A medium-bodied zin with red and black fruit. Nice and dry, this savory zin has notes of cedar and licorice. Firm tannins. Bright acidity. Solid. 3½ stars.

James Halliday's Top 100 Wines of 2019 Top Reds Over $30 75% destemmed, every berry optically scrutinised by a very expensive piece of equipment. Wild yeast-open fermented, plunged, 14 months in French oak (20% new). The pure singularity of this certified biodynamic wine relentlessly captures the senses with its dark spiced fruits.

James Halliday's Top 100 Wines of 2019 Top Whites Under $25 A highly esoteric blend of 74% grenache blanc, 12% roussanne, 6% clairaut, 5% picpoul and 3% bourbelenc that is winemaker Peter Fraser's salute to the wines of centuries past. Lest anyone think the vinification is of similar natural antiquity, think again. It will grow rich and textured as it ages.

Fall reds to remember Freemark Abbey is enjoying a renaissance of sorts under the ownership of Jackson Family Wines. The Napa label is sizable at 24,000+ cases, but it remains a ‘reserve’ style in taste and quality. The nose and the attack are fresh and vibrant with spicy black fruit, umami-like savoury, tobacco and cedar mixed into a warm, mineral, floral undercarriage flecked with cloves and cinnamon. It’s just settling in at the five-year mark, but there is plenty more to come. Ready to drink too.

Fall reds to remember The Brewer-Clifton Pinot is an assembly of three Sta. Rita Hills AVA sites: 3D (Swan, Pommard and 667 clones), Machado, and Hapgood (Merry Edwards clone). The style is in-your-face Pinot with full-on fruit aromas and flavours. It may be intense from a European standpoint, but it is restrained by New World standards. The nose is a dusty mix of sandalwood, brown spices, and tea leaf undercut by an earthy/forest floor, raspberries and pomegranate. The fruit rests in all neutral barrels; stems are an essential part of the structure and earthy characters of the Sta. Rita Hills fruit. Warm, mouth-filling and ready for rich duck or pork dishes.

Uncorked: A stunning introduction for La Crema It was a bold entrance. The La Crema Brut Rose, the first such bottling in the winery’s 40th year, is classically made and hails from one of California’s top growing regions. Its release comes just in time for holiday celebrations. But, why wait for Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s? For a wine made in the traditional method, from Russian River Valley vineyards, it’s a bargain at only $50. Its winemaker, Jen Walsh, said she tends to drink sparkling wine at home; she showed her skills with this bottling... The hard work in the cellar was rewarded as the La Crema Russian River Valley Brut Rosé has strawberry, Rainier cherry, ginger and the slightest hint of the soft, buttery, flaky top of a brioche bun.

Cherries and orange on the nose and palate, touch of peach and minerals. Good acidity, lingering finish. Good plus.

The Freemark Abbey winery was originally founded in St. Helena, in the Napa Valley in 1876 by Josephine Tychson, one of the first women winegrowers on record. A revival of the winery after prohibition saw the current name created by partners Charles Freeman, Markquand Foster and Abbey Ahern – a combination of their names. The flavorful 2015 Merlot offers classic cherry, berry, milk chocolate and spicy oak.

Worthy Cellar Buy: 2015 La Jota Vineyards Merlot W.S. Keyes Vineyard A nose more reminiscent of Saint-Julien than most of Napa Valley, the fruit is just spectacular. It’s as if an entire farmer’s market fruit section comprised of perfectly ripe fruit has been bottled in this wine. This vision is augmented by kirsch liqueur, cassis, cardamom, pencil lead and light roast coffee. It is full bodied with dense and well-tuned fine-grained tannin. The acid is similarly precise, and the balance stands up to some of the finest of the Old World. The flavors pop in an unusually juicy manner with blackberry, boysenberry, licorice, cherry jam and charcoal. This has two decades of positive evolution ahead of it. I’d wait at least six years to crack this one open.

Best In Show: 2015 Mt. Brave Merlot What a killer, earthy and penetrating nose: sour cherry, strawberry, mesquite charcoal, bitter cocoa, sawdust and emulsified dandelion. It’s full bodied in a way that fills the palate, but the acid is juicy and alive and prevents the wine from settling and cloying. The tannins are fine and focused. The fruit is beautifully layered, with muddled cherry, mountain strawberry and boysenberry that go for ages, and are followed by ground espresso and cocoa beans and graphite. The tail end of the flavor profile features tanned leather, tobacco leaf and a small dose of menthol. This does very well with a couple of hours in the decanter, but I imagine it can go through tremendous evolution over a decade or so.

