Cabernet Sauvignon Masters 2019: Master

Big, buttery chardonnays: Three to try With its medium to full yellow colour, this traditional American chardonnay has a powerful buttery bouquet with tinges of citrus peel. In the mouth, it's opulent, round and velvet textured. It's quite forward and has generous flavour without being too oaky or alcoholic.

Glamping wine recommendation

Moderate garnet color in the glass. Persistent aromas of darker cherry and sous-bois. More power, intensity and finish in a mid weight plus style featuring flavors of plum, pomegranate and a citric thread. A good tannic backbone provides balance. Quite appealing, with uplifting energy and a cherry cola finish.

Moderately light garnet color in the glass. Revealing aromas of red cherry and berry, spice and toast. Nicely composed and ready to roll now, with middleweight flavors of red cherry, red raspberry and baking spices. Sleek tannins contribute a polished mouthfeel. I would like this wine more if it was priced at $30.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Smooth with ripe dark cherry, floral notes, tea.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Ripe cherry, herbs, lingering finish.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine With both Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley fruit, earthy with ripe blackberry and black tea.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine With fruit from Santa Maria, Sta. Rita Hills, and Los Alamos, powerful with leather, rose petal, and black cherry.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Forest floor, baking spice and cranberry.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Citrus, salinity, and jasmine.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Tropical fruit, brûlée, and vanilla spice.

A Taste Of The Pacific - Santa Barbara Wine Rich peach, apricot and pineapple fruits, stony minerality, pronounced acidity.

It needs no introduction – Vérité: La Joie is one of the world’s most magnificent red wines. Produced from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and varying proportions of Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the 2015 is really starting to hit is stride. Its California’s ultimate gift to the oenophile, an outstandingly complex and elegant wine effortlessly merges force and finesse. It may not have quite the status of Lafite, but it is every bit the equal in quality – and even, some would say, superior. Today it remains one of California’s finest wines.

This faint straw-colored Chardonnay from Freemark Abbey is very good. It opens with an attractive lemon verbena bouquet with a hint of apple. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, slightly acidic and juicy. The flavor profile is a mild oak influenced apple with notes of lemon verbena and Bartlett pear. I also detected some vanilla and oak in the background. The flavors extend into the finish and linger nicely. This Chard would pair well with chicken piccata.

Oregon 2019: 451 Tasting Notes and Scores A very poised pinot with fresh, wild cherries and abundant fresh, forest leaves, wood and herbs, all deeply woven together. The palate delivers a succulent, juicy impression with an elegant, long and unwavering shape. Excellent pinot. Drink or hold.

Oregon 2019: 451 Tasting Notes and Scores There’s an impressive sense of ripe, dense dark cherries on this Estate Vineyard bottling, delivering a very attractive nose and plenty of deep flavors on the palate. Smooth, fluid and even-paced, this has good potential. Best from 2022.

Oregon 2019: 451 Tasting Notes and Scores This has deeply ripe red and dark cherries in pristine mode with subtly layered, earthy and spicy nuances. The palate has depth, deep fleshy texture and a sweetly ripe, fluid finish, laced with espresso and spice. Drink or hold.

Oregon 2019: 451 Tasting Notes and Scores Plentiful spices are cast across ripe dark cherries, leading to a fleshy, lithe and juicy palate that has attractive red-plum and cherry flavor in abundance. Drink over the next five years.

Oregon 2019: 451 Tasting Notes and Scores Light and bright, poached cherries and berries lead to a smooth array of finely spiced cherry flavors and a smoothly delivered, plush and smooth palate. Drink or hold.

This is the best selling Chardonnay in America and has been for 25 years. Almost three million cases are produced annually. While it's ubiquitous, some times wine geeks are too easy to dismiss it. This is an excellent value in Chardonnay. Light golden in color with specks of green. The nose has vanilla, apples and a bit of honey. On the palate, this is ever so slightly ripe/sweet. No bitterness. Easy to drink with apples and honey coming thru. Clean. Moderate acidity. Moderate finish. It worked well with a variety of garden and fruit salads and was certainly drinkable on it own. Drink now.

This is a real user-friendly red wine. Made up of 50 percent zinfandel and 36 percent syrah along with a smattering of six other red grapes, this wine delivers a bold, mouth-filling experience that over delivers for the price with luscious cherry, raspberry and blueberry flavors.

Merlot (70%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (30%) are sourced from Bennett Valley’s best sites as well as from blocks within the winery’s estate vineyard. A Petrus clone of Merlot was sourced from the sloping benchland site, known as Jackson Park. This is an ageworthy red by winemaker Marcia Torres Forno, who has crafted the label since 2010. The nose is fruit-expressive with cherry and plum skin, both bright and inviting. A whoosh of plush liquid follows, leaving cherry-skin tannins in its wake. Juicy, then dry: Sip and repeat.

Rich cherry nose; ripe, deep cherry and savory notes; clean, balanced and luscious with hints of vanilla oak and toast, long and rich.

Mellow, smooth and balanced; smooth, silky and showing a crisp acid structure; long and lovely with subtle toasty oak elements.