The 2014 Pinot Noir Clone 4 is sleek, racy and expressive. Freshly cut flowers and bright, red-toned fruit, along with silky contours, give the wine its open-knit, expressive personality. Drink this attractive midweight Santa Maria Pinot over the next few years.

The 2014 Pinot Noir Clone 115 is a supple, spice-filled, elegant effort that has lots of red fruits, medium-bodied richness, light tannin and integrated acidity. It's a touch simple, but has plenty to love.

A good value in California Pinot Noir, the 2014 Pinot Noir Benchbreak offers clean, crisp notes of black cherries, underbrush and herbs in a charming, supple, beautifully fruited package. This cuvée is completely destemmed and saw 8 months in 26% new French oak. They make a boatload of it, and it’s solid.

Grown on an elevated bench above the Santa Maria River, next to Bien Nacido, this is rich, accessible and balanced. Its warm red-cherry flavor is soft at first but firms up in the end, the gravelly soils above the valley floor perhaps contributing the clean cherry-pit structure at the center of the wine.

The 2012 Pinot Noir Julia's Vineyard is a pretty, racy wine with plenty of near-term appeal. Crushed flowers, mint and leather notes add nuance in a forward, delicate Pinot with good complexity. The flavors are a bit forward, so the 2012 is best enjoyed sooner rather than later.

This bottling is sourced from some of the higher-elevation benchland blocks of the Cambria estate. For all its heady ripeness and new oak polish, it’s got admirable energy: lithe, dark-fruited and persistent. Its concentration would match wild fowl.

Cambria's 2010 Julia's is an earthy Pinot that exhibits a nose of back truffle and cola, with aromas of red and black fruits, supple tannins and a long, persistent finish. Drink it now and over the next three to four years. Outstanding value in its price range.

Ruby-red.  Smoky, deeply pitched aromas of cherry and dark berries, with a spicy overtone.  Weighty, expansive blackberry and bitter cherry flavors pick up a hint of licorice with air and show good energy.  Finishes on a slightly warm note, with good cling and soft tannins.

Vivid red. Aromas of black raspberry and cherry, plus a hint of woodsmoke. Smooth but slightly loose-knit cherry and bitter chocolate flavors are lifted by a peppery element on the back half. Finishes with good grip and a lingering note of cherry pit. In a structured, somewhat brooding style; this would work well with hearty red meat dishes.

If the least expensive of the several new Cambria offerings, the Clone 115 is a nicely rounded mid-density effort that pulls back on ripeness without pulling back on fruit. It is not an especially effusive or complex wine, yet it keeps its sights set on defined, Pinot cherries and never wanders off course. Its scant finishing coarseness will be remedied equally by brief aging and service of food.

A savory, earthbound style of pinot, this yields a range of flavors beyond its youthful oak. Spicy tones of roasted root vegetables and darker elements, like black mushroom, combine with edgy acidity, all needing several years to meld.

Very strong aromas of plum, blackberry, oak, vanilla, smoke and spice. A fairly austere wine notable for power and finesse rather than fruit. The tannins are soft and it's very dry.

Supple, rich and fruity with wild berry character, enhanced by cedar, spice, leather and tobacco notes. Turns smooth and complex on the finish.

In addition to a terrific lineup of Pinot Noirs, the estate makes a solid Syrah. Completely destemmed and aged in 24% new French oak, the 2014 Syrah Tepusquet is a juicy, peppery, black and blue-scented beauty that has lots of upfront fruit, good freshness and purity and a great finish. It's a consumer friendly, distinct, well-made Syrah to drink over the coming 3-4 years.

Inky purple.  Jammy black and blue fruits on the nose and in the mouth.  Displays good balance, with mocha and candied licorice notes lingering on the slightly bitter finish.

Shows off distinct pepper, nutmeg and blackberry flavors that are full-blown, with hints of espresso and blueberry on the finish. This has firm, integrated tannins. Drink now through 2013.

…an attractive honeysuckle, peach, Muscat-scented and flavored wine with an intense bouquet and loads of fruit on the palate. Medium-bodied and cleanly made, it is ideal for drinking over the next year.

Tart, with peach and nectarine flavors that are bright and lively. Finishes with a creamy flavor.

This light yellow colored Viognier opens with a pear and apple bouquet with a hint of pineapple. On the palate, this wine is full bodied, acidic and juicy. The flavor profile is a mineral infused peach with hints of pineapple, ginger and white pepper. The finish is dry and its acidity and flavors are nicely extended. This Viognier would pair well with grilled lemon chicken. Very good.

Top Value of 2008

The texture is soft, while the flavors are tightly focused on honey, white berries and almond paste. This would match a chicken roasted with peaches, or a savory dessert, like an unsweetened peach cobbler.

Bright yellow straw cast. Moderately full-bodied. Balanced acidity. Moderately extracted. Moderately oaked. Yeast, cream, citrus. Ripe and impressive flavors show a complex yeasty note. Full and rounded in the mouth, with a distinct impression of fruit sweetness through the finish.

Rich color, butterscotch nose and similar flavors with fruit in the background are typical of the region. This is a gracious and smooth wine with a subtle finish, and I'd think of it with veal medallions with a hint of tarragon, but you wouldn't be disappointed were your choice a classic salade nicoise.

"Crisp and flinty up front, the fruit shows more depth and body at midpalate, with complex pear, peach and spicy oak flavors." also appeared in 7/31/98 issue

...offers a light golden color, an excellent, toasty, smoky, tropical fruit-scented nose, bold, rich, nicely-textured flavors, medium body, and a longer finish than the regular bottling. Nevertheless, I would also opt for drinking this wine over the next year.