Brown spice, dried honeysuckle, Gala-apple skins, a touch of light custard and sea-salt-laden citrus and stone fruit show on the nose of this mouthwatering wine. Once sipped, flavors of butter-poached apples and ripe pears are spiced with more sea salt. A tight, pithy structure holds it all together.

This wine combines Merlot, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Zinfandel from multiple appellations, including Atlas Peak, Coombsville and Mount Veeder. Funky in cinnamon stick and clove, it features a silky, medium-sized build and soft, generous tannin, with a dry, spicy finish.

Luscious black cherries and touches of sultry smoked pork are deftly brightened with fresh hibiscus aromas on the nose of this bottling from the Byron family of wines. The hibiscus joins pomegranate on the palate, lifted by a pinch of lavender and candied lilacs and leveled by an elegant slate earthiness.

Light and spry, with juicy cherry and currant flavors backed by lively acidity and light tannins. Balanced in a slim way, showing moderate length.

This rich pinot is weighted to red fruit and has a streak of racy black pepper spice. This sassy pinot makes for great Labor Day fun, whether you drink it solo or pair it with grilled meats.

The 2013 Grenache High Sands has a medium/deep ruby-purple color and simply stunning nose of crushed raspberries, Bing cherries and potpourri with hints of lavender, star anise, vanilla, cinnamon stick and pepper. The concentrated, full-bodied palate juxtaposes remarkable freshness and a firm, finely grained backbone with voluptuous fruit spanning extraordinary depth. Heady, multilayered and yet with a solid backbone that suggests great ageing potential, Yangarra hits a whole other level with this vintage of High Sands! It's delicious now, but should greatly reward another 3-5 years of patience and drink a further 20+ years. Wow.

The 2013 Ironheart Shiraz is another total beauty from Yangarra. The perfume alone is enough to make you swoon! Laced with violets, molten chocolate, cherry liquor, lavender and exotic spices with subtle incense nuances, it's one of those glasses that compels you to sniff again and again. The palate is very restrained and taut at this youthful stage, with firm, grainy tannins and a lively backbone framing the concentrated fruit, finishing long and minerally. Simply stunning.

Very deep garnet-purple colored, the 2014 Small Pot Whole Bunch Shiraz offers youthfully subdued peeks of fragrant blackberry and black cherry aromas with hints of black pepper, loam, dried herbs and lavender. The palate is rock solid and packed with blackberry and earth flavors supported by firm, rounded tannins and great freshness, finishing long.

While the 2014 Pinot Noir Monument Hill was slightly closed aromatically, it offers fabulous purity, depth and richness on the palate, with ripe tannin and a great finish. From the Nielson Vineyard outside of Santa Maria, and a mix of terroirs (sand, shale and limestone) and clones, give it a year in bottle and enjoy this beauty through 2024.

Candied cherry, flowers, lavender and spice all emerge from the 2014 Pinot Noir Sierra Madre Vineyard, which is another silky, seamless and incredibly elegant Pinot Noir from winemaker Jonathan Nagy. Like all of these latest 2014s, it's a sexy, charming, hard to resist effort which should evolve nicely on its balance.

Rich and expressive, featuring black cherry and pepper notes set against tangy mineral flavors. Comes together smoothly as the finish gains traction, with a light bite of tannins. Drink now through 2023. 348 cases made.

Showing the house style with its silky, polished, already approachable feel, the 2014 Pinot Noir Julia's Vineyard offers impressive notes of black cherries, dark raspberry, dried flowers and spice. All from the sandy soils of Julia's Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley and vines planted in the 1970s, it was completely destemmed and aged in 40% new French oak, with a good portion of the blend seeing fermentation in barrel. It's already hard to resist and I see no need to delay gratification.

Spice, wild strawberry, sappy flowers and black raspberry notes all emerge from the 2014 Pinot Noir Nielson Vineyard. It comes from a site in the Santa Maria Valley AVA and the same vineyard where the Pinot Noir Monument is sourced. This medium-bodied, supple, very polished, elegant and seamless beauty has no hard edges, very fine tannin and a great finish. Destemmed and aged 16 months in 41% new French oak, it's another example of the quality coming from this cool, ocean-influenced AVA.

