This wine’s distinctive nose lays a foundation of underripe raspberry fruit and tops it with sesame, sandalwood and wild thyme aromas. There is significant woody character to the palate, including pine, oak and juniper, all set against bright red fruit.

Bright and spicy with cherry and pomegranate fruit; savory and toasty, long and complex.

The 2012 Pinot Noir 667 is a medium-bodied, nicely concentrated effort that gives up notions of cherry blossom, white flowers, licorice and hints of toasty oak. Coming all from sandy soils, barrel-fermented with 10% whole cluster, and aged the standard 15 months in 40% new French oak, it’s an outstanding Pinot Noir that has loads of character. Drink it over the coming 4-5 years.

In the same ball park, the 2012 Pinot Noir Julia’s Vineyard spent 15 months in 40% new French oak before bottling. A medium to full-bodied, rich and textured effort, it offers plenty of darker berry fruit, licorice, pepper and minerality in its rustic, chewy profile. Drink it over the coming 4-5 years.

Kicking off the Pinot Noirs and coming all from sandy soils, the 2012 Pinot Noir Santa Maria Valley is another rocking value from this estate. Exhibiting classy cassis, toasted bread, creamy licorice and loads of spice, this medium to full-bodied, concentrated and ripe Pinot Noir has solid mid-palate depth and a great texture. Spending 15 months in 20% new French oak, enjoy it over the coming 3-4 years.

Byron’s basic 2012 Santa Barbara is that rare bird: delicious, affordable California pinot noir. Sourced from three vineyards in Santa Maria Valley, two near Los Alamos and one in the Santa Rita Hills, it’s frisky and approachable, lasting on fresh red-fruit-skin flavor and fine tannins, light on its feet, with a hard-to-resist juiciness reminiscent of cru Beaujolais. Buy a case and watch it disappear.

Byron’s basic 2012 Santa Barbara is that rare bird: delicious, affordable California pinot noir. Sourced from three vineyards in Santa Maria Valley, two near Los Alamos and one in the Santa Rita Hills, it’s frisky and approachable, lasting on fresh red-fruit-skin flavor and fine tannins, light on its feet, with a hard-to-resist juiciness reminiscent of cru Beaujolais. Buy a case and watch it disappear.

Bright ruby-red. Vibrant, spice-accented red berry and cherry scents are deepened by notes of licorice and black tea, with a suave vanilla nuance building in the glass. Sappy and precise, offering lively raspberry and bitter cherry flavors and a hint of blood orange. Gains weight with air and finishes with silky tannins and zesty jolt of white pepper. This energetic wine was made entirely from a Swan clone.

Vivid ruby-red. Sexy, oak-spiced cherry and dark berries on the fragrant nose. Juicy and seamless in texture, offering intense black raspberry and cherry-vanilla flavors lifted by a spicy element. Supple tannins shape the finish, which features notes of smoky minerals and sweet floral pastilles.

Deep ruby color; deep, tight dark cherry aromas; big, deep and rich dark cherry flavors with some oak and tannin; earthy and pepper notes; good structure and balance; long finish. Big and deep Pinot that needs time to open up.

The stems that were included in the fermentation give this wine a full-bodied, tannic mouthfeel, as well as adding to the spices. With raspberry, cherry and mocha flavors, it’s a powerful Pinot that wants two or three years in the cellar.

Deep ruby. Sexy, oak-spiced aromas of black raspberry and cola, with subtle floral and anise nuances adding complexity. Shows very good depth and focus on the palate, offering sweet red and dark berry preserve flavors and a strong spicecake quality. Gains weight and takes a darker turn on the finish, with its suggestions of boysenberry and candied licorice.

The 2010 Pinot Noir Julia's Vineyard is gorgeously elegant and finesse driven, with layers of sweet red fruits, crushed flowers, underbrush and rose petal to go with a medium-bodied, seamless and energetic palate. Already approachable, with fantastically polished tannin, it's a knockout Pinot Noir that will have upwards of a decade of ultimate longevity. It's the most integrated and complete in the lineup and I'm a fan. Drink now-2020. Relatively firm, structured efforts, these should all benefit from short-term cellaring.

Smooth and charming with sweet cherry, spice and bright acidity; supple, structured and amiable with nice, relaxed style and good depth.

Ruby-red. Sexy, highly perfumed scents of black raspberry, cherry-cola, spicecake, candied licorice and incense, with a strong kick of white pepper. Lush and extroverted, offering sweet red and dark fruit preserve flavors and exotic floral notes. Becomes smokier with air and finishes with impressive breadth, velvety tannins and a lingering floral quality.

Medium ruby color; deep floral, cherry and strawberry aromas with spice notes; rich, ripe red cherry flavors with floral and spicy notes; silky texture; good structure and balance; long finish. Ripe fruit and spicy notes make this a nice Pinot for lighter grilled fare.

Medium-deep ruby color; deep, spicy cherry aromas with mineral, earthy notes; ripe, forward cherry and plum flavors with lots of earthy notes; good structure and balance; long finish. Deep, full Pinot with the structure for some age.

A Wine that can be drunk now or cellared for a decade or more is the brilliant 2007 Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Vineyard. This vineyard tends to provide a graphite-like character along with minerality and earth. The wine is full-bodied and powerful with striking concentration as well as a terrific perfume of flowers, plums, black cherries, and black currants. Deep, full, rich, still young and promising, it should be even better with another 1-2 years of bottle age.

The 2007 Pinot Noir Sierra Madre is dark plum in color, has earthy, berry, underbrush notes, medium to full body, serious depth as well as texture, and a long promising finish. It will evolve for 6-8+ years.

Aromas of ripe strawberries balance the rich oak spice in this wine. The fruit feels fresh and plump, held firm by strong tannins. This has the structure for rack of lamb.

As nice as this wine's layered aromas of ripe cherries, sweet oak and subtle herbaceousness are, its deep, and enormously fruity flavors are more impressive yet. A full-scaled Pinot in terms of its extraordinarily well-extracted fruit, it is optimally ripened, quite supple in feel and buffers its touch of last-minute heat with lots of oak-sweetened cherries. Its careful acidity furnishes the right note of brightness and life to the finish, and, like the best of its breed, this is one that can be enjoyed right away or safely laid down for a few years of guaranteed growth.

Powerful and well-structured, with savory richness to the ripe grapefruit, green pear and crisp apple flavors. Pastry notes linger on the finish.

Medium yellow color. Aromas of lemon curd, yellow apple, buttercream, raw almond, sea salt, along with honey and cinnamon. Medium-bodied, precise acidity with a lively saline element. Rich texture with notes of whipped butter, apricot jam, lemon curd and baked apple, but also fresh with notes of chalk dust and crushed oyster shells. Nougat and honey on the finish, this is delicious and balanced.

Discreet elements of vanilla, roasted grains and toasted brioche are interwoven with abundant, sweet fruit in the effusive and decidedly complex aromas of this immediately involving wine, and there is no loss of richness or range to its deeply fruited, multi-faceted flavors. While quite full and slightly viscous on entry, it is buoyed by fine fruity acidity and shows very good finishing length. There is no need to hurriedly pull its cork, but it is in fine drinking shape now. 2 stars.

The 2015 Chardonnay Nielson Vineyard is a powerful, intense wine built on breadth and textural intensity. The personality of the Wente clone comes through in the wine's oily, phenolic richness. At times, the Chardonnay feels like a red wine structurally.