Cabernet Franc has done well on Howell Mountain, and the 2013 Cabernet Franc (485 cases) is a beauty. It is 100% Cabernet Franc aged in 60% new French oak. Gorgeous floral notes intermixed with brambleberry and blueberry, with a hint of dark raspberry and chocolate are all present in this relatively full-bodied, fleshy Cabernet Franc. Its softness and up-front complexity already suggest drinking now and over the next decade or more.

The outstanding 2013 Chardonnay Nine Barrel comes from a selection of their best nine barrels, and aged nine months in French oak, 50% new, and has plenty of tropical fruit, white peach and brioche in a medium to full-bodied, luscious style. This is clearly the star of their Chardonnays, but I’ve seen much more expensive.

The 2013 Chardonnay Jackson Estate Series is outstanding. This is 100% barrel-fermented and is a much smaller cuvée at just over 2,000 cases. It hails from the Santa Maria Valley, hence the Central Coast tropical fruits jump from the glass with notes of mango, pineapple and honeysuckle. The wine is rich, full-bodied and loaded with fruit, so fruit-bomb lovers will get a charge from this beauty. Drink it over the next few years.

From the well-known site in the AVA Fort Ross-Seaview, the 2013 Pinot Noir Hirsch Vineyard has a dark ruby color and a lovely nose of red and blackcurrants, a touch of sour cherries intermixed with herbaceousness, damp earth and spice. The wine is medium-bodied, ripe and complex. Drink it over the next 4-5 years.

The single-vineyard Zinfandels include the 2012 Zinfandel Piffero Vineyard, which is a blend of 99% Zinfandel and 1% Syrah, aged in one-third new oak. It comes from vines approaching 100 years of age. The wine exhibits dark raspberry fruit notes mixed with earth, herbs, pepper and grilled meats. It is lovely, medium-ruby in color, spicy, soft and best drunk over the next several years.

The 2012 Zinfandel Gianoli Vineyard, which is 100% Zinfandel aged in 40% new oak for 15 months, is from a high-elevation vineyard at 1,500 feet. This is a very sexy, lush stylish Zinfandel with a dark ruby color and loads of raspberry and strawberry fruit mixed with pepper, crushed rock and spice. Drink it over the next several years.

Among the seven Chardonnays, the generic cuvée, the 2013 Chardonnay is the largest production item at just under 1,900 cases. It is 100% Estate Chardonnay, with indigenous yeast fermentation and aged 11 months in about 44% new French oak. In fact, the oak in even the single-vineyard lot wines tends to be about 40%-50%, with the only wine using 100% new French oak being the Gravel Bench cuvée. The 2013 Chardonnay offers notes of lemon, custard, orange blossom and brioche in a medium-bodied, crisp, zesty, impressively concentrated and yet well-delineated style. It should drink nicely for 3-4 years.

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.

A much smaller cuvée, the 2013 Chardonnay Bennett Valley shows more minerality, a surprisingly evolved light-gold color, but fresh lively notes of pear, white peach and honeysuckle in a nicely concentrated, reasonably intense style. Drink it over the next several years.

I remember an interesting Pinot Noir from Kalin’s Terry Leighton from Marin County, and it was good to see the 2013 Pinot Noir Hartford Court Marin County. It is a small cuvée of 264 cases from some of the most expensive real estate in California – the vineyard is just north of the Golden Gate Bridge – and this wine is aged in 31% new French oak, and, like all of these Pinot Noirs, bottled unfined and unfiltered. Loads of pomegranate, sassafras, spice box and herbs are present in this wine, which has a distinctive red fruit, cherry-cola-like flavor profile. Drink over the next 4-5 years.

There are just over 3,100 cases of the 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Naissance, a lovely, crisp, fresh Sauvignon Blanc with an affinity to a Loire Valley Fumé Blanc. Loads of honeysuckle, melony and tropical fruit jump from the glass of this 100% Sauvignon Blanc, which was aged sur lie for six months. The wine has excellent purity, palate presence and a dry, crisp, zesty style. Drink it over the next several years.

The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Grand Reserve looks outstanding. There are 15,000 cases of this wine, coming from some of the best sites in the Jackson Sonoma portfolio. It is nearly 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, all emerging from mountain and benchland vineyards. Dense ruby/purple with notes of lead pencil shavings, creme de cassis, licorice and spice box, this wine should prove to be impressive once it’s bottled and released.

