If you or your guests like Chardonnay either a little or a lot, this wine should work perfectly. Seven months of barrel aging has imparted that traditional creamy toasty richness, while the fruit is a complex blend of cool-climate lemony citrus and tropical pineapple and mango. There’s sufficient weight here to handle the ensemble of a festive turkey dinner, but enough acidity and freshness to also enjoy the next sip or two on its own. I tend not to gravitate toward wines that are this commercially popular—it has been the best-selling Chardonnay in the U.S. for 10 years running—but I really love the balance of flavours, texture and freshness in this wine. Great value. And while I advocate for white wines to usually be given time to lose the cold of the fridge before serving, a fairly fresh chill will help offset an ever-so-subtle sweetness in this case.

Hmm, guess what? What? I think I like this better than the 2010.
Plenty of pepper and spice, dusty cupboards, aniseed, ripe blackberry, raspberry and vanilla perfume. Medium bodied, has the vintage signature of tangy rain washed acidity and lightly astringent tannin, but carries it off with aplomb. Clean bramble fruit, plenty of spice and a refreshing odd-vintage kind of appeal is the order of the day. There’s a lot of light and shade in this wine – it’s not heavy or raisiny – good things! Finish is spicy and brambly and encourages the next glass. Lovely spicy wine.

Pale straw in the glass with lemon curd and vanilla in the glass. Yum. The palate is similar, with plenty of fruit and that vanilla aspect, but there is also a boatload of acidity, which serves to hold it all together. Yes, Copain is now a part of a corporate conglomerate, but the wines continue to perform at a very high level. Very nice. Excellent.

Polished and juicy, with wild blackberry, blueberry and spiced plum flavors on a thick and velvety frame, plus details of Earl Grey tea, dried sage and toasted cumin. Reveals a hint of paprika on the finish. Drink now through 2032.

Weekend Wines
This reliable buy showcases the Yarra’s classic lemon curd combo of piquancy and richness. Well-judged oak adds gentle spice to the zesty candied peel and curd palate, enlivened by green nectarine acidity.

Bright purple color. The nose shows juicy black cherries, red currants, laced with charcoal, tar, tobacco, balanced with this brighter floral and spicy herbal tones. Structured well, delightfully chewy tannins and moderate-plus acidity makes for a juicy but fresh wine with raspberries, black cherries and currant fruit. Complex notes of tobacco, sage, black olive, violets and black pepper add complexity, but they need air and some time to show their stuff. Drink now or hold for a while, but this is a solid Chianti Classico.

A crisp and fresh white with notes of sea shells, lemons, green apples and white grapefruits. Medium body with sharp acidity. Nicely textured with saline freshness. Bring on the oysters! From biodynamically grown grapes. Delicious now. Screw cap.

Ripe and expressive in feel, with a polished core featuring a tasty set of sweet bay leaf, licorice and cassis flavors that glide through. Ends with a lightly toasted, savory finish. Drink now through 2032.

The aromas appeal, with notes of powdered cinnamon, red cherry, strawberry, clove and spice. A full-feeling, flavorful palate follows, redolent with dark fruit. The spice accents play well off them.

Cinnamon stick, cherry, cedar, cola, wood spice and licorice aromas lead to fuller-feeling fruit and barrel barrels. Coffee notes linger on the finish. It mixes fruit and barrel throughout.

Sappy and bright with red cherries and redcurrants, as well as some appealing spicy hints. This has some savouriness. Juicy and expressive with good focus.

Siduri was a gateway winery for me as it was one of the first California Pinots that I had tried. I visited their tasting room often, swallowed my disdain for the Dallas Cowboys, and spoke to co-founder and winemaker Adam Lee (who is an obnoxious Cowboys fan) on a number of occasions. I was an unabashed fan. Unlike many other Siduri lovers, however, I was thrilled when Adam and (then) wife Dianna sold the brand to Jackson Family Wines several years ago. I was thrilled for the Lees (they got a boatload of cash for all of their hard work) and for JFW as they acquired a premium brand. I was worried, though, as many a like transaction resulted in, well, disaster. Not the case thus far–Siduri is doing quite well, thank you very much. This Willamette Valley wine, at thirty bucks, is an entry-level wine and I dare say that it is better than the equivalent wines produced by Siduri when Adam was at the helm. Rich fruit, great tartness, surprising depth, and a tasty finish. What else would one want? Excellent.

