A delicious Chianti that manages to have both the dusty, tannic, earthy characteristics of Sangiovese while also presenting a ripe fruitiness and a great mouth feel. I would decant this for a couple of hours before drinking.

17 Intoxicating Mother's Day Gifts for Moms Who Love WineFrom high-profile Pierre Seillan, who makes wine on Bordeaux’s Right Bank as well as in Sonoma (Vérité), comes a Tuscan project showcasing his favorite variety: Cabernet Franc (representing 73 percent of this wine). High-toned aromas of violets and red berries belie the power and density of the palate that follows, and yet there’s great balance and finesse here, with juicy acidity and rounded tannins.

This is a convincingly concentrated and complex pinot that offers deep dark-cherry aromas with spice and cedar, as well as violet and blueberry. The palate holds shape well with a sweeping build of ripe cherry and blueberry flavors. Very resolved. Drink now.

The use of 50% whole clusters here makes for a bright rendition of red cherry and plum with sappy, light herbal accents and deeper, spiced darker-berry tones. The palate is rich and sweeps broad strikes of plush, ripe and fine, soft tannins. Darker berries pervade the finish with blueberries, too. Drink now.

This offers attractively earthy and spicy nuances across ripe and rich dark fruit, such as plums and brambleberries. The palate holds such impressive depth and volume. Really rich, silky tannins here, carrying red and dark-fruit flavors long. Bold but drinkable pinot. Fine now.

This pale ruby colored Pinot Noir from the "Edmeades Vineyard" in the Anderson Valley is quite inviting. It opens with faint blueberry and red raspberry bouquet with a hint of vanilla cola. On the palate, this wine is light to medium bodied, nicely balanced, soft, smooth and delicate. The flavor profile is very tasty mild red raspberry and red plum blend with hints of red cherry, cola and allspice. The finish is dry and its flavors drift away nicely. This Pinot would pair nicely with a pecan encrusted red snapper.

Opens with a wealth of baking spices and pastry, as well as baked blueberry and rose hip. Red fruit rises up in the mix with air. The palate delivers a smooth line of poached-raspberry flavor. Pure and ripe. Drink now.

This sits in a fragrant and ethereal style with aromas of wild red cherry, raspberry, pomegranate and fresh-picked herbs. The palate is bright and smooth with a supple, fleshy core. Very drinkable now.

Dakél is an ambitious new Chardonnay from Jackson Wine Estates, made with consultant Andrés Sánchez. Textured and creamy, it uses three different clones for complexity (4, 76 and 96) and completes malolactic fermentation. The second use wood is well integrated, the stone fruit flavours sweet and engaging, the acidity refreshing.

