The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon is surprisingly accessible for a Mount Veeder Cabernet. Dark raspberries, flowers, mint and new leather flesh out in this exciting large-scaled wine. I especially like the density, richness and roundness here. In other words, this is a beautifully balanced, harmonious wine from Chris Carpenter. The 2010 is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon with a dollop of Merlot and Cabernet Franc, aged in 19% new French oak barrels.

With raspingly dry, hard tannins, this is a difficult Cabernet to assess. It's impressively rich in blackberries and black currants, with a firm minerality, and the overall balance is good. Seems like it should develop over the next decade, maybe even longer, but those tannins might outlast the fruit.

Napa Valley’s Extraordinary 2016 Cabernets - Part 1 The 2016 Malbec from Mt. Brave is inky, deep and explosive. A rush of raspberry jam, white chocolate, spice and rose petal races across the palate. Deep, inky and wonderfully resonant, the 2016 is full of both personality and character. This racy, exuberant red has much to recommend it.

The 2015 Malbec is fabulous. Super-ripe red cherry and plum fruit give the wine its exuberance and allure. Soft, plush and opulent, the 2015 has so much to offer. Floral overtones add brightness to this gorgeous wine from Mt. Brave. All of the Mt. Brave wines are tasty, but the Malbec has an extra kick of intensity that makes it irresistible.

The 2014 Malbec may well turn out to be one of the best Malbecs California has made to date. They have not hit the high points of the finest Malbecs coming from top wineries in Argentina, but wines like this will certainly give notice. A blend of 96% Malbec and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 53% new French oak, the wine has a dense purple color and a big nose of chocolate, blackberry, espresso bean and spice. It has plenty of intensity, full body, silky tannin and adequate acidity. Drink it over the next 12-15 years.

The 2010 Malbec Mt. Brave is a joyous vibrant wine bursting with fruit. There is an exuberance in the 2010 that makes the wine totally delicious. At the same time, the minerality and linearity of Mt. Veeder come through loud and clear, especially on the finish. Chris Carpenter aged the Malbec in 70% new barrels.

The 2017s From Sonoma A big step up, the 2016 Merlot Bennett Valley offers a deep purple color as well as complex notes of camphor, smoked earth, tobacco, sage, and both black and blue fruits. It’s medium to full-bodied and beautifully balanced, with considerable elegance and a great finish. Almost all Merlot (there’s a splash of Cabernet Sauvignon) aged 18 months in 32% new French oak, it’s a smoking good wine.

The 2015 Journey Red, Matanzas Creek's top Merlot-based wine, is layered with the essence of dark cherry, plum, smoke, tobacco, chocolate and incense. Rich and voluptuous, the 2015 has much to offer. This is an especially soft, sensual style for the vintage.

Smooth, lush and ripe with rich plum, spice and blackberry; dense and complete with lovely depth and balance.

Powerful and pedigreed to the core, the 2012 Merlot Knights Valley is loaded with dark blue and black fruit, graphite, savory herbs, lavender, smoke and licorice. One of the standouts in this range, the 2012 captures the essence of Knights Valley in its power, tension and energy. Like all the Matanzas Creek Merlots, the Knights Valley is quite Old World-leaning.

A wonderful, rewarding blend that has enough blackberry, cassis and smoky oak flavors to satisfy hedonists, yet also shows the acid-tannic structure to develop bottle complexity over the years. Drink this flashy wine now and through 2018.

The 2017s From Sonoma More Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated, the 2016 Armoniza always comes from the same block of the Kellogg Vineyard in Knights Valley and is 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, and 18% Malbec. Its deep purple color is followed by terrific notes of crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, and scorched earth. It’s ripe and medium to full-bodied, with plenty of mid-palate depth and sweet tannins. Drink it over the coming 10-15 years.

USA, Northern California, Napa Valley: 2016 & 2017 – A Tale of Two Vintages Composed of 98% Sauvignon Blanc and 2% Sémillon, the 2016 Sauvignon Blanc Journey reveals zesty scents of yuzu, grapefruit and key lime pie with touches of crushed rocks and wild thyme. Medium-bodied, it delivers mouth-filling citrus and mineral layers with oodles of freshness and great length.

