A very good bargain. The sexy 2007 Pinot Noir Santa Maria offers sensual, soft, floral, berry, and plum fruit notes intertwined with a subtle notion of smoke. This silky-textured, medium-bodied endearing Pinot smells good, goes down easy, and should have many fans among both neophytes and connoisseurs. Enjoy it over the next several years.

Medium ruby color, deep red cherry and clove aromas; rich, ripe, bright cherry flavors with spicy, clove notes; forward fruit; silky texture, good structure and balance; long finish. Rich and bright flavors make this medium-weight Pinot a great choice for the table.

A blend of grapes from two vineyards, including Bien Nacido, this polished Pinot shows the crushed hard spices and deep, black-cherry flavors typical of the appellation. It's still a young wine, brimming with acids and tannins, and is drinkable now, but has the stuffing for medium-term aging. It's a good value for a Santa Barbara Pinot of this quality.

Red delicately balanced, elegant and graceful, with a firm, supple beam of black cherry, mineral, mushroom and forest floor. The tannins and acidity give it a great backbone, making it tempting to drink now. Drink now through 2011.

A true GSM, made from equal parts Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre, the 2010 GSM Santa Maria Valley is a rich, concentrated and medium to full-bodied effort that possess outstanding notes of blackberry, toasted spice, pepper and sweet oak. Fermented with 100% whole cluster, and spending 26 months in 100% new French oak, it’s a rock-solid Rhone blend to enjoy over the coming 4-6 years.

There is a strong amount of smoke and oak on the nose of this bottling, but there's also elegant touches of creamy Asian pear and lemon rind. That citrus and smoke combination shows on the sip as well, along with sweet touches of apple flesh and a compelling sandalwood flavor.

Offers lemon-lime hints to the ripe pear, cream and baked apple flavors, lusciously spiced. Dried sage notes show on the rich finish.

The second of two very good, single-site Chardonnays from Byron, the Nielson Vineyard version shows very clear kinship to its mate from the Bien Nacido property with plenty of deep, optimally ripened, slightly tropical fruit and the same propensity to sweet, mildly caramelly oak. It, too, is showy, full-bodied, nicely layered stuff and with richness to spare and complexity that requires no effort or waiting to see, and, if by small degree, the more open and obvious of the two, it is comfortably balanced and will handily keep for several more years. 1 star.

A smoking value that's made in serious quantities, the 2013 Chardonnay Santa Barbara County has classic stone fruits, white peach, white flowers and classy oak/vanilla notes in a medium-bodied, supple, elegant and fruit-forward style. Fermented and aged half in tank and half in neutral barrel, it's a no-brainer Chardonnay to enjoy over the coming couple of years.

More energetic, with better overall focus and definition, the 2012 Chardonnay Nielson offers impressive lychee nut, white flowers, mint and hints of brioche in its medium to full-bodied, layered and beautifully textured personality. Aged 15 months in 40% new French oak, it will shine for 4-5 years, if not longer.

This wine is noticeably forward in oak in the nose, and its fruit does take a moment in which to get going, but going is just what it does, and it shines brightly in the deep and impressively filled flavors of ripe apples and lemons. There are scattered glimmers of complexity that bode well for aging, and the wine’s youthful, slightly phenolic, finishing edges will disappear once a couple of years have passed.

Smooth and lush with rich, creamy texture and ripe fruit; vanilla and dense tropical fruit; deep and long with balance and style.

Appealing, with a rich, juicy core of intense fruitiness, offering tiers of melon, citrus and tropical fruit. Very clean, pure and focused.

Appealing, with a rich, juicy core of intense fruitiness, offering tiers of melon, citrus and tropical fruit. Very clean, pure and focused.

Butter, salt, pear and fresh-squeezed orange comprise the leading aromas. Bright orange flavors persist on the palate, as do green apple, hints of papaya and the near-chalky sensation of white rock.

Ripe golden color; silky and lush with creamy texture and ripe flavors; smooth, balanced and showing sweet new oak; long and stylish.

Smooth, creamy and ripe showing vanilla and butterscotch; lush and deep with good acid structure; long and dense.

Rich, spicy and oaky, this exudes a honeyed quality along with pineapple and lemon meringue notes. The brisk Santa Maria acidity provides clean, mouthwatering balance. Pair this opulent Chardonnay with lobster, shrimp and salmon.

Bright yellow-gold.  Ripe citrus and orchard fruit aromas are complicated by notes of buttered toast, vanilla and honey.  Fleshy and smooth in texture but lively as well, offering sappy tangerine and pear flavors that pick up a gingery nuance with air.  Finishes smoky and long, with lingering pear skin and vanilla notes.

Like an old style Burgundy with flint and dried apple character. Walnuts too. Some clarified butter. Full body, with fresh acidity and a creamy finish. Drink now

The only Chardonnay I tasted from Byron was also outstanding. The 2008 Chardonnay Santa Maria exhibits crisp apple and tropical fruit with loads of background wood, spice, and earth. The wine is medium to full-bodied, pure, and a strong effort. Drink it over the next 1-2 years.

Greenish gold. Impressively complex aromas of lime, iodine, celery seed, sage and smoke. Sappy orchard and citrus flavors are pleasantly sweet but not overly so, with good mineral snap adding urgency. The iodine and smoke notes repeat on the finish. This is already quite complex.

Offers pure, rich, ripe fruit, with touches of ripe pear, apple and honeydew melon, gaining depth and body and ending with a complex finish. Drink now through 2012.

Made in an accessible, pleasing fashion, with sweet, smoky oak framing ripe flavors of pineapples, pears and honey.