Verite's 2011 La Joie is a dark, brooding wine bursting with energy and intensity. Naturally, the 2011 is cool, inward and shut down as so many wines are in this vintage, but at the same time, it has tons of vibrancy. An exotic melange of blue/black fruits, graphite, pencil shavings, smoke and incense take shape in the glass. The 2011 La Joie is very much in line stylistically with other vintages, but it is just small-scaled, in keeping with the personality of the year. The blend is 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 8% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2026.

Good deep ruby. Slightly reduced aromas and flavors of blackberry, cassis, licorice, rocky minerality, leather and pepper; a bit less expressive today than La Muse. Big, broad, dense and dry but not yet filled in; comes across as a bit youthfully musclebound and tannic today but not heavy. Juicy more than fleshy; very much a wine from a cooler year (the alcohol here is a moderate 13.8%). This will be slow to evolve.

Full medium ruby. Crushed cassis, licorice, menthol, minerals and violet on the very dark nose. Very concentrated and juicy but a bit youthfully imploded, with fruity, peppery acidity giving energy and lift to the middle palate. The very long, rising finish features building tannins and lingering black fruits.

The numerous Chardonnay vineyards are planted at 800 to as high as 1,800 feet (in the case of the Gravel Bench, Upper Barn and Broken Road vineyards). All are 100% Chardonnays largely made from the Old Wente clone with a small percentage of the Hyde clone, and are fermented with indigenous yeasts. Almost all of them spend 10-11 months in various percentages of new French oak, ranging from a low of 44% (the Estate Chardonnay) to a high of 100% (the Gravel Bench Chardonnay. The differences between the various cuvées are very subtle as they are all relatively full-bodied, rich, and aromatic with natural textures. As the scores attest, they are far more alike than dissimilar. My favorites include the 2013 Chardonnay Gravel Bench, which reveals amazing texture and richness as well as a honeyed crème brûlée intensity and striking minerality. The same can be said for the 2013 Chardonnay Broken Road as well as the 2013 Chardonnay Upper Barn, a parcel made famous by Helen Turley and John Wetlaufer when they were producing Chardonnay from this site under their Marcassin label. All of these wines are great Chardonnays that combine the best of California ripeness with the minerality, structure and delineation of a French white Burgundy.

The 2013 Chardonnay Red Point possesses notes of caramelized grapefruit, orange and tangerines along with impressive minerality.

Whoa. While the last bottle I had of this exhibited some stewed characteristics, absolutely none of that here. Big juicy red fruit on the nose and the palate with that characteristic Siduri balance. Yes, this is on the bigger side of Pinot, even a decade out, but when it is balanced, it can be a beautiful wine. Outstanding.

USA, Northern California, Napa Valley: 2016 & 2017 – A Tale of Two Vintages A barrel sample blended of 85% Petite Sirah and 15% Syrah, the very deep garnet-black colored 2017 Petite Sirah gives up a wonderfully earthy nose to begin, featuring notes of mossy bark, fungi and black soil over a core of warm redcurrants and plums with hints of mulberries and spice box. The palate is full, rich and very firm with chewy tannins and a lively backbone supporting the generous fruit, finishing long.

A barrel sample, the 2016 Hartford Court Chardonnay Stone Côte gives up gorgeous ripe peach, apple pie and pineapple notions with touches of ginger, lightly browned toast and chalk dust. Medium to full-bodied with a silken texture, it has a refreshing backbone cutting through the intense stone fruit and spicy flavors, finishing long and minerally.

The 2015 Chardonnay Jennifer’s comes from a windy, cold Sebastopol Hills neighborhood from primarily the old Wente clone. Loads of orange marmalade, white peach and pineapple jump from the glass of this light gold wine, which has great precision and acidity. It is a super-concentrated, fleshy wine with a long, layering finish.

The 2014 Chardonnay Fog Dance Vineyard is from a hillside vineyard in the very cool-climate Green Valley, not far from the little “hippie” town of Forestville. Aged in 38% new French oak, the wine offers a light gold color with a greenish hue, hints of tangerine oil, pineapple, white peach and citrus. This is rich, full-bodied and stunningly proportioned, and much like all the other Chardonnays, the oak is very subtle and nuanced. This is another tour de force in Chardonnay winemaking from winemaker Jeff Stewart.

The 2012 Chardonnay Stone Cote Vineyard (a block within the Durell Vineyard planted on gravelly riverbed soils) is 100% barrel-fermented and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Made from a combination of Old Wente clones and some of the newer Chardonnay clones, it exhibits a terrific wet rock/powdered stone-like minerality along with beautiful aromas of exotic fruits (mangoes and tangerines), great intensity, full body, terrific acidity, and 14.8% alcohol. This beautiful Burgundian-styled Chardonnay should be enjoyed over the next 7-8 years.

A barrel sample, the 2016 Hartford Zinfandel Hartford Vineyard is deep garnet-purple in color, offering blackberry pie, fruitcake and plum preserves notions with touches of licorice, Indian spices and garrigue. Full-bodied, rich and pleasantly chewy in the mouth, the remarkable freshness cuts through the densely packed berry preserves layers, finishing on a savory note.

