The 2021 La Muse is composed of 90% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 4% Malbec, and the wine was matured for 16 months in 95% new French oak. Although it’s youthfully shy on the nose, it can’t hide its jewel-like quality and offers bright flashes of violet, cast iron, cassis, dark plums and blackcurrant bud. The palate is surprisingly light on its feet, its concentrated flavors supported by lacy tannins and bright bursts of acidity. Pure and plush, it opens dramatically over several days and will be very long lived in the cellar. 2,500 cases produced.

The 2021 Le Désir is composed of 87% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot and 3% Malbec—Pierre Seillan says it’s the highest percentage of Cabernet Franc this blend has ever incorporated. Matured for 16 months in 95% new French oak, it has an opaque ruby color and very slowly unfolding scents of chocolate-covered blueberries, cast iron, violet, bay leaves and cardamom. The full-bodied palate features transparent, alluringly herbal flavors. It’s structured by clay-textured tannins and bright acidity, and it has a very long, spicy finish. It transforms dramatically over several days and will be epically long lived in the cellar. 2,500 cases produced.

Darker red, blue, and black fruits, sappy spring flowers, graphite, and chalky minerality all define the 2021 Cabernet Franc Howell Mountain, a medium to full-bodied, ultra-pure, fine, graceful Cabernet Franc with tons to love.

The 2021 Ovitelli Grenache is sourced from Block 30—
a two-hectare adjacent to the High Sands block,
planted in 1946. Sorted on the fancy sorting table at
Yangarra and fully destemmed, it fermented in
ceramic egg and spent 133 days on the skins. It
matured exclusively in ceramic egg (13 months'
elevage, no pressings in the final wine), so we know
the texture and structure inherent in this glass is
vineyard- and berry-derived rather than from the
vessel. Already, we are in cool territory. On the nose,
there is fresh tobacco leaf, graphite, raspberry leaf,
lavender, turmeric/saffron, matcha, licorice and a hint
of dehydrated orange peel (moving onto the
negroni/Camari end of the spectrum here). In the
mouth, the tannins are super fine, milled into
compressed powder that plumes through the fruit, like
blood in the water. This is mineral, detailed, exciting,
febrile, ethereal and lacy, even. Wowee. Strong
statement about McLaren Vale Grenache here. 14.5%
alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

“Well this is apple-like, it’s not just the power of suggestion, it’s like biting into something cold and crunchy, lemonade and frozen meal, backed by nectarines, backed by nuts and stones. This dials back the intensity slightly, lifts the elegance, splays the flavours into a complex carpet, and then stretches its legs fully through the finish. It’s a stunning wine, and my pick of this year’s releases (by a whisker)”

Beautiful fragrance here – fresh field roses, raspberry, aniseed and dried mint, almost a chocolate thing going on too. Medium bodied, gentle sweep of sweet fine grained tannin, plump red berries lend succulence, but it’s not confected or gooey in any sense. Dusty and spicy, great length of flavour, with earthy tannin grounding it and pushing it long. Incredibly good wine. Hard to choose between the 2013 and 2014. The former with maybe more length and impact, the latter all grace and charm. 96+ points, though could even twist my arm to 97. Drink 2020-2037.

The 2019 Helena Dakota Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is deep garnet-purple in color. It tears out of the glass with wildly expressive scents of creme de cassis, dried sage, iron ore, and cedar chest, giving way to notions of crushed rocks and black truffles. Full-bodied, the palate has a sturdy structure of ripe, grainy tannins and just enough freshness supporting the tightly knit, muscular layers, finishing long and minerally. 1,379 cases were made. The vineyard here is now 22 years old. Located at the most eastern side of Sonoma, in Knights Valley, near Peter Michael estate, a gap allows the cooling wind to come here from the Pacific Ocean.