Andrés Sanchez and Randy Ullom make this ambitious Itata Valley Pinot Noir, sourced from two sites in the Itata Valley with clones 667 and 777. It's quite a ripe style, with 14.5% alcohol, but it has plenty of texture, flavour and weight, with floral top notes, sweet oak and mulberry and wild strawberry fruit flavours.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionToday covering almost 17 hectares, the estate's Cabernet Franc is subject to a broad as much as a severe selection, which has improved the wines. It was sourced from a single plot in 2008, while this 2016 comes from 10 different plots. The French clones (326 - 327) can be problematic according to winemaker Pierre Seillan: 'With too high yields, too much herbal character is achieved, while with a tight leaf canopy it wouldn't ripen properly'. Cabernet Franc is not new to producing outstanding wines in Tuscany, and Seillan is not new to managing this grape variety in pursuit of excellence. Crimson in colour, it has a super restrained Cab Franc character of cassis and eucalyptus, with an almost citrus flavour in depth and a sweet, toasty finish of milk chocolate, liquorice and cacao powder. This 2016 is sleek and concentrated, with ripe, refined tannins and refreshing acidity. A full and tense wine.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionThe use of 70% new French oak for Arcanum is well integrated already in the young wines and deliciously melded in this 2013. More tight and elegant than powerful, this vintage produced a restrained Cabernet Franc (blended with 17% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon) full of earthy minerality, cedar wood aromas, balsamic notes in depth and a sweet finish of pipe tobacco. The cedar flavours flow with a velvety, almost silky texture and juicy acidity. The sternness of Castelnuovo Berardenga is here matched exceptionally with the fleshy character of this stylish Left-Bank blend.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionThe celebrated 2016 vintage in Tuscany continues to impress. This Bordeaux blend is based on Merlot but has a slightly Left Bank style, and will soon become the estate's current vintage of Valadorna, due to be released this year. Aged in 60% new French oak, it is polished and intense, with bramble fruit, earthy balsamic tones, a milk chocolate aroma and a slightly herbal touch. Its tight-knit structure, combining crisp acidity and firm yet velvety tannins, makes this a powerful yet graceful wine. Even if you're not a fan of Tuscan Merlot, the tense character it gives to wines in the Chianti region is to be admired.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionIn 2015 Arcanum was not 100% Cabernet Franc but blended with 10% of both Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, as well as a drop of 6% Petit Verdot which seems to be essential to the structure here. The wine is burly, with forward plum and cassis fruits, showing great concentration on the mid-palate with initially silky then progressively powerful tannins of excellent texture. More approachable in its youth yet not without the ability to last.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionThe first Bordeaux blend of the estate, based on Merlot and Cabernet Franc with a shot of Cabernet Sauvignon and a drop of Petit Verdot, is aged in 30% new French oak barrels for 18 months. It is restrained at present, scented with violet and cassis, undergrowth, chocolate and eucalyptus. It's smooth on the palate, with creaminess and great ripeness, super-refreshing and savoury. In the classic 2018 vintage this is definitely more elegant than powerful.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionCompared to the older and warmer 2011, which is a bit rustic and jammy, this 2013 is a fairly classic vintage for Merlot. It was harvested in September, marking a return to the usual picking dates. The percentage of the Merlot here reaches 74% of the blend, in order to maximise its fleshy character in a relatively cool year. The nose is evolved yet with an amazing complexity of tobacco, earthy tones, clean leather and balsamic depth. On the palate cassis fruit melds with leather and spices, supported by polymerised tannins and natural refreshing acidity.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionThis is a truly exceptional preview since the wine will not be released for another three years. The 2018 vintage of Valadorna is the first 100% Merlot of the estate. Until then, the grapes had not achieved the right level of ripeness and quality to produce an unblended Merlot. This vineyard is one of the cooler plots of the estate, where the harvest is delayed. Extremely youthful, it displays plenty of estery notes alongside plum fruit of great vibrancy. A layer of slightly herbal aromas (in my opinion preferable to jammy notes) is followed by a milky, chocolatey, supple palate with refreshing acidity and velvety tannins.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionIn the 2013 vintage, Strada al Sasso was not yet a Gran Selezione (the classification was introduced for the first time in the same year). Instead, it was classified as a Riserva. The vintage was very classic, being considered more cool than warm, not particularly rich yet balanced, and of great complexity. Indeed, this 2013 is complex with a wide range of tertiary aromas including tobacco, black truffle, liquorice, leather, and earthy minerality in depth. Both nose and palate are dominated by elegant red cherry fruit, with chalky yet ripe tannins bound tightly to chewy acidity, leading to a clean finish. A wine that's close to mature but not tiring.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionStrada al Sasso is the top cru of the estate. It lies at 400 metres above sea level, the ideal elevation to grow Sangiovese here. The 2018 vintage was more fleshy than structured in Castelnuovo Berardenga. This Gran Selezione is purplish, vinous on the nose due to its extreme youthfulness, showing a great definition of elegant cherry fruit completed by liquorice and graphite in depth. Floral notes of fresh violets enhance the flavour. Full, a bit warming with its 15% of alcohol but well balanced by brilliant acidity, this is a rich Chianti Classico with firm yet ripe tannins.

Tenuta di Arceno: chasing perfectionThis cru is based on 100% Sangiovese clones from Col d'Orcia. It's a flag of typicity, with polite use of oak (just 12 months in mostly second-fill barriques) and a greatly suited vineyard. In the dry 2017 vintage, Castelnuovo Berardenga suffered from the heat but benefitted from its cooler soils. The wine shows pleasant fruitiness, with a cherry jam and raspberry character, leather and hints of game. Full and ripe, it's lashed by firm acidity resulting a slightly austere finish.

This Monterey pinot noir pink is fermented in stainless to try and preserve freshness. Soft strawberries, cream, red apple, and a twist of mandarin fill the peach-hued, medium+ palate. The finish is snappy and brief. Chill well and drink this friendly, simple pink this summer.

The 19 Best Grenache Wines to Buy Right NowSand-based soils cradle vines planted back in 1946, and nurture a wine of fantastic aromatic complexity: First cherries, then raspberries, then brambly berries sweep in before the spice notes hit. All of it sets the stage for a plush, elegant, layered Grenache, with mountain berries, fresh-picked cherries, and cracked floral peppercorns. This terrific wine's concentration grows as the finish lingers on: It's nothing short of regal.

The 19 Best Grenache Wines to Buy Right NowThis is in a great place right now, with a razor's-edge balance between concentration and freshness carrying flavors of blood orange, licorice, dried herbs, violets, black and red cherries, green olives, and a touch of candied orange peel. It has another decade to go, at least, but I love this already. Note: 2017 was the last vintage of this wine; the fruit is now going into the Yangarra Hickinbotham Vineyard Grenache, and the 2019 will be released later in 2021.

Give quiche a chance – and give this Californian chardonnay the chance to stand up to the bacon, leek, and cheddar. This style will unite lovers of both new and old world chardonnay thanks to its rich butter, pineapple, and lemon curd on the nose and its fresher red apple on the palate, with enough rich butter and lemon curd flavours to balance its fresh acidity. A great lesson in how to balance fruit, oak, and acidity in a food-friendly white wine.

This bold, ripe pinot embodies the warmth of Sta. Rita Hills in Santa Barbara. It's not shy on dark berry fruit, with cola, rhubarb, and sweet spices. It's drinking well now with a nice combination of fresh fruit and tertiary complexity coming from bottle age at five years. Medium-full bodied, it's dense and concentrated with impressively supple tannins. If you like pinot that's at the riper end of the spectrum, but without being over the top or just a fruit bomb, this is a winner.