USA, California: All Along the Central Coast – The 2017 Vintage in Paso Robles and Beyond Pale to medium ruby-purple, the 2017 Pinot Noir Rosella's Vineyard opens savory with faint touches of tar and charcuterie, fleshing out to black cherries, loamy earth, cinnamon stick, tree bark and red cherry sparks. Light to medium-bodied with broody, earth-tinged fruits, it has a soft frame and great freshness, finishing long and layered.

USA, California: All Along the Central Coast – The 2017 Vintage in Paso Robles and Beyond The 2017 Chardonnay is fermented entirely in stainless steel with some bâtonnage in tank but no malolactic fermentation. It has a pretty nose of pear blossom, red apple skin, honeycomb and chamomile with notes of peach pie and a rocky mineral note. Light to medium-bodied, it has a softly rounded texture with juicy acidity and finishes long on a floral note.

Opens with steely elegance and gently expands and fleshes out, featuring refined apple, spiced pear and mineral flavors that glide on a vibrant finish.

2018 Oregon Vintage: Vineyard Savvy Reaps Consistency and Quality This is a brambly style that has forest berries and herbs on offer, as well as a spicy layer that delivers a complex overall impression. The palate has good, harmonious structure and neat, spiced red-cherry flavors. Drink now.

2018 Oregon Vintage: Vineyard Savvy Reaps Consistency and Quality Aromas of violets and dried red cherries make for classic pinot style. The palate has plush and silky tannin texture and delivers a mellow, fleshy feel with good balance. Drink now.

2018 Oregon Vintage: Vineyard Savvy Reaps Consistency and Quality Spicy oak influence sits across ripe red cherries with a swathe of freshly cut herbs. The palate has very attractive freshness and lithe, juicy appeal. Already lots to like here. Drink now. Screw cap.

2018 Oregon Vintage: Vineyard Savvy Reaps Consistency and Quality Aromas of sliced dried cherries and blueberries lead to a languid feel on the palate with mellow red cherries and dried, woody spices, as well as a creamy, biscuit and espresso finish. Drink now. Screw cap.

2018 Oregon Vintage: Vineyard Savvy Reaps Consistency and Quality A bright, vibrant pinot that offers plenty of ripe red-cherry and strawberry aromas that lead to a palate that delivers assertive tannins, driving a fresh and quite intense, directly fruity finish. Drink in the next three to four years.

This value-minded wine is a nice showcase of the appellation, offering a mix of forested earth and grilled mushroom. Smooth, supple tannins form around an intense midpalate of red cherry and citrus that remains fresh on a lengthy finish.

Napa Valley's 2017s There are around 2,000 cases of the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford, which is 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the balance Petite Verdot, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. Aged 27 months in 58% new French oak, it has a terrific sense of elegance and purity as well medium-bodied richness, light tannins, and classic Rutherford notes of mulled red and black fruits, dried earth, and chocolate.

Sourced from a host of sites in the Santa Barbara County, the Syrah shows smoky undertones that mingle with white pepper, blackberry cobbler and suggestions of venison tartare that take shape in the glass. The palate shows a nice combination of verve and viscosity with straightforward black fruit and smoky flavors. Beautiful now, this will provide drinking enjoyment for at least another seven years.

From a great Bordeaux vintage this maturing merlot-based red shows complex but subdued aromas of leather, very ripe blackberry/plummy fruit, chocolate, oak resin and an offsetting touch of fresh dill/basil herbality. It is quite full bodied with a sense of volume, but it is not heavy. There is some Bordeaux finesse here too - good acidity. Tannins are quite dusty and drying but again not hard. The length is very good to excellent. Best now to 2025. Tasted Jan 2020.