Produced from the same block of vines since 2001, and matured in a combination of Taransaud and Seguin-Moreau barriques, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder features pretty but restrained floral and herbal notes, cassis and then a wave of exotic spice notes from the wood. Full-bodied and quite tannic on the long, velvety finish, this wine needs more time than the other Lokoya bottlings. It may not be as complete now, but it shows immense promise and length.

USA, California: More Napa & Sonoma New Releases The 2017 Chardonnay Seascape Vineyard is a little closed at this youthful stage, revealing suggestions of lime cordial, lemon meringue pie, orange blossoms and acacia honey with wafts of oyster shell and green tea. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly played with a lovely satiny texture and a lively line cutting through the intense flavors, finishing long and minerally.

‘Cabernet Sauvignon from contour blocks planted in 1971.’ This is just ballistically good. If this was made by Penfolds they’d charge you 500 bucks for it. It has might and power but it’s not over the top; fruit-wise it’s ‘only’ medium in weight and, indeed, it boasts both an elegance and a fruit freshness. But my oh my, what a swagger of tannin, what an infusion of fragrant shrubbery, what commanding length. Oak, smoky and cedar-like, plays a key role but safe to say, the wine is up to it and then some. Roll me in a river of this. Smoked tobacco. Old dry bay leaves. Fresh redcurrant, into black. This is a cabernet.

Blackberry, ripe raspberry, sarsaparilla, spicy, with some sweet sawn wood top notes (though nothing overt, I might add). Powerful and firm, dusty and slightly rusty/ferrous tannin, chamomile tea mouth-perfume, maybe even a cola-nut exotic character in the mix, long and shapely, with Barolo-esque tannin to close. Feels long term. Outstanding.

Napa Valley’s 2018sThe first vintage for this new cuvée, the 2018 Proprietary Red Blend checks in as 41% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot. Red and blue fruits, scorched earth, spring flowers, and violets emerge from this medium to full-bodied 2018, which is reminiscent of a top Saint-Emilion given its terrific sense of minerality. Medium to full-bodied and just brilliantly put together on the palate, it shows the purity of fruit that is the hallmark of this great vintage. Enjoy bottles any time over the coming 15-20 years.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesMade from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain was aged in French oak barrels for 22 months, 97% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it rolls effortlessly out of the glass with notes of warm cassis, black cherries, mulberries and plum preserves plus hints of dark chocolate, crushed rock and tree bark with a waft of truffles. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with earthy/savory black fruit layers and super firm, rugged tannins, delivering a tightly wound, lively finish. Give it a good 5 years in bottle and drink it over the next 20+ years.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesMade from 100% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Cabernet Franc Howell Mountain was aged for 22 months in oak, 65% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it opens with a lifted, perfumed nose of red roses, kirsch, red plums and red currant jelly, followed by hints of mulberries, pencil shavings and fragrant earth. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is jam-packed with taut, muscular red fruit, framed by firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing long with loads of earthy sparks.

USA, California, Napa Valley: More New 2018 ReleasesComposed of 75% Cabernet Franc and 25% Merlot, the 2018 Cabernet Franc was aged for 22 months in oak, 76% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it leaps from the glass with vibrant scents of black cherries, warm plums and warm red currents with hints of graphite, cardamom and fragrant earth. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is laden with energetic, crunchy black and red fruits, supported by firm, grainy tannins and lovely freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note.

Hickinbotham's 2017 The Peake Cabernet Shiraz is a 60-40 blend of the varieties, aged in a healthy proportion of new French oak. As a barrel selection, it stands above the other wines in the lineup, being more complex and complete than either the Brooks Road Shiraz or the Trueman Cabernet. Cassis leads the way, rounded out by ripe cherries and joined by shadings of cedar and vanilla. It's full-bodied and concentrated in the mouth, rich, supple and almost creamy in texture and boasts a long, silky finish. While nearly drinkable already, it should easily age for a decade or more.

