Citrus, pineapple, peach, grapefruit and nectarine on the nose with hints of French oak barrel (14 percent new) spices. On the palate, what comes into focus is citrus, roasted pineapple, white peach and yellow apple with a touch of baking spices like cinnamon and cardamom. It becomes increasingly complex and more textured on mid palate, showing what cool climate Santa Maria Valley chard is all about. Rich and full bodied (14.5 percent alcohol), it's fresh, bright and full of energy. A never fail chard for all seasons.

Moderate reddish purple color in the glass. Aromas of Hoison sauce, clove and blackberry jam lead off. A forward drinking wine that offers flavors of nutty oak-kissed black cherry and blueberry-pomegranate. The tannins are in check and the wine holds its alcohol well. I wanted more from the nose, but the wine is very giving on the palate and the whole cluster addition rounds out nicely the texture.

This fresh and crisp Sauvignon Blanc hails from Lake County and Sonoma County in northern California. Look for grapefruit and lime with notes of lemongrass and flinty mineral.

A very complex Zinfandel that shows great balance despite the big number in small print on the front label. I'm in the habit of tasting first and looking later to make sure that I'm not predisposed to turn off to a Zin based on its alcohol content, as there are myriad other factors that can make the wine work across the scale, from 13% to 16.5%. The cranberry fruit element really makes this wine pop, bringing the pepper, herb, blackberry and dusty tannin texture together in a full flavored, long lingering delight. This will win the high number haters back -- if you show it blind, of course. Contains 3% Syrah.

This is a marvelous $24 bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. Black fruit flavors, a savory green olive component and the structure provided by its suave tannins means it's a great choice to accompany a slab of beef this summer or fall. Refinement and unexpected length at this price makes you want to remember the producer's name.

This Carménère from Alcance, a Chilean winery under the umbrella of the Jackson Family Wines Collection, is a good introduction to this grape. Carménère was formerly planted in Bordeaux but has fallen out of favor there because it is a late-ripening variety that often failed to reach maturity there. That's not a problem for it in Chile. This appealing example combines ripe red and black fruit flavors with the alluring herbal or leafy character inherent to the grape. Mild supple tannins allow for immediate enjoyment -- perhaps with grilled chicken -- while providing sufficient structure. Bright acidity keeps it interesting throughout a meal. For those averse to any leafy character in a wine, select a bottle of Alcance's Merlot, which delivers more obviously fruity character to pair with the aforementioned grilled chicken.

This has a plumpness that feels as close to grenache as it does to pinot noir. It’s spicy and crunchy in the end, exhibiting what one taster called “an approachable minerality, like watermelon seeds.” Stash this in a picnic basket with crusty bread and pâté. 88 points.

La Crema's new pinot gris release is a charming wine that offers up juicy notes of melon and pear, with excellent balance and above average length on the finish. Serve it as a quaffer or with mild grilled fish dishes.

This is the quality you expect for a wine by the glass at a high-end restaurant. It has intensity, ripe fruit, oak, alcohol all seamlessly woven together. Flavors are baked apple, pear, white stone fruit and brown baking spices. Aromas, flavors, finish: This wine is all about style.

Murphy-Goode celebrates the hedonistic side of winemaking, seeking to craft wines that appeal to a broad spectrum of equally passionate consumers. The Fume Sauvignon Blanc offers tangerine and peach with tangy citrus and mellow vanilla – a great summer sipping wine or pair with light pastas or sea foods of all types.

Matanzas Creek Winery has been producing Sonoma County Sauvignon Blanc since 1977. Winemakers utilize 93% Sauvignon Blanc and 7% Semillon, fermenting in stainless steel (80%) and neutral oak barrels (20%). Aromas and flavors of grapefruit, white peach, herbs and honey crisp apple make this a favorite for steamed mussels, crab cakes and other seafood choices.

This has a gorgeous range of flavors -- pink grapefruit, lime and mineral. Bright acidity. Crisp finish. A standout.