Matanzas Creek's track record with Sauvignon Blanc is solid and certainly won't be diminished by this beauty from the Alexander Valley in the 2016 vintage. For one thing, it exhibits remarkable complexity for a Sauvignon (with a touch of Semillon in the blend). On the nose grassy notes emerge with hints of citrus and peach. On the palate there's an additional note of fig. Well balanced and showing excellent length, this is a Sauvignon that will pair well with grilled fowl and Mediterranean tapas, or simply as a summer quaffer.

The Top 20 in Value for 2017… Wines are rated on a 100-point scale. Wines are chosen for review because they represent outstanding quality or value, and the scores are simply a measure of this reviewer's enthusiasm for the recommended wine.

The 2013 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench is the most textured and resonant of the four Matanzas Sauvignons. Rich and expansive on the palate, the 2013 is utterly captivating.

The leader of an impressive trio from Matanzas Creek, it does the best of the three in integrating deep fruit and unrepentantly pushy varietal character whose pungent juniper and weed focus finds favor in some quarters and disappointments in others. That said, this one is full of fruit citrus and melon fruit, high in pert, bracing character and long on the palate in an entirely convincing manner. We would not be surprised to see it grow in interest and layered complexity for many years to come.

Bone dry, and brightened with zesty acidity, this fabulous SB defines the category. Accented with a touch of oak, it stars potent citrus and tropical fruit, green apple, white flower and mineral flavors, with a complexity that makes it easily worth the price. Gets better and better as it warms in the glass.

Very much biased to green grass and citrus with glimmers of mineral peeking out here and there, this very firm yet well-ripened youngster hits all the right varietal marks and does so with a great sense of reserve. It may show a brief bit of roundness on entry, but it gets downright tight as it goes. We nonetheless find its present coarseness easy to forgive, and its minor offenses are but those of a wine that is simply too young. Good things lie ahead, and it wants another year or two to prove it.

This hits the pure passionfruit flavor of finely ripened sauvignon. It's mouthwatering and firmly structured, with umami flavors of oyster mushrooms and marrow to balance the fruit. A portion of the blend is sauvignon musqué (13 percent) and a portion is fermented and aged in French oak barrels (21). The result is delicious with roast fish.

The 2017s From Sonoma Lots of white flowers, salty minerality, crushed rocks, and gorgeous white fruit notes emerge from the 2017 Chardonnay Journey. Coming from estate holdings on Alexander Mountain and aged in 30% new French oak, it’s medium-bodied, with outstanding purity of fruit, a layered yet elegant texture, and again, this salinity and minerality on the finish that keeps you coming back to the glass.

The 2017s From Sonoma Also beautiful, the 2017 Chardonnay Cougar Ridge Vineyard offers complex notes of stone fruits, turmeric, white flowers and charcoal as well as medium body, terrific overall balance, good acidity, and a great finish. It’s another balanced, complete, satisfying Chardonnay from Marcia that should easily evolve for 3-4 years or more.

USA, Northern California, Napa Valley: 2016 & 2017 – A Tale of Two Vintages The 2016 Chardonnay Journey is a little youthfully mute, giving way to green mango, guava and Golden Delicious apples notes with a toasty undercurrent and hints of beeswax and roasted almonds. Full-bodied with mouth-coating tropical and toasty layers, it has a lovely line of freshness and plenty of spices coming through on the finish.

The 2016 Chardonnay Cougar Ridge comes from a cooler site in the eastern part of Alexander Valley which was replanted in 2009. This site had previously been planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, yet never ripened. This 2016 gives up Chablis-like notes of lemon curd, buttered citrus, rose petals, and charcoal. With medium body, a fresh, vibrant style, and beautiful purity, it’s going to drink nicely for 5-6 years.

The 2016 Chardonnay Bennett Valley is impressive and offers a fresh, lively style as well as classic aromatics. This cuvée comes mostly from the Wente clone and spent 10 months in 27% new French oak, and offers lots of buttered citrus, white flower, and hints of pineapple as well as medium-bodied depth and richness. Drink it over the coming 3-5 years.