Rod Berglund created La Crema Viñera in 1979 with a group of friends who invested in his endeavor. His vision was to make single vineyard, cool climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. His mentors included Joseph Swan and André Tchelistcheff. His wines were well received and inspired others, but marketing conditions were not in his favor. In 1984, the winery was sold. Berglund married Swan’s daughter, Lynn, in 1986, and helped Swan with his last harvest in 1987. Joseph Swan died in early 1989 and Lynn and Rod Burglund continue to operate the winery. Jess Jackson took up Berglund’s mission in 1993, shortening the name to La Crema and focusing on cool spots in the Russian River Valley. The winery is now located in the beautiful Saralee’s Vineyard in Russian River and La Crema winemaker Craig McAllister invited founder Rod Berglund to join him in creating this wine to celebrate 40 years. The grapes come from several estate vineyards including Bellflower, Piner, Saralee’s, Seascape and Ross. It is a tantalizing wine with ruby red color and pretty cherry, raspberry aromas with a hint of floral notes and dried roses. In the mouth its svelte structure supports layered flavors of black cherry, blood orange, rose and a touch of fresh herbs. The acidity is mouthwatering, and the tannins are fine grained, encouraging flavors to linger while you experience the harmony of the elements coming together.

2017 & 2018 Napa Valley In Depth The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Pleinair is racy, silky and super-expressive. Sweet floral and spice notes give the 2017 pretty aromatic top notes and brightness. This is a very solid value in the world of Napa Valley Cabernet, marked by plush red fruit and floral notes.

2017 & 2018 Napa Valley In Depth The 2018 Sauvignon Blanc Equitem offers lovely texture to play off the expressive varietal notes. Orchard fruit, almond, dried flowers and sage all meld together effortlessly. The Equitem has a bit more richness than the Naissance. I would prefer to drink it over the next few years.

A pretty wine, with bold honeysuckle aromas that lead to crisp yet oily-textured apricot, spice nut and orange peel flavors. Drink now.

I’m almost always impressed by La Crema’s Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. Against California’s tendency to produce dense and sweet Pinots, La Crema’s comparative restraint, reflective of the Russian River’s relatively cool climate, is welcome. This one offers a medium body and supple texture, and it has attractive cherry and plum flavors heightened by suggestions of cinnamon and a subtle hint of chocolate.

The vineyard is set in the newly confirmed Van Duzer Corridor AVA. Its black cherry fruit comes with an assortment of stem, leaf and wood highlights. The tannins show tea-like astringency and a touch of sweet spice.

Steely at first, with an underlying lushness that refreshes the palate, this white is floral and exotic in rich layers of quince and Meyer lemon. It shows balance and varietal character, hinting in dried herb.

After a full two years of ageing in oak, this 2015 jumps from the glass thanks to a lively mix of 76/20/4 Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Malbec. The nose is an attractively scented red and blue affair with spices, while the palate is fresh from front to back. The blue/black fruit sits above its slightly grippy tannins, suggesting this will age well. The longer we left it open, the more it improved. It is a beautiful bottle of red that delivers the approachable but serious style of Knights Valley. Polished. You can drink or hold.

The 2016 Fijnbosch Chardonnay has a well-defined nose, displaying more extract than the Silene or the regular cuvée, and more undergrowth scents mixed with fern and broom. The palate is well balanced, taut and fresh with a fine bead of acidity. Touches of white pepper furnish the finish, which shows just a touch of heaviness. Otherwise, this is perfectly fine.

This deep ruby colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Kendall Jackson opens with a black cherry and wintermint bouquet with a hint of milk chocolate and toasted coconut flakes. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied with medium acidity. The mouthfeel is soft, balanced, and juicy. The flavor profile a black plum and red currant blend with notes of blackberry, stony minerality and cedar plank. I also detected hints of dried oregano and just a touch of mint in the aftertaste. The finish is rather dry, and its dusty tannins stick around for a long time. I would decant this wine to tame the tannins in the near term. Then I would serve this very good value wine with Firefly’s St. Louis ribs with Memphis sauce.

Rounded notes of lemon curd, baked green apple and sage on the nose. Medium-bodied with white tea and nutmeg on the palate. Vanilla cream. Slightly smoky finish. Tasty. Drink now.

Red fruit, red licorice and redcurrant on the nose. Full-bodied with well-integrated tannins, carrying sweet red fruit and berries. Fairly concentrated with a floral finish. Sustainable. Drink now.

A svelte red, filled with sandalwood accents to the well-knit dried cherry and raspberry flavors. Shows vanilla bean notes midpalate, with hot stone nuances lingering on the finish. Drink now through 2024.