This is the first vintage of the Ridgecrest cuvée from Penner-Ash. Medium ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Ridgecrest Vineyard has lovely aromas of crushed blackberries and boysenberries with notions of tea leaves, dusty earth, aniseed and dried flowers. The medium-bodied palate is silky and fresh with bright, crunchy, fresh fruits and a long, juicy finish.

Medium ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Yamhill-Carlton has broody aromas of crushed cherries and blood orange with accents of forest floor and exotic spices. The medium-bodied palate is silky with uplifted, floral-laced fruits and a long, vivacious finish.

This dark ruby colored Cabernet Franc from La Jota opens with a blueberry and vanilla bouquet with a hint of boysenberry. On the palate, this wine is medium plus bodied, very nicely balanced and juicy. The flavor profile is tasty red plum with notes of black raspberry and crushed gravel. We also detected some hints of black tea and oak mixed in. The finish is dry and its very dusty tannins build-up and stick around for very long time. The Panel suggested pairing this very good Cab Franc with Emeril's spicy root beer and bourbon glazed baby back ribs or with the wagyu meatballs from Strega.

The 2017 Merlot Jackson Park Vineyards is racy and energetic. Far from an easygoing Merlot, the Jackson Park needs time to unwind. Black cherry, lavender, espresso, licorice and menthol add character to the wine's dark, virile personality. I would give it a few years for the tannins to melt away. This is an especially tense, nervy style.

The 2018 Sauvignon Blanc (Bennett Valley) shows just how captivating Sauvignon can be in the cool vineyards of Bennett Valley. Lifted, airy and weightless yet with remarkable depth, the 2018 is captivating from the very first taste. Tangerine oil, lemon confit, mint, white flowers and light tropical accents all grace this striking Sauvignon Blanc from Matanzas Creek.

The 2017 The Silks is a new Cabernet Franc-based wine in the range. Bright red berry fruit, floral overtones and bright acids give the 2017 its distinctive personality. This is an especially refined wine that shows a more gracious, restrained side of Stonestreet.

The 2017 Farrier is a blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Black cherry, espresso, menthol, licorice, plum and spice notes all meld together in this racy, super-expressive red. A whole range of savory and mineral nuances lend terrific energy, while beams of supporting tannin give the wine a real sense of vibrancy and its shape. I would cellar it for at least a year or two, as the contours could use some time in bottle to soften.

The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is an attractive wine. Unlike most vintages, the 2017 needs time to soften, as the acids and tannins are a bit edgy at this stage. Black cherry, plum, chocolate, licorice, spice and menthol infuse the 2017 with terrific depth and plenty of complexity.

Graham Weerts makes the Legacy wines at the Field Stone Vineyard, a property acquired by the Jackson family in 2016. He includes fruit from that vineyard as well as the family’s Jimtown and Alexander Mountain properties, focusing this blend on cabernet sauvignon (74 percent), along with small amounts of four other Bordelais varieties. Fermented in small French oak uprights and aged in French oak barrels (60 percent new), the wine is generous in its tannins, showing notes of lanolin, black mushroom and full-on chocolate richness. Everyone on the panel went immediately to an herb-roasted leg of lamb.

Greg Brewer’s wines are always intriguing and sometimes challenging, often recasting what one grape can be. This bottling from a vineyard in the Los Alamos Valley leads with dried lime, wet wool and citrus pith aromas. The palate is laser-focused on citrus peel and pith and yet somehow also earthy, reflective of damp sand.

Meaty and iodine on the nose, the fruit is pretty much hidden behind those two elements. Maybe a little herbal as well (mint?) or eucalyptus. This is “different” as it seems to focus on secondary (or even tertiary) elements over the fruit. But me likey. Excellent.

Medium color, translucent. Sweet corn and red cherry on the nose. Big, luscious fruit on the palate, more of a ripe style here. Lovely tartness, a touch of earth. Fantastic. Excellent.

Powerfully structured, with crackling acidity backing the intense red fruit flavors, layered with minerality. Savory flourishes show on the finish. Best from 2021 through 2025.

Sleek and vibrant, with snappy raspberry and red plum flavors accented by sweet basil and spice and finishing with fine-grained tannins. Drink now through 2027.

Give this Yarra Valley Chardonnay, from renowned producer Giant Steps, some time in the glass or decanter to open up, for it's a subtle and somewhat reductive wine at first that needs some air (it also may need a few more months in bottle to knit together). With time, it unveils delicate, pretty notes of citrus blossom, ginger and flinty minerality. While there's less texture and complexity here than on this producer's Sexton Vineyard Chard, this is nevertheless a balanced and ultra food-friendly drop.

Shows off a core of silky fresh cherry and raspberry flavors, with accents of black tea, toffee and nutmeg, delivering plenty of concentration and intensity. Hints of blood orange and green tea pick up momentum on the finish, where the tannins provide some appealing structure. Drink now through 2034.

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.

Hints of smoke and gunpowder tea give way to fresh, vibrant pomegranate and cranberry flavors on a sleek frame, with notes of baking spices and caramel coming in on the finish. Harmonious and complex, featuring polished, fine-grained tannins. Drink now through 2035.

Showing more peachy, tropical notes than the other bottlings, the 2018 Tarraford Vineyard Chardonnay is a ripe, generous effort. It's medium-bodied, round, silky and easy to drink, yet it remains fresh and clean on the finish, with citrus notes more like tangerine than lime or lemon. Like the other single-vineyard wines, it was fermented and aged in 20% new French oak.

Coming from vines 200 meters higher and nine years younger than this producer's other single-vineyard Chard, Tarraford, this wine is clearly made in the same vein, but shows distinctive differences. Less fruity, this vintage is initially a touch reductive and oaked, but as it warms in the glass, notes of salted nuts and honey, along with delicate citrus, float to the fore. The palate is richly textured and laced with minerals. The wood is present but not overwhelming. It's very approachable now, and while it may not age quite as long as its counterpart, there's enough length, depth and harmony for another six to eight years of happy cellaring.

Subtle notes of toast and cinnamon appear on the nose of the 2018 Applejack Vineyard Chardonnay, sourced from the Upper Yarra Valley. It's a medium-bodied but plump and generous offering, with melon and pineapple fruit filling out the silky-textured mid-palate, then easing into a long, citrusy finish.

Plenty of purple in the medium to deep colour, the bouquet sweet and blackberry, black-cherry-like. It’s bold and very ripe, with chewy tannins and some alcohol warmth, the finish is firm and upright. Solid, boldly fruit-driven and straightforward, this should take some age to advantage. I suspect it will build complexity if given time.

Savoury, fusty bouquet of earth and dried flower heads. The palate is intense and focused, refined and quite complex, especially considering its youth and station. Lovely mouth-feel and balance. Soft, fine tannins. A touch of aniseed and berry jam to close. Drinking superbly already.

My conspiracy theory is that some closed room conversation happened at a high profile wine show and senior winemaking judges all decided to revitalise the pinot noir syrah blend. Specifically, the correlation between Hunter Valley senior judges and a migration pattern to the Yarra Valley. It’s spreading too. Not a bad thing, I really like the combo and style, but when I do a mental roll call of winemakers new to the field with the style, particularly ex-Hunter, it’s an intriguing list that plays into the hand of my jocularly posited theory. You do the maths. I think they all wear Black/White Nike Cortez sneakers too…

Ripe, concentrated and rich with tannic structural intensity. Cocoa, rosemary and thyme lead to a savoury finish.Drinking Window 2020 - 2040