This over-achiever of a Chard is straight-up medium-bodied, with no overt oak but very subtle suggestions of toast and spice. The balance of acidity and fruity sweetness is just right, with freshness and substance riding perfectly in tandem. There’s nothing too flashy in this—to its credit.

I may be biased, but I truly believe Santa Barbara County produces some of the world's best chardonnays: racy, minerally, textural, and showcasing character. If that sounds like your jam, you’ll likely enjoy this bottling from winemaker Greg Brewer of Brewer-Clifton. Highlighting fruit from three vineyards within the Sta. Rita Hills AVA, it's a powerful yet ethereal expression of the region. Aromas of lemon, mango, and orange blossom lead to a bright palate loaded with citrus, white peach. and ginger, while a stream of salty minerality anchors the precise finish. It's a great value bottling from Sta. Rita Hills, and a perfect introduction to the region’s chardonnays.

Often the best grenache at this stellar site and certainly the most robust, without any sense of excess of heaviness. Sandalwood, campfire and almost pithy red cherry and amaro liqueur notes. Some tamarind and sarsaparilla. It’s not dissimilar to top nebbiolo, both flavor-wise and structurally. The finish is juicy but tightly wound, auguring for a long future in the cellar. Drinkable now, but best from 2029.

The 2021 Penner-Ash ‘Zena Crown Vineyard’ Pinot Noir offers loads of stony minerals on the nose alongside rich red fruits, menthol and shades of white pepper. The palate is mineral-laden with loads of freshness and a seamless sense of mouthfeel. Finishing long with rich red fruits, baking spices and salty soils, this is a generous, complex bottling that will cellar well over the next fifteen years to come. Drink 2024-2039.

The 2021 ‘Estate Cuvee’ opens with bright red fruits with a smooth texture and citrus rind accents on the palate. Soft and refined, with a smooth texture and plenty of salty soil accents, this is drinking marvelously now. Drink 2024-2032.

The outstanding 2022 Penner-Ash ‘Willamette Valley’ Chardonnay is located with rich pear, peach and stony minerals on the palate. Medium to full-bodied, with a gorgeous texture, this is a marvelous bottling that will drink well over the next eight to ten years. Drink 2024-2032

The 2021 Penner-Ash ‘Willamette Valley’ Pinot Noir is a beautiful warm vintage wine that displays good flavor density and finesse. Layers of rich plum and spice cake combine with red currants and tobacco leaf on the palate. Rich and viscous, enjoy now and over the next ten years to come. This is really serious for an entry-level Pinot. Drink 2024-2034.

Bright and loaded with tension the 2022 Rose by winemaker Erik Kramer offers red rose water with orange rind and pretty guava and red raspberry fruit flavors. Enjoy this beauty now and over the next several years to come. Drink 2024-2028.

La Crema's 2022 Monterey Chardonnay is a celebration of coastal influence and refined taste. With aromas of grilled pineapple, Asian pear, and tangerine, followed by flavors of white peach and Key lime, it's a wine that balances fruitiness with a touch of barrel spice. Its river stone minerality and balanced acidity make it an excellent match for seafood dishes or a simple cheese platter.

A superb vintage for this, the the finest iteration of Ovitelli Blanc thus far. Aromas of freshly made lemonade, herbal tea, salted quince and raw almonds, with a bitter kick of quinine at the finish. Full-bodied with just the right amount of pucker and a salty lick at the end. A brilliant expression that should age very well indeed. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

A full-bodied cabernet of precision and class. The results are more approachable, fragrant and exquisite than warmer years. Perhaps the tannins are not quite as refined and resolved. Yet the pimento lift to the aromas riffs on spruce, a smattering of garden herbs, green olive brine, red currants and pickled cherries. It has an immediacy and great gusto. I'd drink this across a shorter-term window. Drink now or hold. Screw cap.

Plenty of class here. Crushed currants, paprika, spiced Damson plums and a touch of pimento. More medium-bodied and savory than previous vintages. The oak is a perfect framework. This is not as spectacular as this bottling has proven in the past. And yet the poise and drinkability cannot be disputed. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

A classy, polished, consummately detailed, full-bodied shiraz. Not an ounce of flab or extraneous sweetness on its refined structural bones. Anise, blue fruit, grilled meats and mace on the finish. Tension across its classy oak and grape tannins. Drinkable now, but best from 2028.

Plush and compelling, with elegantly layered flavors of raspberry and tart cherry that take on black tea and rose petal accents as this builds richness and tension toward refined tannins. Drink now through 2033. From Oregon.—T.F.

A deep, glossy ruby. Buoyant notes of lavender, lilacs, boysenberries and a sheer, joyous grapiness. And yet the tannic restraint is drawn tight. The oak is classy and beautifully handled across a medium-bodied texture. There is a great deal to like here. Most of all, the impressionable immediacy of the fruit. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Seductive and elegantly complex, with silky raspberry flavors accented by notes of fresh violet, orange peel, savory spices and black tea that gather richness toward polished tannins. Drink now through 2033. —T.F.

An exuberantly floral, full-bodied shiraz, with the inherent elegance of Blewitt Springs, a grand cru in local parlance. Iodine, saddle leather, dried lavender and lilacs, with notes of boysenberry and cream. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

A late-released single-block bottling. Exciting aromas of porcini mushrooms, dashi, wood, mulch and a mocha oak element. This is delicious now, but I'd drink it up relatively soon, evidenced by the dryness across the finish. Drink now. Screw cap.

A late-released, full-bodied, bottle-aged wine from a single prized block. Old-school Aussie shiraz, boasting maritime accents of kelpy iodine amid darker notes of mocha, camphor, star anise and mulled red plums. The tannins are a bit drying. I'd drink this soon. Drink now.

Ferrous, nicely reductive and very savory, boasting grilled meats, camphor, iodine and cloves. A very earthy GSM, far from the fruitier Aussie norm. Plenty to like. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink now. Screw cap.

A rich, plusher expression of merlot, at least in an Australian context. Tomato leaves, Damson plums and ferrous tannins directing solid length. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Very well crafted and quite versatile in style, this rings true to Cabernet’s reputation for rich, robust flavors while finishing with sufficiently soft structure. Aromas and flavors of blackberries and dark cherries are pure and very appealing, its firm tannins without any drying effect.

This elegant and refined Oregon sparkling wine is a fine example of the bubbly revolution going on in Oregon, where there are many producers are making excellent sparklings. I love Gran Moraine’s whisper-light pink hue, purity and generous textured palate rich with notes of wild strawberries and peach creamsicle.

This is about as fine as shiraz can get in the Vale, boasting filigreed tannins and such a natural sense of freshness that it whets the palate and makes one hungry at first sip. Northern Rhône-like scents of grilled meats, cloves, lilacs and Damson plums. A gentle cascade across the spicy framework to a long, immensely refined finish. All foudres vats, Austrian and French. Despite the full body, the wine is almost ethereal in the best sense, making for effortless drinking despite the profundity in the glass. This has such delicacy and cooler climatic tension to it that it is truly startling. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

A beautiful opening act from a splendid source of quality McLaren Vale grenache. Notes of dried rose petals, spruce and kirsch. A little hard, rustic and ferrous at the end, although nothing a stiff decant or a short stint in the cellar can’t remedy. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drinkable now, but best from 2026. Screw cap.