Our Wine of the Week, Kendall-Jackson 2014 Vintner’s Reserve California Chardonnay, is a chardonnay lover’s wine, with all the flavors and textures you expect the varietal to show in California. Tropical fruit, especially mango, papaya, white pineapple and a fillip of durian, blossom enticingly on first sip. As these bold flavors settle down a bit, Bartlett pear, pomelo and Golden Delicious apple take their place and, as the long finish resonates, suggestions of melted butter, vanilla, nutmeg and toast confirm that, yes indeed, you are sipping a chardonnay, and it is definitely made from California fruit. This just might be one of the most classic examples of this style.

Intense aromas, vibrant flavors, firm acidity and nice integration of oak all make for a wine that lures you back for a second taste. Swirl and inhale the perfume of blackberry, cherry, plum, brown baking spices and vanilla. In the mouth, tannins are soft and round. It’s a blend of 83 percent Cabernet Sauvignon with Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Merlot.

It’s young and its true character is zipped up tight, but if you let it sit in the glass to soak up oxygen it starts to open up and give a glimpse of its sleek, elegant styling. It offers notes of blackberry jam, cherry, plum and sage. Tannins have mild grip and acidity is firm. Grapes come from three diverse appellations in Sonoma County: Alexander Valley, Bennett Valley and Knights Valley. All blocs of grapes were fermented and aged 15 months individually before blending, then the final wine was returned to French oak for two more months before bottling. That’s handcrafting.

Both powerful and supple, with melt-in-your-mouth blackberry flavors accented by chocolate, cinnamon-type spice, and the merest whiff of vanilla this Zinfandel is made for any food enhanced by barbecue sauce or simply good grilled char flavor. It manages to be dense and rich but not heavy, and it will make Zin lovers purr with happiness.

La Crema’s Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir emphasizes the red cherry fruit nature of the variety. To their credit, the fruit flavors are fresh, not jammy, and not overdone. A whiff of savory notes appears in the background. Appealing tart cherry notes are apparent in the finish in keeping with the wine’s fruity profile. All in all, a well-priced Pinot Noir.

Say what you like about Kendall-Jackson’s winemaking choices, you can’t fault their commercial acumen. A few years ago, sensing a growing trend among drinkers of California Chardonnay to move away from creamy oak-bombs towards more linear versions, they came up with Avant Chardonnay. The 2014 vintage, $17, is simply designated “California” which I take to mean it’s a blend of fruit from K-J’s multiple vineyard properties. The label proclaims “FRESH/CRISP/CLEAN”, and for once a label description is correct. Wow! Pretty unusual stuff. I wade through endless press releases, PR fluff telling me that this or that $14 wine from Lodi really, really is as packed full of the most extraordinary adjectives as the next vintage of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. So, when a wine claims to be fresh, crisp and clean, and actually is, I am thrilled, so unexpected and rare is this treat in a California Chardonnay.

Stunning Californian Pinot with the richness and depth that's rarely paralleled in this state. The cool-climate of Monterey is definitely an influence here. Fleshy wild berry notes, some spice. Pair with many chicken and seafood dishes.

Fairly light in aromas, this bottling shows red cherry and raspberry fruit lifted with an herbal edge of crushed thyme. The palate is also dainty in flavors, clinging to wet slate and cement minerality more so than fruit, although touches of cranberry and hibiscus notes do arise.

Aromas of pie, cherry, cocoa and black tea mixed with pomegranate, plum and orange zest flavours make for a sumptuous wine from California's Sonoma Coast.

Oak smoke, vanilla and an underlying aroma of crisp apple show on the nose of this widely available wine, a reliable choice for all types of parties. Apple and pear lead into white peach on the palate, with a strong oaky seasoning.

Bruised strawberries and ripe red plums are leveled by iron, ginger snaps, crushed slate and soy on the umami-laden nose of this bottling by Winemaker Jonathan Nagy. Intriguing river--stone minerality powers the palate, where black plums and olallieberries meet with black spice and lots of florality.