From a great vineyard, the 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Rosso is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon and will be aged 30 months in about 43% new French oak. This wine has a deep ruby/purple color and notes of cedar wood, damp earth, spice box, pepper and roasted herbs. This rich, concentrated, earthy style of Cabernet should drink well for 12-15+ years.

Potentially outstanding were the last three barrel samples I tasted. The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Smothers Remick Ridge Vineyard is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon that will be aged 30 months in 50% new French oak. The wine offers good graphite notes intermixed with cedar wood, blackcurrants, vanilla and spice box. It has excellent body, concentration and purity and should drink nicely for 15 or more years.

The 2013 Merlot Taylor Peak Estate comes from Jackson Park Vineyard in Bennett Valley and is 100% Merlot. This is a soft, heady wine with notes of damp earth, mulberry and black cherries. It is lush, fruity and ideal for drinking over the next 7-10 years.

Adam commented that his Novy Syrah closed up after bottling, and the 2013 Syrah Rosella's Vineyard is hard to read at the moment. Young, jammy, backwards, and ripe with lots of licorice, peppery herbs, lavender, and jammy black and blue fruits, it has good concentration on the palate, plenty of acidity and a clean finish. However, it's lacking integration and some harmony at present, so give it a year in bottle before checking in.

The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Estates, their largest cuvée of 10,600 cases, is a reasonably good bargain in Cabernet Sauvignon (88% Cabernet Sauvignon, the rest Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot). This is an attractive wine and for points per dollar spent, one of the best values in the lineup. Loads of blackcurrant fruit, a deep plum/purple color and medium to full body make for quite a tasty, savory Cabernet Sauvignon to drink over the next 7-8 years.

Slightly more concentrated, with hints of pineapple, hazelnut and orange blossom, the 2013 Chardonnay Russian River is a slightly bigger cuvée, and the wine also elegant, but offering more flavor, concentration and intensity. Both of these were aged nine months in about 50%-60% new French oak and another year in older barrels prior to being bottled.

The 2013 Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast is their generic bottling from four vineyard sites and is a reasonably good-sized cuvée of 1,771 cases. Representing good value from the Sonoma Coast, the wine offers a dark ruby color and a soft nose of plums, black cherries and loamy soil notes, with a subtle touch of oak in the background. It is medium-bodied, silky textured and best drunk over the next 3-4 years.

The 2013 Pinot Noir Russian River, which is also a blend from four vineyards, is similar weight and, again, the emphasis on silky, supple textures is well-displayed in this dark ruby-colored wine. It offers up plenty of kirsch, strawberry, underbrush, herbs and spice. It should drink nicely for another 4-5 years and is the largest cuvée of the Pinots I tasted (3,078 cases).

The 2013 Pinot Noir Pratt Vineyard Sexton Road is a blend of three clones from an east-facing hill between Occidental and Sebastopol on the Sonoma Coast. The wine is still spicy, earthy and slightly herbaceous. The wine has good pomegranate and red currant fruit notes, some cooking spices and a heady finish. Drink it over the next 3-4 years.

From the small vineyard directly behind the Kistler Winery, the 2013 Pinot Noir Ewald Vineyard, made from Dijon clones 115 and 777, shows fresh, lively red and blackcurrant flavors, a touch of sweet and sour cherries, pretty and fragrant aromatics, good acidity and a medium-bodied, deep ruby personality. It should drink nicely for another 3-4 years.

The largest Sauvignon Blanc cuvée is the 20,880 cases of the 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Sonoma. Coming from all the estate vineyards, this wine is partially fermented in neutral oak and has a touch of Semillon and a clone of Sauvignon Blanc (Musqué) added for more flowery and exotic notes. The wine offers up light to medium body and pretty caramelized grapefruit and floral notes along with melons in the mouth. It is dry, crisp, zesty and ideal for drinking over the next several years.

The 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench Knights Cross Vineyard, with nearly one-fifth of its component part the fragrant Musqué clone of Sauvignon Blanc, is my favorite by a slight margin. It is more exotic, showing white peach, honeysuckle, ripe grapefruit and tangerine notes in a perfumed, medium-bodied style. Drink it over the next two years.

The 2013 Pinot Noir Jolie shows pretty blueberry and black cherry fruit, lush, light tannin, silky texture and a medium-bodied finish. It is made from Dijon clone 115, aged 15 months in 33% new French oak and should drink nicely for another 3-5 years.