years in bottle.

The One With The Quietest Personality. Shy chardonnay with green apple, green mango, nectarine, grapefruit juice and white almond. That’s the story. Juicy in the palate with a nice little chalky pucker to it. Feels quite translucent in texture, a bit diffuse, but that grip and chew to finish counters that quite nicely. Perfume is sedate but pretty with all that character there when you seek it out. Fresh feeling, nice shot of minerals through the core, finishes pleasing albeit a little steely and resinous, and cool. Easy as. Good stuff.

This year’s it a single vineyard release from Tarraford. Roughly 30% whole bunches, no fining, no filtration. It builds in the glass quite beautifully. It seems juicy and free-flowing at first but gradually the strings pull tighter. Garden herbs, boysenberries, cloves and red cherries, the balance between its various aspects pitched just so well. It tastes as though it’s hardly trying but that’s what it wants you to think. It’s a savoury shiraz done very well; it’s going to improve over time rather than merely holding; it’s buoyant and succulent and things like that.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2018 VintageThe 2018 Chardonnay Machado opens with bright, high-toned notions of saline, iodine and crushed shell, accenting a core of tangerine, quince and chamomile. The medium-bodied palate has broad fruits in a satiny texture, and it zeroes in with bright freshness on the long, mineral-laced finish.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyThe 2018 Pinot Noir Rita's Crown Vineyard saw a touch of stems (20%) and was brought up in 70% new French oak. It's a firmer, more focused, structured wine with lots of darker fruits, crushed stone, graphite, and herbal aromatics, medium to full body, bright acidity, firm tannins, and a kiss of background oak. It's mostly potential at this point and is going to benefit from 2-4 years of bottle age. I think it's a terrific wine, though.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyLastly, the 2018 Pinot Noir Radian Vineyard was all destemmed and brought up in 45% new barrels. It shows a touch of its élevage, with plenty of spicy oak as well as pretty red and black fruits, violets, and dried flower-like aromas and flavors. With medium to full body, good acidity, and a clean, classy style, give bottles a year or so and enjoy over the following decade.

Semi-opaque in color, the Siduri Clos Pepe Vineyard offers a spicy dark fruited nose. It is full bodied and elegant on the palate with excellent concentration of ripe dark red cherry fruit complemented by herbal brambly notes. A wine packed with flavor. Located in Hwy 246 and planted in the mid-1990s to mostly the Pommard clone, Clos Pepe has established itself as one of the top vineyards of the Sta. Rita Hills.

Vintage Retrospective: The 2001 Napa Valley CabernetsBright, dark red to the rim. Slightly wild scents of dark fruits, black cherry, spice cake, licorice and coffee bean. Supple, fine-grained, savory and dry; less open to inspection and more tannic at first blush than La Joie, with its sweetness dominated by its tannic spine. Finishes pungent and long but a bit brutal, with less sweetness than La Joie and substantial tannins dusting the front teeth. I can see this wine softening further with another few years in the bottle. Will it expand or will it always remain tannic? This is Pierre Seillan's St. Emilion blend but I find this vintage more Medoc-like in style.

Saturated ruby to the rim. The nose shows more mineral lift but less fruit expressiveness than the Helena Dakota, offering hints of blackberry, cassis, menthol, flowers and spices. Sweet, dense and fine-grained but quite powerful too, conveying strong rocky minerality and verve. A bit less pliant on the finish than the Helena Dakota but the firm tannins are ripe and suave. Really stains the palate with violet. A higher-pitched wine than the Helena Dakota and a bit more tightly wound, reflecting its vineyard's somewhat higher altitude, but with its lovely floral lift and superb definition, this boasts outstanding potential for further development in bottle. (from a vineyard at 950 feet)

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018I loved the 2017 Petite Sirah from barrel last year, and it shows beautifully this go-round, with the classic power and richness of the variety yet a lighter, fresher style on the palate. It has good acidity, and I expect it's going to put on weight in bottle, so give it 3-4 years if you can.

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018A tiny production cuvee that's a cellar selection from sites in the Russian River, the 2018 Pinot Noir 40th Anniversary was 90% destemmed and spent ten months in 36% new French oak. It has a more fresh, focused, medium-bodied style offering lots of redcurrant and black raspberry fruit, a touch of background oak, plenty of earthy, charcoal, and graphite notes, ripe tannins, and good acidity. It's a beautiful wine yet still tight and closed. Give bottles 2-3 years and enjoy through 2028.

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018From an estate vineyard on Cloverdale Peak and an 80/20 split of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Pine Mountain has a rocking bouquet of crème de cassis, violets, lots of crushed rock-like minerality, and underbrush. This carries to a medium to full-bodied, elegant Cabernet with silky tannins, beautiful balance, and lush, layered style on the palate. It's a terrific wine as well as a great value in California Cabernet Sauvignon.

USA, Oregon: Searching for Hidden Gems from Willamette Valley's 2017 VintageThe second vintage of this wine, the 2016 Pinot Noir Vista has a medium ruby-purple color and nose of warm blackberries, cranberry sauce, damp tobacco leaf, dusty earth, smoked meats, amaro and dried flowers. The palate is medium-bodied with intense, savory fruits, a grainy frame and juicy freshness lifting the long, perfumed finish. This will reward another year in bottle.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s The 2015 Pinot Noir Machado shows the more briny, tight, firm style of the 2015 vintage as well as medium-bodied richness, terrific purity, building tannins, and solid length. As with a lot of 2015s, it needs another year or two of bottle age.

USA, California, Napa Valley: 2017 — Napa's Perfect Storm The 2017 Chardonnay Red Point has a very chalky, white pepper-laced nose over a core of fresh Golden Delicious apples, white peaches, cashews and cedar plus a hint of dill seed. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers mouth-filling stone fruit and apple flavors plus a racy line of freshness, finishing long and spicy. 372 cases produced.

The estate's 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Bosche is a little less outwardly exuberant than the Sycamore but makes up for that with its notable drive and pure energy. Black currants, crushed rocks, violets and melted road tar flow across the palate in this beautifully delineated vibrant wine. The floral-infused finish opens up beautifully with time in the glass. All the elements are in the right place. The 2009 Bosche is 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot.

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Sycamore Vineyard is quite a bit more structured than the Bosche. Menthol, pine, spices, licorice and dark red cherries are nicely layered in this powerful, rich wine. Hints of smoke and tar add gravitas on the powerful finish. The Sycamore Vineyard could prove to be a long-lived wine. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2025.