K-J certainly knows a thing or two about chardonnay, an expertise that serves it well with the remarkably consistent Avant line of K-J wines. I love the balance in this one.

57/43% from blocks planted ?71 (67%) and ?01 (33%), separately fermented and blended shortly prior to bottling, 151 dozen made. The silky Rolls Royce power and intensity tells of painstaking fruit and barrel selection, the end result a flawless wine of rare quality and complexity in a mirror-calm sea of black fruits.

Exceptionally potent and powerful, initially giving the (false) impression its alcohol is more than 14%. Retasting brings it back into perspective, the two varieties bonded, yet each preserving its varietal integrity and structural architecture. A classic Australian blend of exceptional quality, destined to outlive most who taste it.

Deep crimson-purple; a very complex wine, all the components handled with the skill of a circus juggler, keeping all in the air. Its extreme fragrance and intensity on the palate have a lightness to their touch, with spiced red and black fruits, licorice and fine tannins, oak the (almost) unseen hand.

Matured for 15 months in French oak. Shows that serious merlot can be made in McLaren Vale (or the Clarendon Hills sector thereof). The bouquet is fragrant and accurately signals the gently savoury/dried herb undergrowth of the cassis and plum that sits firmly on top. Good tannins tie the knot.

A juicy cassis-driven cabernet of great purity and typicity, oak and tannins a means to an end, and doing precisely what they should

From the highest section of the vineyard planted ?46 on the deepest sand, hand-picked, 50% whole berries, cold soak, open-fermented, wild yeast, matured in used French oak for 12 months. This is in another league altogether. There is total fusion between the fruit and tannins first up, oak likewise subsumed by the fruit. There is a bright display of a blaze of red fruits, so vivid the structural components are relegated to the bac

Estate-grown, cold soak, open-fermented, wild yeast, 25% whole bunches, matured in French oak (50% new) for 18 months. Great aromas don't prepare you for the full-bodied palate, every crevice of the mouth filled with velvety black fruits, bitter chocolate, licorice and spice. The balance is such that drinking it now is no crime, however far into the distant future the wine will run.

From two vineyard blocks on a gravelly ironstone outcrop, a barrel selection that is said to focus on ironstone characters. Hand-picked, cold soak, 25% whole bunches, wild-fermented, matured in French oak (40% new) for 15 months. Sombre, earthy black fruits are so intense they momentarily stop the heart from beating. The texture and mouthfeel are such that they throw down the gauntlet to anyone seeking to drink more than a glass at this early (indeed far too early) stage of its life. The balance is spot on the money, so the long term future is assured.

From estate blocks planted ?71, hand-picked, open-fermented with 50% whole berries, 4-day cold soak, 18 days on skins, basket-pressed free-run (pressings excluded), matured for 15 months in Burgundy-coopered barrels. The vivid crimson-purple colour bodes well, and the medium-bodied palate does not disappoint, the texture and structure outstanding, fruit, oak and tannins seamlessly woven together, the finish absolutely compelling. Do give it time.

The fruit comes into play early, and continues its dominance through the length of the palate, its juicy red berry/compote fruits not letting the ever-present tannins gain control. Whether its the eggs or the fruit, it has more overall power.

65/27/8%, cold soak, 50% whole berries open-fermented, wild yeast, matured in used French oak for 9 months. Excellent depth to the colour; this is a mighty mouthful, somewhere between Guigal and Chateau Rayas in style, a veritable volcano of red and purple fruits that do, however, want to be enjoyed sooner rather than later. First class wine.

'Revivalist' refers to extensive vineyard work on canopy structure, vines planted ?76, hand-picked, destemmed, whole berry sorted, 4-day cold soak, open-fermented, 18 days on skins, basket-pressed, matured for 15 months in Bordeaux-coopered barrels. The bouquet is fragrant and very expressive, the palate opening with an elegant fusion of cassis and French oak, but leaving it to the finish and aftertaste to show its ultimate class, fine-grained tannins adding another dimension.