The 2019 Chardonnay Machado has a soft honeyed character, with brighter tones of saline, Meyer lemon and chamomile. The medium-bodied palate has great textural presence, its satiny, expansive flavors foiled by bright acidity that brings an energetic quality to the long finish.

The 2019 Pinot Noir 3D is lovely, with pomegranate and raspberry aromas and nuances of lemon peel and wildflowers. The medium-bodied palate is satiny and polished, with sleek layers of spicy fruit and juicy acidity calling you in for another sip on the long finish.

The 2019 Pinot Noir 459 has a medium ruby-purple color and rich scents of raspberries, blood orange, sage and angostura bitters. The medium-bodied palate is layered and deeply fruited, with fine, silty tannins and a long, iron-laced finish.

The 2019 Chardonnay 3D has a singular expression this year, with expansive flavors and fine aromatic nuances. Quince fruit is overlaid by wafts of chaparral, sage, mushroom and dark spices on the nose, and the palate has a satiny texture and gentle tang,
finishing long and mineral-driven.

Barossa and McLaren Vale Grenache: 20 top wines to try
Great care has been taken in crafting this elite expression of Grenache from a rare old dry-grown McLaren Vale vineyard. Winemaker Peter Fraser captures a heady high-toned perfume of ripe berries and a hint of wild herbs, with a fine, clean palate and a long, beguiling flow of subtle flavour hits. The impact of the initial impression persists, with lean muscle in the structure enabling every nuance to ring clear and true.

The Rockfall Vineyard is between 2,000 and 2,200-feet in elevation, and the wine that originates there is powerful and concentrated in style, with robust red-fruit and mineral tones. Herbal and classic, it shows elegance and integrated oak and tannin within its context of intensity and structure. Enjoy best from 2027–2037.

From a site planted at 1,800-feet elevation, this impressively built and structured wine is complex, with floral openings of apple blossom and pear. The richness of stone fruit continues on the palate, with notes of rocky soil, mineral and acidity wrapped around a core of elegance and length.

Lots of blackberries and walnuts on the nose with some violets. Full-bodied, yet lively and agile, with polished tannins that run across the palate and show class and focus. Bright and vivid. Needs three or four years to come together. One of the best I have had from here. Try after 2024.

Deep mahogany. An outstandingly gorgeous nose, redolent with autumnal fruit. The palate is equally beautiful – perfumed with fruit and flowers but still minty fresh, bright and remarkably youthful. The age only becomes apparent in the perfectly resolved tannins adding layered texture as padding rather than structure. This is a complete and balanced masterpiece, alive and dancing; immensely flavourful but with flavours yet unnamed, making it wonderfully intriguing and totally moreish. Superb wine from a great Napa vintage.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is a classic Mount Veeder wine loaded with strong savory and mineral accents. Black fruit, graphite menthol and licorice lend complexity to this huge, explosive Cabernet Sauvignon. The tannins are pretty fierce at this stage, so readers should plan on being patient.

The 2019 Cabernet Franc marries density, energy and varietal character in a huge mountain wine that is going to need a number of years to come together. Cedar, tobacco, licorice, coffee and dark-fleshed fruit infuse the 2019 with tremendous character. The 2019 is a powerhouse. Give it a few years to soften.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Spring Mountain is the most elegant, nuanced wines in the Lokoya range. Bright red cherry, red plum, blood orange, mint, cinnamon and rose petal lend brightness to this big, potent Cabernet Sauvignon. The Spring Mountain is differentiated in this range for its distinctly red-tone fruit, floral top notes and silky tannins. In 2019, the wine is a blend from Wuerder and Everdon.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain is a huge, strapping wine packed with inky black fruit, graphite, crushed rocks, menthol, bittersweet chocolate and espresso. This huge, virile Cabernet packs a serious punch in its first impression. Time in the glass brings out a whole range of floral and savory notes that are so typical in wines from this appellation. Give the potent tannins a few years to soften.

A huge, dense wine, La Jota 2019 Merlot W.S. Keyes is sourced from vines planted in 1982. Blackberry jam, chocolate, new leather, licorice and cloves are all kicked up in this sumptuous, exotic Merlot. The 2019 is deep, full-throttle and so exciting.

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is another superb wine from La Jota. Rich and explosive, the 2019 possesses tremendous density and plenty of mountain power. A rush of black cherry, blackberry, licorice, spice and menthol builds into the huge finish. This is a fabulous vintage for the La Jota Cabernet.

Immediately on the nose, there is a beautiful freshness, more of the classic Merlot leafiness, like freshly picked berries. The texture is plush, silky, packed tannins that have melted into each other to create spongy layers of goodness. The flavours are reminiscent of plum compote with a hit of spice and premium baker’s cocoa nibs. The intensity of youth is just beginning to fade to a more harmonious, elegant adulthood. The finish is long, concentrated and lasting, leaving the palate perfumed with red fruit and rose petals.

Since 2001, Anakota has made two single vineyard, single variety, single appellation estate cabs: Helena Dakota, and Helena Montana. Helena Dakota is a 12.4-acre block of vines sited below Mount St. Helena’s two highest peaks at 750 feet elevation. It is an ancient volcanic zone, with reddish-brown, gravel/silt loam soils intermingled with volcanic rock, well suited to the main Bordeaux grapes. This year I tasted it alongside its El. 950 Feet Helena Montana Vineyard sibling. The differences are subtle, but Helena Dakota exhibits more generosity and elegance and a less rugged mountain character. The fruit is black and spicy, with some mineral savoury chocolate streaks and dense but sweet tannins. Winemaker Pierre Seillan is the master of balance, and this wine has it all from front to back.

Extremely floral and subtle red fruit, such as redcurrants. Medium-to full-bodied with tight, caressing tannins that lead you down to the finish. Tight and reserved. Shows finesse and beauty. Lovely to taste now, but it will be so much better in three or four years. Drink after 2022.

Seeing 20/20 – Sonoma & Anderson Valley New ReleasesThe 2017 La Joie is another gorgeous wine in this lineup. Deep, pliant and nuanced, the 2017 is impeccably balanced. Silky and plush, La Joie is especially refined in 2017, and that complements its mid-weight structure so nicely. Hints of rose petal, lavender, mint and blood orange add brightness. The 2017 is a stunning wine by any measure.

Seeing 20/20 – Sonoma & Anderson Valley New ReleasesThe 2017 La Muse is 100% Merlot for the first time. In this vintage, La Muse stands out for its freshness, energy and red-toned fruit. It will be interesting to see if the 2017 represents a longer-term shift. To be sure, the 2017 is aromatically deep, beautifully persistent and just impeccable in its balance. I liked it more than the 2016.

This drips with cassis, plum, açaí berry and blueberry fruit. The display is nearly exotic, quickly harnessed by deeply embedded brambly grip and a mouthwatering iron note that extends through the long finish. A youthfully coiled wine that should cruise in the cellar. Best from 2025 through 2040.

Features a deep well of cassis, steeped blackberry and warmed plum reduction flavors at the core, slowly unwinding to reveal streaks of graphite, alder and smoldering tobacco on the finish. Muscular but defined, with a deep tug of earth, this should cruise in the cellar. Best from 2024 through 2042.

From Block 30 (2ha) planted '46 adjacent to the High Sands Block. Hand-picked, destemmed, mechanically berry-sorted, crushed, fermentation and 138 days on skins in 675l ceramic eggs, pressed and returned to the eggs for a further 6 months maturation. Clear, bright crimson, it is 100% fresh and firm, almost to a fault. If this is an issue, all you have to do is watch its triumphal march over the years in your cellar.