Classic Howell Mountain tannins, powerful and focused, but ripely sweet, frame opulent cherry, cassis, plum sauce and new oak flavors, and for all that, there’s a crisp edge of acidity that makes everything clean and bright. Drink now through 2012.

Take a great Napa Cabernet and turn it into a Russian River Pinot, and you get this wonderful Pinot Noir. It's a low production blend of various vineyards controlled by Jackson Family Farms, and each barrel seems picked for sheer lusciousness. Dry and silky, with perfect tannin-acid balance, it shows rich, complex waves of raspberries, cherries, Dr. Pepper cola, balsam, pepper and all kinds of hard to define forest floor and mineral complications. Fully approachable now and for the next 3-4 years.

Concentrated, exotic and almost earthy, this wine from a single vineyard in Anderson Valley has a wild edge of smoked fruit, singed rosemary and black pepper, with a core of deep black-cherry and clove flavors. It is full-bodied, mouthfilling and layered, with nuances that continue to unfold on the evolving finish.

Top 100 Cellar Selections of 2018 - #7

Filled with black and red berries and stone fruits that have a smoky, grilled edge, this dramatic Cabernet based Bordeaux blend hails from several great vineyards, mainly Stagecoach, which is up on Atlas Peak. It drinks well now at the age of four-plus years, showing lush fruit that's just beginning to dry out and achieve bottle bouquet. Feels sweet and soft in the mouth. A compelling, complex and nuanced wine of great elegance and allure.

Stature is always a Bordeaux blend, but varies in vineyard source each year. this '04 is soft, utterly delicious and fully drinkable now. It's rich in black currant, cherry pie filling, plum, anise and spice flavors, generously aged in smoky new oak. Made in the modern style, it will hold effortlessly through 2012, at least.

A prodigious effort, is Kendall-Jackson's 2004 Stature, a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon mostly from Atlas Peak, with 5% Petit Verdot, 2% Malbec, 2% Merlot and 1 % Cabernet Franc. A real stunner of a wine showing how brilliant the more limited cuvees of Kendall-Jackson can be - and should never be ignored. It is a tribute to both the late Jess Jackson, and the winemaker for all the Kendall-Jackson wines, Randy Ullom. Plum/purple to the rim with sweet cassis, cherry, plum, Asian spice, vanilla and espresso, this voluptuous, full-bodied wine could last another 20 or more years. But it has already shown an enormous richness, with stunning fruit purity, a multi-layered, skyscraper-like texture and fabulous finish of close to a minute. This is a rather amazing wine that is beginning to enter adolescence, where it will stay for several decades.

A complex nose of cedar, dark fruit and tobacco. Profuse flavors of chocolate, black cherry, and tobacco fill out this round and supple glass. Viscous and full-bodied, with a pleasantly spicy and minty ending. Drink with rich dishes through the millennium.

Superb, opulent, just wonderful. Hard to exaggerate the beauty of this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. Fantastically ripe and rich in black cherries, currants, sandalwood and spices, with a grounding streak of herbs. Beyond the flavors is the near-perfect structure, marked by smooth, complex tannins. Finishes sweet but completely dry, the paradox of a great wine.

From up on Mount Veeder comes this lush, dramatically complex Cabernet Sauvignon. It's really fine, with ripe, intricately layered tannins that give the wine a texture of dramatic importance, and luscious Cabernet flavors that change from sip to sip. Blackberries, currants, cherries, cedar, it's all there in this 100% varietal wine, a very great expression of Napa mountain Cab, and an ager as well.

I tasted through some Napa wines (of which more later) and six from the Hickinbotham vintage 2017 collection with winemaker Chris Carpenter yesterday. This was the last wine tasted, though not the least. Chris tells me that he selects the Cabernet component (solo) while Pete Fraser chooses the Shiraz. It’s a bit like Hal David writing the lyrics, while Burt Bacharach writes the toons. 204 cases made from specific vineyards, and subsequent barrel selection. Blue and black fruit, a bit of earth, vanilla, subtle mint and floral elements. Deep and round, fleshy and chocolaty, plush with ripe well-submerged tannin, all so smooth and even-keeled, finishing lip-smackingly long. Classic Australian blend with no shortage of style. Puts a smile on the face.

