USA, California, Central Coast: The 2017 Vintage in Santa Barbara County Pale to medium ruby-purple, the 2016 Pinot Noir La Encantada Vineyard opens with smoke, tar and turned earth over a core of black fruit with black tea hints. Light to medium-bodied, it offers spicy dark fruits in the mouth, with firm, grainy tannins and good freshness on the long finish.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2017 Vintage in Santa Barbara County This is the first vintage of a Santa Barbara Pinot Noir from Siduri, with fruit coming from the Sta. Rita Hills and the Santa Maria Valley. Pale to medium ruby-purple, the 2017 Pinot Noir Santa Barbara County has a nose of strawberry, Bing cherry, blueberry and even watermelon notes with faint touches of autumn leaves and dried herbs. Winemaker Adam Lee says because this is the first vintage of this wine, he wanted to experiment with a lot of whole cluster fermentation. The palate is light to medium-bodied with a good core of juicy red fruits, firm, grainy tannins and mouthwatering acidity, finishing long. This is a successful use of whole cluster!

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2017 Vintage in Santa Barbara County The 2017 Pinot Noir Santa Barbara County was sourced from multiple sites across the county and aged in 5% new French oak. Pale to medium ruby, it has a perfumed nose of violet, tangerine peel, Earl Grey tea leaves, crushed blackberries, cranberries, rhubarb, woodsmoke and pipe tobacco with an earthy undercurrent. The palate is light to medium-bodied with a good core of earthy fruit framed by grainy tannins and great freshness, finishing earthy. This is a great value, and with 31,000 cases produced, this should be easy to find.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2017 Vintage in Santa Barbara County The 2017 Chardonnay Clone 4, sourced from vines planted in 1971, fermented entirely in stainless steel before being aged for eight months in neutral oak. The nose features poached pears, baked red and yellow apples, pie crust and warm white peach with accents of crushed rock and honey. The palate is light to medium-bodied with a good core of ripe fruits and a lightly rounded texture, countered by zesty acidity and finishing long. A clean, fresh style.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2017 Vintage in Santa Barbara County Barrel fermented in neutral oak and aged for five months, the 2018 Viognier Tepusquet Vineyard has a classic nose of honeysuckle, white peach and apricot, elderflower touches, musk melon, white pepper and a strong vein of crushed rock minerality. Medium-bodied, it offers restrained, mineral-driven fruits with very juicy acidity and a long, perfumed finish. An understated, well-balanced Viognier.

Lisa Valtenbergs blends this wine from a range of blocks in the Jackson family’s Alexander Mountain estate, where the vineyards rise to 2,400 feet into the Mayacamas Mountains. Its notes of tart apple, yellow plum and jasmine are quiet and savory behind the nutmeg richness of the wine’s oak influence. Smoky notes suggest a match with tea-smoked chicken.

La Crema can generally be counted on to produce big, bold wines and this rosé is no exception. Although I generally prefer nuanced, more delicate rosés, perhaps what I particularly like about this voluptuous wine is the way it spreads juicily across the palate, a textural more than a flavor characteristic. The flavors themselves express full fruity charisma that’s nicely balanced by little starlight-bursts of acidity. The wine is the color of a ripe orange sunset hanging low in the late summer sky.

Whimsical Whites Aromatics of peaches, pineapples, citrus fruits, and toasty vanilla greets the senses. The palate delivers flavors of peach, pineapple, and lemon along with accents of vanilla, nutmeg, white blossoms. A nice, balanced Chardonnay, open a bottle when you’re enjoying fresh crab cakes.

Smooth and silky, Julia’s Vineyard 2015 Pinot Noir offers hints of blueberry and cranberry with a subtle tug of earthiness underlying the basic flavor profile. Soft tannins and a finish that lingers are among this pretty wine’s attributes.

Wines of the Week: Bargains for Your BBQ This labor day weekend (or any weekend for that matter), if you’re getting together with friends and family to enjoy some good,old-fashion BBQ, then our tasting panel has some wines for you. They’re all reasonably price and tasty. Cheers and enjoy! Blackberry, cherry, and plum aromas come together with accents of dark chocolate and toasty brown spice on the nose. With a sip, flavors of red plums and cherries unfold into elements of cocoa, cinnamon, and clove. Offering plush tannins and a balanced acidity, it will pair well with a hamburger.