The 2019 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard offers a darker, riper style, with both blackberry and ripe black cherry fruit as well as hints of leather, iron, and roasted herbs. It's medium-bodied, has a round, supple, layered texture, good balance, and outstanding length.

Slightly more expensive, the 2020 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills has classic appellation savory red fruits, loamy earth, and spicy aromatics, and it's medium-bodied, pure, polished, and elegant on the palate, with supple tannins and some classic Siduri fruit and texture.

The 2020 Chardonnay (Sta. Rita Hills) is a terrific appellation-level wine. Hints of pear, mint, lemon peel and white flowers all grace this expressive, sculpted Chardonnay from Brewer-Clifton. My only quibble is a slightly aggressive edginess that hopefully will soften over time.

Based on the 2018 vintage, the NV Brut Rose is a pale salmon hue, with aromas of fresh white strawberry, peach, and flowers. The palate is ripe with fresh apple and dry, offering ripe fresh fruit, more peach, and a soft texture. Drink 2022-2025.

Generous and plump with fruit, offering rich tropical fruit and apricot flavors that sail on a long, supple finish. Drink now.

Says 14% on the bottle, and 14.5% on the tech specs. Either way. This is from a block planted in 2013, and takes 50% new French oak. Ripe blueberry, mint, paprika and cedar/nougat oak. It’s plush and savoury, all tobacco and chocolate, with a some black olive and tomato, some fleshy chew to tannin, and shows a little alcohol on a finish of saline and savoury flavour. Lacks some freshness and vigour, but still a good wine.

Merlot from 1976 (50%), 1989 (35%) and 2013 (3%, but Petit Verdot). Tastes like Australian Merlot, with that lemon zest and green olive note, also plum and poached strawberry, cedar/vanilla oak in tow. Medium-bodied, kind of sappy and zesty, with light powdery tannin, sour cherry and rhubarb, and a fresh finish of good length, all tobacco and raspberry. Nice wine. A different style of South Australian red.

Medium ruby color. The aromas are so juicy and fresh, with raspberries and fresh cherries, along with rhubarb and cola, rose petals and some earthy, clay tones. The palate shows suave tannins and crisp acidity, with tangy, fresh raspberries, cherries and red plums. The fruit is blended well with notes of rose petals, pepper, cola, some tobacco. Lots to unpack with air and time; this is delightful.

Fruity and focused, this lightly tangy and well-balanced wine offers clean, ripe pear, apple and lemon nuances on a lively, refreshing texture. Without barrel aging, it lets all the natural fruitiness of Chardonnay flow through.

The 2020 Sauvignon Blanc has soft tropical aromas of fresh mango, pink grapefruit, and creamy lemon curd with light baking spice. The palate is juicy and rounded up front before closing with its more focused citrus, including fresh peach and grapefruit. Drink over the next 6 years.

Lifted, with cherry cola up front, the 2020 Pinot Noir Anderson Valley has a generous palate of fresh cranberry cocktail, sweet baking spice, and tangy acid on the finish. This red is hard not to love and is full of pleasure. Drink it now or over the next 5-6 years.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Gran Moraine Vineyard is fresh with delicate violet floral aromas, slatey minerality, and beet root. The palate is juicy up front, with red cherry fruit, dried herbs, and turned earth. It has a medium build and a refreshingly soft, stony texture. Drink it over the next 6 or so years.

The 2020 Chardonnay Willamette Valley is fresh with aromas of crushed oyster shell, lime zest, and pear. The palate is medium-bodied, with ripe green apple on the mid-palate, a mineral texture, and refreshing citrus peel on the finish. It is delicious now, with an Old World Chablis-inspired application. Drink it now or over the next 6 or so years.