This shows fine purity to its black cherry, black currant and iron flavors, despite its dense texture and massive tannins. There is freshness, balance and a chewy feel to the finish. Best from 2022 through 2033.

This opaque and dark purple colored Cabernet Franc from Mt. Brave opens with a vanilla and blackberry bouquet with hints of nutmeg and violets. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied, balanced, smooth and rich. The favor profile is a tasty black currant and blueberry blend with notes of black raspberry, oak and black tea. We also picked up some hints of black pepper and pomegranate mixed in. It was very complex. The finish is dry and its dusty tannins stick around for a very long time. The Panels suggested pairing this Cab Franc with several dishes. Roy’s rib roast, braised short ribs and roast duck were suggested.

This slightly opaque and dark garnet colored Cabernet Sauvignon opens with a fragrant black cherry and eucalyptus bouquet with hints of red currant, cedar and moist pipe tobacco. On the palate, this wine is full bodied, balanced, smooth and silky. The flavor profile is a tasty graphite influenced black currant and gentle cedar blend with hints of herbs, cherry licorice laces and nutmeg. The finish is dry and its refined tannins are nicely prolonged. The Panel suggested pairing this Cab with a pan-seared duck breast or Italian beef braciole.

This inky purple colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Mt. Brave opens with blueberry and black raspberry bouquet with hints of cigar tobacco and espresso. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied, balanced and initially a little austere. The flavor profile is a crushed stone influenced mild ripe blackberry and blueberry blend with notes of oak and black currant. We also detected hints of black pepper and espresso mixed in. The finish is initially rather dry and its monster dusty tannins require decanting for at least an hour in the near term. Even after some decanting this Cab’s tannins will stick around for quite some time. As a result, this Cab needs will need to be paired with a dry-aged ribeye steak encrusted with Kona coffee.

Another fruity, juicy, lovely nose of fresh and ripe dark and red cherry with a hint of meat. That ripe cherry is front and center on the palate with zingy acidity, plenty of weight on the mid-palate, and a finish that lasts for a while. Yowza. Excellent.

Silky and polished, this elegant wine offers restrained oak aromas and flavors like cinnamon and nutmeg backed by vibrant red- and black-cherry flavors. Great balance from light tannins and good acidity give it an appetizing mouthfeel and will help it age well. Best from 2023.

Light baking spices blend with red cherry and a touch of sour cherry in this medium-bodied, deftly balanced wine. An elegant texture and subtleties in flavor seem to improve it with each sip. Best from 2023.

Sweet nose of ripe cherry, molasses, and spice. Yum. Whoa. This is another wine that is quite rich and fruity on the palate, but also well-balanced with a tart acidity that bookends all of that fruit. It might come off a bit thin on the mid-palate, but that is countered by the finish. Whoa? Excellent.

Medium to dark color, sweet, rich nose of ripe cherry, vanilla, freshly-turned earth, and five-spice. Yum. Great fruit (cherry, red currant) and acidity on the palate, with depth and length. Yowza. A great start to the tasting. Excellent.

From under the umbrella of Jackson Family Wines, this plush Penner-Ash Pinot is an outstanding offering that doles out intense cherry and raspberry aromas woven with baking spices, leather, violets, cocoa, vanilla and at the core, faint forest floor notes. It is supple and suggests the same sweet potent berry found on the nose. It's a full-throttle Pinot with a supple character and trails sarsaparilla and cocoa across the finish.

For earlier drinking than stablemates but 18, like 17, beautifully proportioned & fine, bright citrus acidity drawing out the finish & 30% new oak less overt. Own Banhoek grapes plus small portion from Helderberg. All the wines bunch pressed.

Adds Klein Karoo fruit to usual Stellenbosch, Robertson & Overberg sources in 17. Pronounced lemon-lime marmalade tones, obvious but well-judged vanilla oak support (French, 38% new, 10 months). Curvier than 16 but similar seam of salty acidity.