Australia: Catching Up The blend of the 2016 The Peake Cabernet Shiraz is 57% Cab and 43% Shiraz, aged in 60%-70% new French oak. It's a barrel selection and blend that is solid and rich, with grainy tannins at this youthful stage. Cassis, cherry, vanilla and cedar all come together synergistically to yield a rich, chewy red that should age well for more than a decade.

The Peake represents the pinnacle wines from Hickinbotham and this sure does make a statement. A stunning wine ought to be enjoyed on a stunning occasion. Brilliant! A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz (57/43) off vines planted in 1971. The fruit was fermented separately prior to blending. It's not shy but its sleek at the same time. A wine which flows effortlessly delivering presence and charm all at once. Blackcurrants and blackberries, licorice and cloves are on the front foot early. Nestled in closely behind sit dark chocolate, dried herbs and black earth. Oak makes a late run but the word seamless is what keeps bouncing around my mind as this goes through its paces. Over the space of a few days it was absolutely pristine. Buy now and savour later. Way later.

Why Australian Wine is Some of the Most Exciting in the World The sum is greater than the parts here. Stunning interaction of the two grapes. The shiraz fills and lightens the cabernet just perfectly. Abundant red and dark berries, plums and chocolate. Super fine tannins, too. This is blended to perfection. A brilliant wine.

As always, it’s about choosing the best parcels of fruit and barrels for this high end wine. It’s seamless. The pristine fruit absorbing the oak, the filigreed tannins, the chalky acidity, everything doing its bit to create a complete picture. While incredibly fresh, its best days are ahead of it.

A shiraz that’s full-bodied and complex yet charming and swoon-worthy all at once. Excellent colour; the generosity of flavor comes through with red and black fruits, some licorice, cinnamon and a dusting of mocha. Freshness, bright acidity, length and beautiful, fine tannins seal the deal.

Renowned throughout Australia, the Hickinbotham estate perched above the floor of McLaren Vale (Valley) is the source of a half dozen fantastic wines. “The Trueman” is not the most expensive, but it is one of my favorites. Beautifully elegant and incredibly long, its uplifts of flavor—cassis, almonds, minerals, and camphor—are mesmerizing and complex. Alive and elegant.

Wine of the Week The Hickinbotham wines being carefully crafted by Charlie Seppelt and American Chris Carpenter in McLaren Vale are hugely impressive. Across the board they are wines of class, style and substance. This quite splendid single-vineyard cabernet sauvignon is all about balance. It was hand-picked, whole berry sorted and open fermented, spending 18 days on skins. Basket-pressed and then matured in new and one-year-old French barriques, it is powerful but sleek. Think blackcurrant, herbal and leafy nuances, soft tannins and seductive length. A classsic "claret" style. One for the long haul but deliciously drinkable now.

Hand-picked, destemmed but whole berries, open-fermented on skins 18 days, basket-pressed, only free-run juice, new and 1yo Bordeaux barrels, aged 15 months. It’s tempting to pour a glass immediately and savour it, for everything from the fruit, cedary oak and tannins to its acidity are in total balance.

Light purple color. Wow, the aromas are fantastic: black cherries, currants, blackberries, loaded with fruit but elegant, too, and backed up with black pepper, bell pepper, iron, chewing tobacco, graphite and dark chocolate. So rich, structured well with serious tannic grip, but the wine maintains an effortless and velvety feel. Rich, plush, bold but not too dense, with roasted plums, currant paste, blackberries, the fruit is yummy but nuanced. Cocoa, graphite, loam, charcoal, grilled herbs and coffee, lots of complex elements here. Beautiful young but burying this wine for a decade and forgetting about it would be a solid move. This blend of 56% Cabernet and 44% Shiraz is sourced from the estate’s oldest vines, planted in 1971.

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, brilliant red/purple colour; youthful. The bouquet is complex and inviting, with lots of savoury aromas, earth, charcuterie, spices, leather and subdued nuances of dark fruits. Some sooty and smoky touches. It's full-bodied and very supple in the mouth, with ample tannins which are smooth as silk. Red fruits rather than black. A delicious wine, superbly balanced and long. Drink 2016 to 2034

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.

This is a top example of the classic Australian blend. Cabernet (57%) provides cigar box aromas and elongates the finish, while Shiraz (43%) fills out the midpalate. The combination is full-bodied yet muscular, generous yet firmly structured. Essence of cassis is framed by hints of vanilla and cedar, while the long finish shows off chewy tannins and mouthwatering acids.

'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.