This medium golden yellow colored Riesling opens with a yellow peach bouquet with hints of overripe mango and matchstick. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced and soothing. The flavor profile is a tasty mild lime and gentle mineral blend with notes of Chamomile tea. We also detected hints of yellow grapefruit. The finish is dry and drift away nicely. I would pair this Riesling with swordfish skewers.

This young rosé from WillaKenzie, recently acquired by Jackson Family Wines, is rich and round. Big, front-loaded flavors of watermelon and strawberry come with a touch of tart apple, and the wine is gently framed with phenolic scaffolding. It's a big style, principally Pinot Noir, with dollops of Pinot Meunier and Pinot Blanc.

The winery is now part of the Jackson Family group. It's 100% barrel fermented and still wound up tight, so decanting will be helpful. Crisp apple fruit, fresh as can be, is wrapped in accents of toasted hazelnut.

Deep ruby color. Bright and juicy nose of raspberries, red currants, cranberry sauce, with lots of roses, violets, rhubarb and wild herbs. Plum and juicy texture but lively acidity, with dusty-light tannins. Crisp raspberries, cherries, pomegranate, tangy and chilled, with rose petals, rhubarb, mint and cola elements. Fruity and fun, but elegant, spicy, lively. It’s good to see Siduri keeping things going in this style. A blend of three-vineyards around Boonville, aged 15 months in 35% new French oak.

Savory nose; toasty and fresh, smoky and balanced; earthy, restrained and long.

Medium-light to medium ruby color; appealing, cherry and raspberry fruit aroma with hints of clove, cinnamon, and forest floor; medium body; nicely balanced, somewhat elegant, red fruit flavors with bright acidity and a silky mouthfeel; medium tannin; lingering aftertaste. Enjoyable for drinking now or over the next year or two. Very highly recommended.

This dark red colored Pinot Noir from La Crema opens with a mild red plum bouquet with a faint hint of cola. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced and smooth. The flavor profile is a tasty mild strawberry with notes of red plum and gentle minerality. The finish is dry, and its well-managed moderate tannins stick around for quite a while. This Pinot is food friendly and will be a crowd pleaser. I would pair it with a juicy burger at your favorite bistro.

Vibrant and floral, with expressive honeysuckle, peach and lemon flavors that dance on a sleek and supple finish.

Well-framed, with pastry notes accenting the lively tangerine, green apple and pear flavors. Offers a rich, buttery finish, showing savory hints.

90 Point Sips from Sonoma County A bouquet of lime, pineapple, minerals, and wild grass greets the senses. Flavors of citrus fruits, pineapples, and melons come together among nuances of bell pepper and minerals on the palate. Crisp, with a fairly lively acidity, open a bottle when you enjoy a shrimp stir fry.

The 2009 Napa Valley Cabernets at Age 10 Dark medium ruby. A bit less energetic on the nose than the Helena Dakota, with its medicinal kirsch, menthol and licorice flavors joined by some funky nuances of leather and game. Plusher than the Helena Dakota but more medicinal too, showing little easy sweetness to its dark fruit and tobacco flavors. Finishes rather tannic and distinctly dry, with a faint metallic quality. I would probably want to drink this wine over the next five or six years.

Crisp and juicy with savory dried cherry flavors; bright, tangy and dry, long and balanced.

This yellow colored Chardonnay opens with a fragrant lemon and pineapple bouquet. On the palate, this wine is full bodied, balanced and rich. The flavor profile is a tasty pear and oak blend with notes of minerality, almond, and with hints of nutmeg and honey. The finish is dry and it flavors linger nicely. This Chard would pair well with a chicken and wild mushroom ravioli in a mild butter cream sauce.

A broad warm-climate style with buttered popcorn, ripe lemon, apricot crème brûlée and some hazelnut complexity. Silky-textured, full-bodied and creamy yet with a fine sense of detail and poise.

Tight, juicy and youthfully tannic, this comes from the Cloud Landing Vineyard in the new appellation, planted to a multiplicity of clones. Textured and richly full bodied, it offers complementary elements of forest floor, tea, blueberry and orange peel.