This north-facing single vineyard, from talented winemaker, Steve Flamsteed, sits along one of the Yarra's unofficial golden slopes. With the vines now over 20-years-old, layers of complexity are creeping in. Savory mushroom and hoisin notes mingle with bright blueberry, rhubarb, wild strawberry and dried violet characters, smudged by stony minerals. The palate shows lovely texture and balance, unraveling gradually: tangy fruit first, an earthy midpalate followed by sinewy tannins, then back to fruit and spice on the long finish—a tightrope walk of fruitiness and savoriness, delicacy and power.

Floral, slightly whole-bunchy and even tea-like on the nose, the 2018 Wombat Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir is stunningly complex, adding elements of tart red fruits to the mix. Cranberries and pomegranate seeds join cherries in this medium-bodied, silky-textured beauty. While delicate, it seems to have the requisite concentration for up to a decade of aging.

Fresh and vivid, offering a transparent mix of pineapple, Meyer lemon and tangerine flavors on a supple body. Impressive for the details of nutmeg and honeysuckle, with a long, sleek, expressive finish. Drink now.

From the highest vineyard in the Yarra (410 meters above sea level), the 2018 Wombat Creek Vineyard Chardonnay boasts remarkable ripeness allied to laser-like focus. Peach-like notes appear on the nose, accented by hints of toasted almond and grilled citrus. It's medium to full-bodied, expansive and generous on the palate, silky and rich yet refined, elegant and long on the finish. In a strong 2018 lineup, it's the standout Chardonnay this year.

Super pure white-peach and hazelnut aromas here with a freshly squeezed lemon edge. The palate is bright and mouthwatering and has plenty of lemon and white-peach flavors with a subtle wrap of savory hazelnut biscuit into the finish. Vibrant, pure chardonnay here. Drink over the next five years.

Applejack makes me think of Bourbon branding.A feast for the senses here but the quibble is the sweetness in flavour profile, jolly and jubey, pastilles at the fore. That being said, perfume is seductive, floral and cherry-berry fresh with sniffs of green herb. Flavours have that sweetness, faint mintiness, soft and confected elements with a late visit from tannin, though a very nice overlay of spice. It has a come-hither feel but misses some poise and class. Great drinking despite this.

Bright, light-yellow colour. The bouquet is intense and bright, fresh and piercing, with an appealing lacework of nutty oak, which is less evident in the mouth. A hint of butter. A chardonnay of superb intensity, drive and finesse, cashew, toasted almond and melon flavours neatly harmonised.

Very bright, light, fresh looking colour, with a slivered-almond, lightly-toasted cashew nut bouquet; elements of preserved lemon and honey hovering beneath the surface. A suggestion of butterscotch. The wine is rich and mouth-filling but also retains the finesse and restraint that are hallmarks of the maker. A fuller-bodied style than the Sexton.

Falling under the umbrella of Jackson Family Wines, this considerable red comes from sites on the North Coast that rest between 400 and 2400ft above sea level on a massive estate alongside the Mayacamas; Stonestreet specializes in Cabernet and Chardonnay and was established in the late 80s.Aged 18 months in barrel (37% new French oak) it has a true Bordelais character exhibiting aromas of mix of dried herbs and mixed olives, marmite and grilled plums, black currents and brown spices. The entry is supple and it has a muscular structure with savoury salty flavours mixed with spiced mocha.

Fine-grained, featuring muscular dark currant and plum flavors, flanked by mineral and black pepper accents. Firm tannins show on the finish, with bittersweet chocolate notes. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Drink now through 2023.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2018 VintageMade by Greg Brewer, the 2018 Syrah from Ex Post Facto was entirely whole-cluster fermented and aged in very old barrels. It has a medium to deep ruby-purple color and pure scents of cassis, cedar, graphite and bay leaves with touches of milk chocolate and violets. The palate is medium to full-bodied with Goldilocks ripeness and gently savory undertones, finely grained and fresh with a long finish.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2018 VintageThe 2018 Pinot Noir 459 has a medium ruby color and a nose of crushed red and black berry fruits with notes of blueberry, violet and Earl Grey tea leaves plus an undercurrent of angostura bitters. Medium-bodied, it's silky with slowly expanding, super spicy fruits cutting through with juicy freshness, and it finishes long and nuanced.