The 2014 Pinot Noir Clone 4 comes all from a single clone and the sandy loam soils of the Cambria Estate Vineyard. It spent seven months in 23% new French oak. There are notes of spice, underbrush, some sappy flowers, hints of sappy herbs and darker raspberry fruit in this medium-bodied, supple, beautifully polished, elegant and seamless beauty. It's incredibly high quality, and a solid value as well.

The most complete of the lineup, with ripe black currants, black raspberry, toasted spice and oak on the nose, the 2014 Pinot Noir Rita's Crown (15 months in 46% new French oak) is medium-bodied, nicely balanced and rich on the palate, with solid underlying structure. Coming from mostly clay loam and limestone soils, and all from clone 828, it needs a year in bottle to let some of the oak integrate, but it's a terrific wine.

Light and expressive, with a steely edge to the cherry, blackberry and spice flavors. Hints at orange tea as the minerally finish lingers. Drink now through 2021. 240 cases made.

Medium garnet-purple colored, the 2014 Grenache / Shiraz / Mourvèdre offers a seductive perfume of potpourri, incense and baking spices over a core of kirsch and raspberry tart. Full-bodied, concentrated, voluptuous and oh-so-spicy, it delivers gorgeous red berry layers and a velvety texture to the palate and a finish that goes on-and-on.

Charming, with a mix of rustic dusty berry and hot brick flavors, fine-grained tannins and subtle hints of gravelly tobacco. Gains depth and nuance on the finish.

Pale ruby-purple colored and just a tad murky, the 2014 has fragrant dried herb and lavender notes over a red currant and raspberry laced nose with earthy / gamey nuances. Medium-bodied and quite chewy with bolder structure in the mouth, it has a savory palate and good length. It seems a little youthful and shut-down right now and I've been rather conservative with my score, hoping it may blossom into an even more exciting wine with age, but judging it for what it is now.

The 2014 Roux Beaute Roussanne offers up a wonderfully spicy perfume of ginger and allspice over a savory / bready core with honeyed apricots beneath it all. Medium-bodied with a nice bit of grip to the texture, it has plenty of savory / spicy flavors on offer with great balance and length. Should age nicely over the next 5-7 years.

A broad, creamy, languid style, with lots of warm brioche, butter and creamed melon and apple flavors. Lush and hedonistic in feel, but successful overall. For fans of the style. Drink now. 1,000 cases made.

Black cherries, ground herbs and hints of oak flow from the translucent ruby colored 2014 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano. Medium-bodied, lively and textured on the palate, with nicely integrated acidity, it comes from a vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills and Pommard clones that were planted in the 1970s. Fermented with one-third whole clusters (with one-third fermented in barrel) and aged 16 months in 40% new French oak, it's a classy, outstanding Pinot to drink over the coming 5-6 years.

Lastly, plums, blueberries, smoked herbs and pepper all show from the rich, medium to full-bodied, lively, nicely fruited and textured 2013 Syrah Tepusquet Vineyard. Aged just over a year in 28% new French oak, it has solid freshness, good purity and ne tannin, and at 22 bucks is a terrific value.

Medium ruby-purple in color, the 2014 Grenache Old Vine has a tarry, tire-like, slightly reduced nose giving way to notes of warm cherries and red currants with hints of black earth and pepper sauce. Full-bodied with rich fruit and earthy flavors combined with a solid backbone, it is somewhat Mataro-like at this youthful stage, with some reassuring spices coming through on the finish.

Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2014 Shiraz has a bit of a tarry / rubbery nose to begin, giving way to a baked black cherries and blueberry core with suggestions of cracked pepper and chargrill. Medium to full-bodied, it leads with a chewy structure on the palate with nice savory and spice elements complementing the ripe fruit, finishing long.