The 2008 Pinot Noir River Terra has a plum, flowery, pomegranate-scented nose, a dark ruby color, and attractive, medium-bodied flavors with terrific acidity and sweet tannin that build incrementally and positively on the palate. This wine is still young and unevolved, so another year or two of bottle age could actually add even more nuance. It should drink well for 7-10 years.

Sweet black cherries, fresh strawberry jam, cold steel, and crushed rocks jump from the glass of the dark ruby/purple-tinged 2008 Pinot Noir Sierra Granite. This is an elegant yet rich style of Pinot Noir that is still playing it close to the vest due to its vibrant acids, but it should also drink well for up to a decade.

This is an unusually appealing California Pinot, which has atypical finesse and elegance for a Golden State Pinot. Winemaker Ivan Giotenov attributes this in part to the unique vineyard site, which he describes as 'A paradise for growing grapes' (the grapes for this Pinot came from a rocky 4-acre patch in the heart of the 1100 acre vineyard). The wine is relatively full-bodied and complex, with distinct red plum and blackberry flavors, and smooth, velvety tannins on the finish.

winning combination of pear, apple ripe melon and butterscocth flavors, spiked with spicy clove and tart citrus accents. Lavishly oaked for a midweight wine, there's sufficient depth of fruit here to spport the wood, and the elements mesh and hold nicely/ An easy, lush mouthfeel means, it's best enjoyed over the next year or so - if you can keep it around that long.

Full ruby-red. Bordeaux-like aromas of roasted plum, currant, smoke and tobacco. Lush, pliant and expressive…Finishes with fine tannins and very good length.

"The '95 Cardinale is an ambitious contender for the California meritage crown. This edition is a finely tined combination of Mt. Veeder fruit (dense and pungent) with Alexander Valley hillside fruit (lush black cherry and herbs). Deeply informed by Bordeaux while taking full advantage of California's terroir, it's elegant and stylish, full of plum, peach and licorice notes, round and tannic. " Also appeared 11/98

The wine's opaque purple color is followed by copious quantities of toast, cassis, tobacco, earth, and spice in a full-blown bouquet. Full-bodied, with superb purity, and a gorgeous marriage of power and elegance…

.is rich and balanced with plum and tangy berry fruit. It is long, dense and complex.

Shows of its ripe black cherry, currant and wild berry flavors that stretch to a jammy edge, adding pretty spice and anise and firm tannins. Well crafted.

Figs and dried fruits with some tar predominate in the nose of this red wine. This has polished tannins, good bright fruit and a medium finish. Drink or hold.

Winemaker Christopher Carpenter, who is also responsible for the wines of Lokoya, has fashioned an opaque ruby/purple-colored 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon offering notes of black cherries, black currants, and spicy oak, a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel, low acidity and light but sweet tannin. Another strong effort in this challenging vintage, it should drink well for 10-12 years. Cardinale's Cabernet Sauvignon, a blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot aged in 90% new French oak, has always been one of the most impressive offerings from the Kendall-Jackson portfolio.

This is marked by appealing cream- and mocha-laced flavors, with a dash of espresso woven into the dense dried berry, loamy earth, cedar and tobacco notes. Maintains a tight focus and gains on the finish, though the tannins are dry and gripping.

Potent and well-built, offering a mix of pure, ripe blackberry and currant, with touches of smoke and cedar and rich, chewy tannins.

Bright golden cast. Full-bodied. Balanced acidity. Moderately extracted. Heavily oaked. Smoke, yeast, cream. Quite heavily oaked, with a big, smoky flavor profile. Luxuriant and rich, with easty complexity and enough acidity to maintain a sense of balance through the finish.

Bright, pale yellow-green. Delicately perfumed aromas of lime oil, fresh herbs and green tropical fruits. Juicy, fresh and refined, with enticing lift to the intense flavors of grapefruit peel, pineapple and flowers and fresh herbs; reminded me a bit of riesling. Still a tad reductive; assistant winemaker Laura Diaz-Munoz blocked the malolactic fermentation but did a lot of lees stirring for creamosity. This was done in used barrels; Diaz-Munoz made the 2012 vintage in concrete eggs.

The 2015 Innovant, Captûre's Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine, is terrific. Juicy red berry, tobacco, grilled herbs, menthol, licorice and cedar are all nicely put together in this pliant, supple red. Open-knit and silky, the 2015 will drink well upon release. The blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot.

Ripe, sexy, and voluptuous, the 2015 Innovant Red Wine is the entry-level blend from the estate based on 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot brought up in 50% new French oak. Crème de cassis, tobacco leaf, lead pencil and spice notes give way to a medium to full-bodied wine that has sweet, rounded tannin, plenty of fruit, and a good finish.

The 2014 Innovant Red Wine is beautiful, with a ripe, upfront, charming style that’s hard to not drink. Plums, black cherries, leady herbs and a kiss of graphite all emerge from this medium to full-bodied, nicely concentrated, textured effort that still holds onto the firm, age-worthy style present in all these releases. This beauty can safely be drunk anytime over the coming 10-12 years.

This is made from a majority Cabernet Sauvignon, with 11% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. This makes for a softly layered tease of cinnamon, cedar and brush, with the tannins dry and grippy. Black licorice and violet dot the nose and palate.

The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Revelation has turned out well, but at the same time, the jump in quality here over the two vintages is marked. Black fruit, mocha, plum, smoke and licorice, along with big, grippy tannins, are among the signatures.

The 2017s From Sonoma Bordeaux-like with its crisp citrus, lemon, and white flower bouquet, the 2018 Sauvignon Blanc Tradition is medium-bodied, vibrant and pure on the palate, with beautiful purity and freshness. It's impeccably made and well worth drinking. This comes mostly from Sonoma County yet has close to a fourth from Lake County.

This is a complex, impressive white with a creamy lush entry that evolves on the palate to offer crisp fleshy elements of white peach and lime. The midpalate is balanced in richness, leading the way to a bold herbal grassy finish.

The 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Les Pionniers, from the Jackson family's Alexander Mountain Estate, is focused and nicely sculpted. Bright citrus peel, mint, white pepper and slate give the wine its distinctive, chiseled personality, while a dollop of Roussane adds texture.

The 2015 Sauvignon Blanc les Pionniers is scented of lemons, ripe apples, yuzu and chopped herbs. Medium-bodied, it has a great core of citrus flavors complemented by nice minerality, finishing with a lovely lift.

Pea shoots and a faraway lawn provide a fresh inspiring of springtime in this stainless-steel fermented white that’s lovely and fully expressive on the palate. Jasmine notes are joined by tastes of apricot and peach, while tropical breezes blow by.