A barrel sample, the 2016 Hartford Zinfandel Fanucchi-Wood Road Vineyard is deep garnet-purple in color and opens with black forest cake, tar and black soil notes over a core of crème de cassis and blueberry preserves, plus a touch of Sichuan pepper. Full-bodied, savory and chewy in the mouth, it has a lovely understated character with a good long, harmonious finish.

Lots of dark-berry and chocolate character with hints of smoky wood now. Full-bodied, juicy and flavorful. Soft and round tannins.

Pale gold, with a green hue. Potent scents of pit fruit nectar, seaweed, anise and smoky minerals, with sexy floral and mace notes adding complexity. Stains the palate with intense nectarine and pear flavors that are braced by a strong mineral quality. There's an intensity here that's really impressive. Refuses to let go on the finish, which strongly echoes the anise and floral notes.

USA, California: All Along the Central Coast – The 2017 Vintage in Paso Robles and Beyond The 2017 Pinot Noir Jackson Estate Seco Highlands, aged 10 months in 30% new French oak, has a pale to medium ruby color and opens with some reductive notes of struck match/gunflint. With air, it offers olive, woodsmoke, bacon fat, roasted cranberries, dried citrus peel, tree bark and amaro aromas. Medium-bodied and silky, it's intense and expressive in the mouth, with a firm frame of grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and bitters laced. This needs more time in bottle or a good decant.

As usual, from six blocks across the estate, with half from sandier soils and half more influenced by ironstone. There’s also 4% viognier in the mix. The inclusion is not unusual, but a slightly higher proportion warranted disclosure. It’s a co-ferment, so the integration is seamless. There’s a certain suave ease to this, both in fragrance and calm glide across the palate, though it sits in a mid-weight zone. Ripe red fruits more than black, warm spices, a trace of hardy herbs, the ferrous influence discreet. It’s a charming wine, undemanding in all the right ways, and, while ready to go, it should drink well over the next five years or so.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Emery mixes balsamic black cherries with sweet sage and crushed stones on the nose. It is silken in form, pliant and round, with ripe red and black fruits that swirl across a stern mineral core on the palate. Sweet tannins frame the experience, and nuances of tart blackberry and licorice fade on the finish.

This is off 1962 planted bush vines and wild ferments in egg shaped amphorae.

It’s quite hearty and sweet fruited, a touch into the confected and jammy side but neatly driven back by a swish of crackling, blood orange acidity, pleasing aniseed bitterness and a feathery tug of dusty tannin. The tannin profile a touch rustic; dried leaf in in the finish. A heady perfume signs a bit of riper, medicinal cherry fruit in too. In all this, a wine doing a good if not great job with the variety, perhaps needing, actually, yes needing a little more time to gel. But lots to like.

Ewe Bewdy. A couple of months on skins. Hangs out in amphora. Proper.

It’s a wine to keep coming back to, there’s things to check in on. I mean you always come back to a bottle, per se, but the thing is this one delivers curiosity. It’s good, but doesn’t surprise or uplift in the way amazing wine may. It’s solid. Built on alternating waxy and chalky texture, a plushness, but then also a sense of ‘watery’ and while the perfume flourishes with florals, citrus dried and fresh, exotic spice, the palate is more subdued, if not muted, though pear and citrus, dried and fresh again, also make a presence felt. It’s squeaky and tight in the finish. It does a lot, but there’s a sense of wanting more.

The 2022 Cabernet Franc is a new wine in this range, made as an earlier-drinking, more affordable offering than the flagship Cabernets. Mocha, espresso, rich blackberry fruit and underbrush tones saturate in generous layers, all motivated by absolutely mouthwatering acidity. There’s so much concentration here at only 13.6% alcohol. Balanced, fine structure and a lifted, fresh finish are quite attractive. Lovely, especially for the year.

The 2022 Cabernet Franc is a new wine in this range, made as an earlier-drinking, more affordable offering than the flagship Cabernets. Mocha, espresso, rich blackberry fruit and underbrush tones saturate in generous layers, all motivated by absolutely mouthwatering acidity. There’s so much concentration here at only 13.6% alcohol. Balanced, fine structure and a lifted, fresh finish are quite attractive. Lovely, especially for the year.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Fog Dance is another excellent wine in this range. Medium-bodied and rounded around the edges, the 2023 has a real sense of textural intrigue, coating the cheeks with blood orange, white pepper, cured olive and rosewater before receding into itself. Tightly wound today, the Fog Dance needs time.

The 2023 Pinot Noir Docker Hill Vineyard exudes coastal character in a soft-stepping, elegant frame, with sneaky underlying tension. Sea spray, tart red cherry, red licorice and nori tones unfurl in the glass, revealing further shades of marine herbs, underbrush and a tinge of iron-like minerality. The 2023 continues to put on complexity with each passing moment, maintaining laser-like focus and linearity as it confidently marches across the palate. Salivating acids saturate the close. This needs time to gain breadth, but the stuffing is there.

The 2023 Zinfandel Highwire Vineyard comes alive in the glass but is also very tightly wound today. A densely packed core of mineral-inflected blue/black berry fruit and exotic spices rides atop a cool-toned base layer of mouthwatering, vibrating acids. Savory herbal tones gain momentum with air before the Highwire slams shut on the finish. Though it's backward today, the 2023 has the stuffing to come together nicely with a couple of years in bottle.