The most brooding and massive wine in the Verité portfolio, creamy cassis, plum and graphite are followed by a large-scaled, dense and intensely concentrated, savoury wine which lives up to its reputation as Sonoma's answer to Pauillac. 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.

The pinnacle power-showing bottling of each vintage, this wine is brawny on the nose, reminiscent of hearty black cherry, bay leaf, crushed clove, roasted game and leather. The intriguingly herbal character is lavish on the palate, where dark cranberry and deep pomegranate gain complexity from peppercorn and thyme, showcasing very well-blended flavors.

From the oldest commercial vineyard in Santa Barbara County comes this heady bottling, showing aromas of deep black raspberry, vanilla bean, beef carpaccio, black pepper and sesame oil. Black and white pepper and bay leaf spice up the acid- and mineral-laced palate, where dark but sharply focused fruits of elderberry and boysenberry gain a savory touch from smoked pork.

The color of this wine is deep and dark, and the aromas and flavors both have lots of plump black cherry, baking spice and clove tones. It’s dry, full bodied and pretty massive in terms of mouthfeel, so this is not a delicate flower and is best enjoyed with heartier fare or after some time to open. —J.G.

This is a big, muscular wine with great structure and lots of enticing spicy oak and fruit flavors. It's full bodied, firmly tannic and very appetizing.

Marginally the biggest, boldest and best filled of the Edmeades Zin trio, this one from Perli Vineyards holds true to the winery's rather lavish ways with the grape, yet, for all of its ripeness, its considerable substance and weight, its dominant and continuous message is one of oak-sweetened blackberries. It is not without an uptick of heat at the finish, and it sports plenty of fairly grippy structural tannins that prescribe three or four years of cellaring, but, in the end, it is unwavering fruit that earns it the nod as the favored child of its family.

Made with grapes from the Jackson Family's Stonestreet Estate vineyards that crown mountaintops rising from 152-731m over Alexander Valley, the 2013 Stonestreet Estate Cab has an interesting appealing texture, fluidly cruising through the mouth before the wine deposits its gentle, fine and sweet tannins on the back of the tongue. Dark black cherry is the main flavour, with notes of bay and mocha.

Dusty cedar and a faintness of rose open this wine, like walking into a lovely forest at the edge of a garden. Along with a delicate supporting role of oak and tannin, it offers black cherry, graphite and dried herb to enjoy, as well as a powerful hit of concentration on the finish.

This is an impressive undertaking, made from estate vineyards across the region, all certified sustainable. Medium in build and intensity, it allows acidity to balance out the strong, interwoven tannin and power to remain buoyant in high-toned cherry and currant. It finishes with a flourish of cinnamon spice.

Although this substantial, generously oaked Zinfandel is inclined to high ripeness, it is rife with deep and defined blackberry fruit throughout and stays away from the dried-grape desiccation that its 15.5% alcohol might predict. It is admittedly a touch hot in the latter going, but it is rich and juicy from entry to finish and never crosses the line of being too much of a good thing. It has the balance to keep and will improve for a few years even if its outgoing nature invites drinking now.

Hearty cranberry and chaparral herbs mesh with iron and sweet rose florals on the slightly rustic nose of this bottling from a historic vineyard. It's light in body, with decent acidity and bounce to the sip, showing hibiscus and pomegranate juice as well as floral lavender touches on the palate.

There's tremendous value in this well-made wine. It's savory in its mix of dried herb and plum notes, with smooth, softened tannins and judicious use of oak that lends richness to the palate. It'll appeal broadly.

Good winemaking lies at the heart of this wine, which also blends in smidgens of Cab Franc, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Malbec, the grapes from a range of estate-grown sites. Balanced fruit and dusty tannins accent a generously expansive palate that is rich but not overly concentrated, shining in berry, cherry and mocha tones.

Broad and warm notes of light butter, baked yellow apples, cracked apricot and sliced nectarine are lifted by lime-peel tension on the fresh nose of this bottling. Preserved lemon and toasted almond flavors show once sipped, framed by a creamy mouthfeel and tartness provided by orange bitters.