The brand's telltale aromas of pure red fruit and earth recall a wild strawberry plucked from a field of minty sagebrush. Rounded red-currant, pine-needle and redwood-frond flavors power the fresh palate, which is delightful and delicious.

Big and bold and every inch a Syrah with sweeping aromas of pepper, gamy spicy and blackberries galore all overlain by a veneer of sweet and slightly toasty oak, this lavish, no-holds-barred effort follows with intense, highly extracted flavors to match and fully lives up to its producer’s motto of “unconstrained winemaking.” It is a hedonistic wine by any and all measure, but it is uncannily well-structured and varietally articulate for one as big and brawny as it is, and it is capable of growing for a full decade and more. We expect it will have its detractors for its unapologetically opulent style, but there are bottles that are so breathtakingly sumptuous that they compel admiration, and this is just such a wine. 2 stars, good value.

The Jackson family planted this ridge west of Occidental, a site neighboring the Cobb family’s Coastlands Vineyard and fully exposed to the Pacific. The cool site translates into a musky chardonnay, as if the fog-infused grapes never ripened much past orange-blossom scents. Yet the wine feels fully mature, its rich textures held tight by firm acidity. Distinctly a wine of the coast, it’s ready for Dungeness crab.

From a single block of over 55-year-old bush vines in Clarendon, one of the coolest parts of McLaren Vale, this lithe and evocative Grenache offers an abundance of cherry, blueberry and dried flower aromas. Backed by olive brine, white pepper, fennel seed and flinty characteristics, there's complexity and an autumnal vibe that make smelling this a joy. Things get more serious on the palate, where ultrafine sandy textured tannins support the plump fruit and earthy minerality. Approachable now, this wine will gain even more complexity with age. Drink now until 2027.

Smooth , savory and complex; smooth and rich, elegant and balanced, long and deep.

Pale and substantial, this is a bright and zesty chardonnay carrying yellow notes of chamomile and the fresh green crunch of celery through a tight finish. Juicy citrus flavors balance its savor. Bring out the wine’s earthiness with snapper roasted over fennel.

From a cool, sandy site Brewer-Clifton developed in 2007, this fires on three cylinders: rich, tropical fruit (think pineapple); waves of fine, sleek acidity; and a nutty, oaky richness. The net effect is structured and racy, with a mouthwatering hazelnut finish that brings to mind a pairing with buttery roast carrots and leeks.

Made from old-vine fruit from hillside blocks planted above Santa Maria’s benchland, this is chardonnay in a classical vein. It’s sumptuous and flavorful, the pear and apple flavors driven by oak without being over the top. Powerful and stylish; for fried chicken.

Golden color; smooth fruit nose; lush, rich texture, ripe but nicely structured with bright acidity; rich, balanced and long.

Lou Primavera planted this vineyard in 2001; it’s a northeast-facing site in Woori Yallock. As the vines have matured, the Giant Steps team has begun to hold the fruit separately for a single-vineyard bottling. Cherry-blossom notes carry through this wine’s light, transparent flavors, grounded by gaminess and gentle minerality. The cherry flavors allow the soil character to show through, extending and deepening the flavor, setting the wine up for crispy roast duck.

This has the shape of carmenère, once called merlot Chileno, light in the middle followed by a wave of fruit saturating the end. The floral notes of cassis and the herbal details give it length and tension, a wine to pour with roast lamb.

The Upper Barn Vineyard was planted in 1982 to a Hyde-Wente selection (from the Hyde Vineyard in Carneros). Those mature vines, growing at an altitude of 1,800 feet in the Mayacamas Mountains, produced a rich, pear-scented chardonnay. Lisa Valtenbergs ferments it without added yeasts in barrels, where it completes malolactic fermentation and develops a buttery integration. As a young wine, it’s cool, simple and savory, with a structure built to age.

Yangarra's Shiraz offers amazing complexity for the price. While it starts a little reductively, it opens after a short time in glass and out pours aromas of drying plums, tangerine, Kalamata olives, savory spices and warm earthy mineral nuances. The palate is precise and highly textural with talc-like tannins and a mouthfeel that seems as though you could crunch the wine like an apple rather than sip it. Drink now until 2027.

This comes from Phil Sexton’s 75-acre vineyard on a north-facing hillside in Gruyere planted in 1997 (neighboring Yarra Yering and Coldstream Hills). The vines gave a clean, spicy, transparent red in 2018, with intriguing scents of peonies and Rainier cherries. The tannins carry some bitterness, of cherry pits and skins, suggesting a match with duck confit if you open it now. Better to cellar it for a few years to gentle the tannins.

This blended effort uses its Merlot base to great effect with early fruit that is at once easy to access while providing a supple platform that is tightened up nicely by the solidifying contribution of its Cabernet proportion. With red cherry Merlot focus for its first impressions, the wine expands nicely with notes of berries and currants. Its latter palate acts more like Cabernet, and its slightly astringent finishing tannin encourages a half-decade of cellaring. 1 star.

Lisa Valtenbergs blends this wine from a range of blocks in the Jackson family’s Alexander Mountain estate, where the vineyards rise to 2,400 feet into the Mayacamas Mountains. Its notes of tart apple, yellow plum and jasmine are quiet and savory behind the nutmeg richness of the wine’s oak influence. Smoky notes suggest a match with tea-smoked chicken.

This young rosé from WillaKenzie, recently acquired by Jackson Family Wines, is rich and round. Big, front-loaded flavors of watermelon and strawberry come with a touch of tart apple, and the wine is gently framed with phenolic scaffolding. It's a big style, principally Pinot Noir, with dollops of Pinot Meunier and Pinot Blanc.

The winery is now part of the Jackson Family group. It's 100% barrel fermented and still wound up tight, so decanting will be helpful. Crisp apple fruit, fresh as can be, is wrapped in accents of toasted hazelnut.

Mellow and rich, this is a creamy chardonnay with peach and white-chocolate fullness. Yet it feels completely clean, open and cleansing, orange-zesty and dry. Well worth cellaring for a year or two, this will benefit from bottle development.

Intense dried blueberry notes accent the dark fruit and spice flavors, flanked by dense, savory notes. Finishes with hints of dried beef. Drink now through 2022.

This very dark ruby colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Arrowood opens with a cherry and almond cookie bouquet with hints of cedar and currant. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced and soft. The flavor profile is a mineral infused black currant with notes of cedar. We also detected hints of black plum and black pepper as well. The finish is dry and its moderate dusty tannins build-up before they drift away. The Panel thought this Cab would pair well with Italian beef braciole. Very good.

Starting off leesy and bright, this savory chardonnay has a whiff of smokehouse. The pear and apple flavors are creamy and plush, with a grippy almond-skin finish that will complement fresh Santa Barbara salt prawns. Best Buy.

This widely available wine is a great midweek sipper. Light in the glass, it offers clean aromas of pomegranate, hibiscus and light touches of toasty oak. It's soft and mellow on the palate with cranberry, strawberry and tarragon flavors.

Forward, with a dose of roasted vanilla surrounding the core of plum and black cherry compote flavors. Drink now through 2022. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.

This wine’s tart notes of green apple and tangy orange carry a leesy complexity that recalls shellfish broth. It’s warm and heady with alcohol, needing a firm chill to serve with prawns in garlic. Best Buy.