Toasty, creamy and lush with ripe, smoky oak flavors and lots of honey and butterscotch.

For example, the 1995 Chardonnay (900 cases) was made with 100% native yeast fermentation, put through full malolactic fermentation, completely barrel fermented, and aged in 75% new oak for nearly 18 months, and bottled without filtration. There was considerable stirring of the lees to encourage greater complexity and richness. It is an impressive, young, Burgundian-styled Chardonnay with a smoky, hazelnut, buttery popcorn, honeyed pineapple-scented nose and flavors, full body, great purity and ripeness, and a long, lusty finish. It could easily stand up to just about any Batard-Montrachet made in France, although I doubt it will be long-lived. Drink it over the next 2-3 years.

The 1995 Chardonnay offers a Burgundian-like earthy, mineral personality, with smoked hazelnut, rich, buttery popcorn, and tropical fruit scents. The wine is medium to full-bodied, rich, and well-delineated by zesty acidity in addition to the influence of high quality French barrels.

Tangy grapefruit and gooseberry flavors make this new wine from Jackson Family Estates lively, fresh and palate-cleansing. It has medium body, good concentration and bracing acidity.

This is a new line of label-driven wine meant to be adventurous and whimsical. Catchy label aside, the wine inside entirely delivers in well-integrated fruit and floral characteristics, showing the crispness of its stainless-steel fermentation. Tangy, it’s both tart and tropical, finishing focused and lean.

The 2015 Merlot is gorgeous. Succulent dark cherry and plum fruit make a strong first impression. Mocha, new leather, lavender and spice add layers of flavor and aromatic nuance to this very pretty, racy Merlot from La Jota. A dollop of Petit Verdot adds character.

This opaque and very dark ruby colored Merlot opens with a fragrant black cherry and blackberry bouquet with hints of wintergreen and red licorice. On the palate, this wine is full bodied and balanced. The flavor profile is a chalky mineral infused blackberry with notes of black cherry. We also detected hints of red plum and coffee. The finish is dry and its rather dusty tannins stick around for a while. Despite its big tannins, we do suggest drinking this Merlot in the near term. We would decant it for an hour and serve it with a pot roast.

Good bright medium red. Musky, perfumed aromas of dark berries, pine needles, coffee, herbs and brown spices. Sweet and fine-grained but juicy too, with lovely floral lift to the red berry and spice flavors. Penetrating acidity extends the finish and gives it lift.

The 2007 Merlot (99% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon) is unquestionably a sleeper of the vintage. Lots of chocolate, cocoa, black cherry, earth, and subtle herbs make for a creamy, lush, full-bodied, sexy wine that is ideal for drinking over the next 7-8 years.

Add La Jota to the ranks of those producing ageworthy Merlot. This wine, for all of its dense and suggested fruitiness, reveals itself in layers as its tannins and bright acidity get peeled away. Our impressions are less about a long list of adjectives, although we certainly find ripe cherries, sweet soil influences and creamy oak, and more about textures and continuity and the sense that the wine builds and builds towards the finish.

The 2014 Cabernet Franc is surprisingly open and radiant, with plenty of varietal aromatic and flavor nuance. Tobacco, sweet herbs, leather and mocha all add considerable shades of dimension. Ripe, sweet tannins give the 2014 much of its immediacy. I expect the 2014 will drink well pretty much upon release.

Cabernet Franc has done well on Howell Mountain, and the 2013 Cabernet Franc (485 cases) is a beauty. It is 100% Cabernet Franc aged in 60% new French oak. Gorgeous floral notes intermixed with brambleberry and blueberry, with a hint of dark raspberry and chocolate are all present in this relatively full-bodied, fleshy Cabernet Franc. Its softness and up-front complexity already suggest drinking now and over the next decade or more.

A rich, ample wine, the 2012 Cabernet Franc is all about texture. Dark red and black fruit, smoke, incense and spices meld together in the glass. The style is rich, racy and voluptuous, with tons of immediacy and near-term appeal. The 2012 is 100% Cabernet Franc from the La Jota and Keyes vineyards on Howell Mountain.