The nose offers really bright red and black currants and plums, red beat juice, graphite and mocha. Just short of full-bodied, this is a flirty wine on the palate due to lip-smackingly juicy acid that feels a few years shy of full integration. The tannins are just slightly chewy and sneak up on you with time in the mouth. The components and stuffing are there to build a top-shelf structure with another 5-10 years of aging. Flavors hit on cherry, plum, currant, bitter cocoa, graphite and wet, dense soil. The finish brings a tangy and incense-driven twist.

Powerful, extracted and full of concentrated dark currant, dried blackberry and cherry tart flavors that are well-structured. Hints of slate and mocha show midpalate, with a finish of dried green herbs.

A boisterous nose, it wafts sweet hickory smoke, eucalyptus, chewing tobacco, boysenberry, cherry preserves and orange zest. It hits a medium plus stature, the tannins are long, dense and restrained while the acid is slightly elevated. The structure and balance are professional and suggest the making of a wonderful steakhouse wine. The flavors balance nicely between cherry, strawberry, plum, iron, wet dark soil, toasted oak and unsweetened peppermint that collectively produce a deep, penetrating wine. This needs a few hours in the decanter, or better yet, at least five years in the cellar as there’s more there to develop.

The aromas carry a sensual air about it, offering sweet cherry, mountain strawberry, crushed gravel, smashed flower petals and potting soil. On the palate, it has a full and svelte body with tightly-woven tannin and well-balanced acid. The structure holds a lot of promise with more age. The flavors check in with bruised cherry and blackberry, mocha, clove and pipe tobacco. While enjoyable now with a few hours in the decanter, I think this will improve demonstrably with at least five more years of bottle age.

Fine-edged, providing an elegant mix of dried cherry, red currant and wild plum flavors that are supported by fresh acidity. Hints of white pepper show on the minerally and well-spiced finish.

Zesty and well-sculpted, with forest floor notes to the dried fruit and spice flavors. Dried orange peel and clove accents show on the supple finish, revealing hints of tar and paprika.

Case Buy: 2014 Freemark Abbey Merlot This really benefited from a 3 hour decant, which allowed the tannins to smooth and integrate nicely. The modest nose features cocoa dusted cherry, light roast ground espresso bean, graphite, blood orange and faint camp fire. This is full bodied on the palate with juicy acidity and tannins that are initially broad and densely grainy, but which smooth around the edges with air. The structure has achieved a uniform feel. The flavors ride the boisterous acid with evident joy as they hit on red currant, plum, cherry, strawberry, graphite and dry dirt, finishing with a small floral flourish.

Sleek and polished, with elegantly layered raspberry, orange peel and savory cinnamon flavors that linger toward refined tannins.

The nose has a nice combination of black plum, boysenberry, muddled and mulberry-spiced blueberry and violet, though it has a slightly alcoholic kick at the very end that I imagine will fade with time. Its medium bodied with slightly thin acid and diffuse, fine-grained tannin. The structure has everything it needs to be complete but isn’t actually cohesive or substantive. Similar to the nose, The fruit flavors are blue, though the blueberry far out plays the boysenberry here. Mocha swirls around the fruit, as does pencil shavings and purple florals. There are attractive elements to this, but it’s hard to get past what feels like a missed opportunity to build a more substantive structure.

Refined and well-built, with expressive blueberry, licorice and smoky meat accents that lead to fine-grained tannins on the finish. Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre.

A fresh and focused style, with a beam of red currant and cherry notes, laced with subtle savory and vanilla details. A light tug of earth at the end keeps this honest.

Dark plum and mulberry flavors dominate this ripe, brambly style. Notes of chocolate nibs and loam show midpalate, with a finish that features tea and mocha accents.

The nose boasts toasted oak, wet gravely soil, strawberry and cherry. Its medium bodied with bright acid and weighty, but fairly imperceptible, tannin. The structure is solid and mouthfeel smooth. The flavors mostly ride the juicy acid and come in slightly sweet: fruit punch, finely ground dark roast coffee bean and cocoa powder. The finish adds sweet orange zest. Easy drinking.

The dark nose boasts penetratingly deep sweet oak, maraschino cherry, smoke, black plum, black currant and cassis. It’s full bodied and lush on the palate with fully integrated tannin and surprisingly tart acid, which throws the balance a bit on what is otherwise a nice structure. Flavors are a combination of raspberry, strawberry, tar, tobacco leaf and ground slightly bitter espresso bean. It finishes with a slightly floral note. Were it for less sharp and better integrated acid, this would be a really enjoyable wine.

Black cherry and raspberry notes run through, with light bramble and anise details checking in. Shows good focus through the finish.