Bright medium ruby. Aromas of blackberry, licorice and tobacco leaf lifted by a violet topnote. Round and fine-grained, with good breadth to the dark berry and herb flavors. Finishes with fairly round but slightly dry tannins and a musky sweetness. Mt. Brave is a new Napa Valley project under the Jackson Family Wines umbrella.

Delivers a complex range of flavors built around a core of spicy pear, hazelnut, clove and citrus. Firm acidity gives it nice structure, too, finishing long and clean. Drink now through 2008.

Medium ruby color, spicy red cherry aromas with some berry notes; rich, ripe berry and red cherry flavors, some oak and earthy notes; some tannin; good structure and balance; long finish. Earthy Pinot that's medium bodied and a good match for a dish featuring mushrooms.

Inky ruby. Energetic, minerally raspberry and cherry nose, with a subtle licorice accent. Bright red berry flavors are firmed by fine-grained tannins, with the finish showing a refreshing mineral lift. An elegant, understated style that should work well with food.

The 2017s From Sonoma The larger production 2016 Merlot Alexander Valley offers a quality, medium-bodied, nicely balanced profile that carries ample dark fruits, tobacco, and earth notes. It’s a solid mouthful of a wine to enjoy over the coming 4-6 years.

Concentrated cherry and red plum flavors define this pure and minerally version. Savory herb and spice details show on the finish, with firm tannins.

Leading off the reds, the 2015 Merlot Alexander Valley offers classic cedary spice, tobacco, and black cherry notes in a rounded, supple, open knit style. Drink it over the coming 3-5 years.

Sweet red cherry, cedar, tobacco, mint and grilled herbs are laced together in the 2014 Merlot Jackson Park. Medium in body and gracious, with good definition in its aromas and flavors, the 2014 is very nicely done. Here, too, my impression is that there could be more richness.

Well-built and focused, with aromas of currant and dusty tomato leaf and trim flavors of red plum, sage and cedar.

The 2012 Merlot Sonoma County is absolutely delicious. Plums, black cherries, mocha, bittersweet chocolate and gravel jump from the glass in a deeply expressive, harmonious wine loaded with personality. Drink this plump, juicy Merlot over the next handful of years.

The 2012 Merlot Alexander Valley, from their famous mountain estate, is aged in 40% new French oak and is a blend of 98.5% Merlot and 1.5% Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine offers up much more espresso bean, chocolaty notes, along with plum, black cherry and roasted herbs. It’s medium-bodied, fleshy and best drunk over the next 8-10 years.

Graphite, smoke, crushed rocks and black fruit all inform the 2011 Red Wine, a Cabernet Sauvignon-based red from vineyards in Alexander Valley. The savory, floral notes typical of the vintage are quite prominent. The 2011 is best enjoyed sooner rather than later.

Opaque purple. Rich, ripe aromas and flavors of cassis, roasted plum and espresso. Deep, sweet, lush and expansive, with good finishing power and firm framing acidity. A touch of warmth holds my score down but fans of broad, fleshy and deeply fruity red wines will love this.

Give this dynamic young Cabernet blend a good decanting or a little time in the cellar to mellow and let its edges round off. It’s tannins are hard and astringent, masking the blackberries and black currants. Not one for the long haul, but 3–4 years should do the trick.

Ruby-red. Very Old World on the nose, showing bright redcurrant and cherry qualities complemented by a gentle cedar tone. The bright red fruit flavors have firm structural support, although the tannins remain gentle. Good energy on the finish.

Medium-light golden yellow; grassy, grapefruit and white peach aroma with a hint of gooseberry; medium body; crisp, grapefruit, kiwi, and apple flavors with mineral notes, and tending to be a slightly tart on the finish; lingering aftertaste. 89 points. Highly recommended.

Offering intense gooseberry, mown grass and elder flower notes with touches of wet pebbles and grapefruit peel, the 2015 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench fills the medium-bodied palate with citrus and herbal flavors. Framed with lively acidity and a pleasant oiliness to the texture, it has excellent persistence.

More papaya, melon and white peach notes in a decidedly Loire Valley style jump from the steely, fresh, medium-bodied 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Haarstad Vineyard in Bennett Valley. This is made from two French clones of Sauvignon Blanc that are believed to have been sourced from the Loire, and it indeed has a more melony and tropical fruit character to it than its predecessor. It should be drunk over the next several years.

The 2014 Sauvignon Blanc (Sonoma County) is laced with lively citrus and floral notes that are best appreciated over the next few years, while the wine is young.

The 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench is the most generous of the Matanzas Sauvignons, although it, too, is made in a style that emphasizes freshness and citrus-inflected flavors. I also tasted several vintages back to 2010. With time in bottle, the Helena Bench often becomes blowsy and the alcohol peeks out. For that reason, I prefer to drink the Helena Bench sooner rather than later.

The 2013 Sauvignon Blanc Haarstad Vineyard, which is made with the Loire Valley clones of Sauvignon Blanc known as No. 530 and No. 376 and aged in neutral wood foudres, comes across as a California version of a Sancere or Pouilly Fumé. Crisp, fresh acids, notes of gun flint, lime blossom and melony fruit are all present in this wine with a liquid minerality. This is elegant, rich, yet beautifully precise and fresh. Drink it over the next 2-3 years.

The biggest cuvée is the 20,100 cases of their 2013 Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma, which comes from their estate vineyards in Bennett Valley. This is blended with about 5.5% Sauvignon and has almost 22% of the Musqué Clone, which gives the wine more tropical and exotic characteristics. The wine is dry, delicious, and offers up notes of honeyed figs, exotic melons, fresh acids and crisp lemon blossom with a touch or orange skin. It’s quite refreshing, medium-bodied and beautifully fruited. Drink it over the next several years.

The 2013 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench from Sonoma comes from gravelly/clay/loam soils and includes 10% of the Musqué clone. This is aged in stainless steel, neutral 500-liter wood puncheons and concrete eggs. Crisp, fresh acidity, notes of lemon drops, honeyed grapefruit, fig and melons are all present in this fresh, medium-bodied, richly fruity wine that should drink nicely for another 2-3 years.

The vibrant lime, grapefruit and melon flavors are smooth, fleshy and refreshing, with a spicy overtone and details of mineral and almond skin on the finish.

The 2012 Sauvignon Blanc Bennett Valley is quite a bit deeper and bigger than the straight Sauvignon Blanc. White stone fruit, peach, mint and flowers all meld together in a textured, deeply layered wine. The Bennett Valley is pretty, but it doesn't quite have the balance of the very best Sauvignons here.