La Jota's 2010 Cabernet Franc wraps around the palate with dark red berries, flowers, licorice and new leather. There is no shortage of character in this deep, old-vine Cabernet Franc. Layers of fruit build to the rich, intense finish. Cabernet Franc is rarely seen on its own, but here it works nicely.

A big, vital, dramatic wine, one of the finest Cab Francs of the vintage. Dazzles with blackberry, black cherry, mocha and spice flavors, wrapped into thick but finely ground tannins, and enriched with smoky oak. Beautiful now and for the next 4-5 years.

A nose of blueberry jam, menthol, dark cherry, spice box and chocolate. The palate is a firm, spiced black plum, polished and ripe blackberry. Firm tannins.

This pitch black colored Cabernet Sauvignon from Howell Mountain is very Bordeaux like in style. It opens with a mild black olive bouquet with hints of vanilla, oak and eucalyptus. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied and balanced. The flavor profile is an oak influenced black olive with notes of blackberry and black pepper. The Panel also detected a hint of black currant mixed in as well. The finish is dry and its dusty tannins drift away nicely. The Panel suggested pairing this Cab with a veal chop or lamb burger. Very good+.

The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot aged in 90% new French oak. Winemaker Christopher Carpenter, who is resurrecting this estate to its glory days of the early nineties, has hit pay dirt with this 2011. More charming than one normally expects of a Howell Mountain Cabernet, it possesses sweet tannin, low acidity, and lots of blueberry and black currant fruit intermixed with licorice, underbrush and foresty notes. Medium-bodied and approachable, this endearing 2011 is best drunk over the next decade.

Good deep ruby. Musk cassis, black cherry and chocolate on the nose. Fatter and sweeter than the merlot, at once muskier and more penetrating in the mid-palate, with a distinctly juicy quality and good energy to the mountain berry flavors. Finishes with substantial but round tannins and very good length. Owing to its vibrancy, this may yet merit an even higher score with a few more years in bottle.

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Heritage Release reveals deeper fruit, a richer, fuller-bodied style and good density as well as minerality. While it will not make anyone forget the terrific Anniversary Reserve selections made in the early and mid-nineties (the equivalent of the Heritage Release cuvees), it is beginning to return to its previous glory. Since being acquired by Jess Jackson, La Jota Vineyard Co. has been a work in progress. The very strong 2007s have been followed by very good 2008s, so, hopefully, this well-known estate, which made some phenomenal wines in the mid-nineties, is back on track.

A strong Cabernet that's so tightly wound in tannins, it's hard to appreciate, despite plenty of fruit. There's also a green olive earthiness to the sweet blackberries and cedar. Showing its immaturity now, so give it a good six years in the cellar.

(includes 15% merlot and 3% petit verdot) Medium ruby. Pure, reserved nose hints at cassis, dark cherry and licorice, with mineral and coffee nuances. Good density and texture to the dark fruit flavors, with complicating herbal and spicy elements. Finishes broad and sweet, with substantial tannins nicely supported by fruit.

The final blend that Chris Carpenter fashioned was 84% Cabernet Sauvignon and 16% Merlot. Lastly, and an outstanding wine, is the 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 100% estate fruit, the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary. This is the best block of the entire vineyard and has produced some great wines (the 1992 and 1993 made by Helen Turley were fabulous wines). This shows plenty of creme de cassis fruit, notes of wet rocks, graphite, vanilla and berries, especially black raspberry and black currants. It is medium to full-bodied with light tannin and is close to full maturity, where is should hold for 7-10 more years.

This pink colored wine made from Pinot Noir grapes was very well received by our mini-tasting group. It opens with faint watermelon bouquet. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced, elegant and very approachable. The flavor profile is a mild watermelon with hints of red cherry and minerality. The finish is dry and fades away nicely. This Rose will be a crowd pleaser and will pair nicely with delicate foods. I would pair it with grilled red snapper.

Wines of the Week: A Plethora of Pinot — Under $20, 90 points Lots of strawberry, melon, and lemon aromas come up from a freshly swirled glass. The palate presents with strawberry, peach, and lemon flavors leading the way and a few earthy and mineral hints backing that up. Friendly with a fresh acidity, it’s a good candidate for sipping on a summer afternoon or with grilled salmon.