This isn’t released until July 2020 but if Australian cabernet shiraz blends are to your liking then this release is worth jumping on as soon as you can.It’s a seriously good wine. Its volume and silken mouthfeel announce themselves from the first sip but then the long chains of tannin, tobacco and dust and floral-like highlights, and compelling length serve to seal a quite wonderful deal. This is hearty, full-bodied Australian red wine in all its glory. It’s built on redcurrant, plum, blackcurrant and cloves and the mouthfeel/length combination here is really quite something.

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018Coming from the Sonoma Coast, the 2017 Pinot Noir Seascape Vineyard nevertheless seems to have a touch of Russian River-like opulence and power, showing loads of mulberry and cranberry fruit as well as notes of scorched earth, graphite, licorice, and damp forest floor. Rich, concentrated, and medium to full-bodied, it shows the more focused, backward, chiseled style of the vintage yet is far from austere or angular. The cellar will be your friend on this one, and a solid 2-3 years of bottle age are warranted. Nevertheless, it's packed with potential.

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018Coming from an incredibly cold site in the Russian River Valley that was planted in 1975 to the heritage Martini clone, the 2017 Pinot Noir Arrendell Vineyard was completely destemmed and spent 16 months in 44% new French oak, which is on the higher end for this estate. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, it offers a more fresh, focused, backward style to go with classy Bing cherry and raspberry fruits as well as notes of spice, sappy herbs, and spring flowers, It has a kiss of background oak (which will integrated with 1-2 years of bottle age), good acidity, and ripe tannins, yet unquestionably needs 2-3 years of bottle age to show its full potential. This beautiful, potential-packed beauty that will be one of the longer-lived releases here.

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2015 Cardinale Cabernet Sauvignon (containing 10% Merlot) gives beautiful red, black and blue fruit notes with touches of dried herbs, spice cake and unsmoked cigars, plus a waft of cedar. Medium to full-bodied, it has a firm structure with plenty of gregarious mid-palate fruit, finishing with a lingering herbal lift. This seductive blockbuster is temptingly drinkable now and it should age gracefully over 15-20 years.

Italy, Tuscany: Chianti Classico (New Releases) The 2013 Arcanum is a blend of 73% Cabernet Franc with smaller parts Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Cabernet Franc element is obviously strongest, and you get steely notes of black fruit follow by wild sage and rosemary oil. This is a powerful and thickly layered red wine that pushes the boundaries of extract and intensity, especially for a Tuscan red wine. Off the top of my head, I can count maybe ten wines from the region that take on such a full-bodied and opulent approach. This wine should age forward for many years to come.

The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Helena Montana offers chocolate, sweet black cherries, a dense purple color, great intensity and purity – a real mountain style, but with surprisingly soft tannins. It is easily a 30-year wine. The good news is that there are 520 cases of this big, boisterous, yet voluptuously textured offering from Anakota.

The same can be said for the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Helena Dakota Vineyard. However, it offers sweeter tannins as well as slightly more evolved and complex aromas of unsmoked, high class cigar tobacco, graphite, blackberries, cassis, spring flowers and a distinctive minerality. Although deep, full-bodied and backward, the sweet fruit and tannin provide a more upfront character than the 2009. It, too, is a 30-50-year wine.

From a vineyard planted in a more volcanic subsoil base, the 2002 Helena Montana is a powerful, chocolatey, dense, formidable, broodingly backward wine offering notes of subtle smoke, damp earth, crushed rocks, and oodles of blue and black fruits. The wine gives the impression of being totally locked away, but everything is in balance and the purity is impressive. It should be cellared for at least another decade, and will last for 20-25 years.

The 2013 Ironheart Shiraz is another total beauty from Yangarra. The perfume alone is enough to make you swoon! Laced with violets, molten chocolate, cherry liquor, lavender and exotic spices with subtle incense nuances, it's one of those glasses that compels you to sniff again and again. The palate is very restrained and taut at this youthful stage, with firm, grainy tannins and a lively backbone framing the concentrated fruit, finishing long and minerally. Simply stunning.