Light pink with an orange rim. A bit “dirty” on the nose but plenty of peach, a hint of rhubarb, lovely, actually. The palate, is unfortunately characterized by that “dirtiness” there is also some sweetness. Another wine that did not fair well with the additional year of age. I loved this last year (92 Pts) but this year? Not so much. Could it be an off bottle? Maybe…. Very Good.

Avant is all stainless steel fermented and bottled under a screwcap, a reliable recipe to rein in its bright tropical fruit. In 2019, the wine was 50% Monterey County (lemony citrus and mineral notes), 36% Santa Barbara County (fresh pineapple), and 14% Mendocino County (juicy green apple flavours). This wine has put on a little mid-palate weight to add to its ripe, sweet fruit. It is ready to drink all summer with your choice of west coast seafood or creamy cheese dishes.

This Monterey pinot noir pink is fermented in stainless to try and preserve freshness. Soft strawberries, cream, red apple, and a twist of mandarin fill the peach-hued, medium+ palate. The finish is snappy and brief. Chill well and drink this friendly, simple pink this summer.

With its sweet baked raspberry and cocoa notes, this wine has the flavor of a chocolate-raspberry ganache. It’s simple and rich.

Herb, cedar, tobacco and tomato leaf notes are bold, set against a dense, firm backbone of tannins and black licorice–laced dark fruit flavors. Caramel and toast accents linger on the finish, where the tannins turn more drying. Drink now through 2030.

Savory, with a supple mix of dried red fruit and roast beef flavors supported by medium-grained tannins. Cocoa powder on the finish. Drink now.

Dark in the glass with flint, funk, and fumée. The palate is fruity, but comes off as overly extracted. I would not necessarily seek this wine out, but nor would I be overly upset if I were served this wine. Very Good.

Aromas of toasted oak and espresso dominate the opening. The dense palate offers prune, roasted coffee bean and dried orange slice alongside assertive tannins that lead to a mouthdrying finish. Drink through 2023.

Racy flavors of wild berry and pomegranate are fresh and fruit-forward, with toast, cedar and tobacco shadings set on a smooth and juicy frame. The tannins firm up on the finish, revealing a note of star anise. Drink now.

Dark and winey, with a solid beam of blackberry and black cherry fruit, lined with licorice and roasted cedar notes. A cedar edge peeks out on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2022. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.

This delivers a good blast of dark fig, cherry and plum notes wrapped in a baker's chocolate frame. A bit chunky overall, with an earthy tone to the finish, but this is solid enough. Drink now through 2021.

USA, California, Central Coast: The 2018 VintagePale ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Santa Barbara County has delicate scents of cranberries, blackberries, tree bark, mushrooms and earth. The palate is light-bodied and tangy with tart, earth-laced fruits and a bright finish.

Raspberry and red plum flavors are fresh and juicy in this fruity style. Notes of underbrush show on the finish. Drink now.

A beefy aroma introduces this red, with concentrated dried thyme and minty notes accenting the dried berry flavors. Cedar spice on the finish. Drink now.

Pale copper color. Aromas of white peaches, honey, pineapple, with white flowers, fresh laundry and clover. Peaches and green melons lead the way on the palate, a creamy texture with bright acidity works nicely, and the wine has this interesting chalky, flinty aspect. White tea, verbena and mint, even some minerality showing through, this has a lot going on for a budget-friendly Pinot Grigio.

Smelling of ripe peaches and apricots with a light touch of honey and reiterating the same in its slightly sweet flavors, this clean and carefully balanced Riesling shows a fine sense of fruity substance in a direct, all-out-in-the-open style. A tasty choice for drinking as a slightly sweet aperitif or pool-side refresher, it will be equally welcome as a foil to milder curries and moderately spicy Thai and Chinese dishes.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyThe value-priced 2018 Pinot Noir Monterey comes from the cooler Monterey County and was brought up in 19% new French oak. Translucent ruby, with pretty cherry and strawberry fruits as well as plenty of spice, it's a sweetly fruited, medium-bodied, charming effort with plenty to love, especially at the price.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyThe 2019 Pinot Noir Rose is a charmer, offering plenty of sweet raspberry and cherry fruits, a touch of orange blossom, medium body, and a rounded, easy drinking, quaffable style.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyAll varietal, the light gold-hued 2018 Pinot Blanc Jackson Estate Santa Maria Valley Nielson Vineyard has a rich, fruit-driven style that carries lots of sweet pineapple, nectarine, and peach notes to go with a nicely textured, rich yet still lively character on the palate. It's certainly a richer style of Pinot Blanc that will do well on the dinner table.

The 2018s from Santa Barbara CountyComing from a site in the Santa Maria Valley, the 2017 Syrah Tepusquet Vineyard has a juicy, peppery, lively style as well as a slightly one-dimensional, cool-climate style on the palate. Drink it over the coming 3-5 years.

Here, again, Siduri has come up with a nicely balanced wine that displays a good deal of fruity purity, yet, it is fairly straightforward and neither as rich nor as involving as its more generously filled companion from the Russian River Valley. Although it promises a bit less in the way of increased layering with time, its well-defined fruit and firm, food-worthy structure will hold it in good stead for three or four years.

Sonoma: Another Brilliant Vintage in 2018A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Malbec, 5% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Vintner's Reserve sports a deep purple color as well as a ripe, attractive bouquet of plums, violets, vanilla bean, and green tobacco. It's nicely textured, medium-bodied, and a delicious, easy-drinking Cabernet.

A Merlot-based blend that also contains Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine is herbal, thick and concentrated, with generous layers of oak and tannin. Reductive, it shows a wealth of dark cherry and plum, with enduring richness and moderatelength.

The label suggest Bing cherry, plum and chocolate. Pretty hard to argue with those descriptors, accurate, spot on, as advertised. Neglects to mention some tension involved, albeit and however a short stint of argumentation or rather, conversation. Pretty easy to knock back this merlot of California ubiquity. Drink 2019-2021.Tasted November 2019.

This is a pleasant, fairly soft merlot with ripe black cherry fruit, with a cedary, spicy/clove nose plus some herbal element. It's medium-full bodied, quite svelte and easy-going, with a drier, slightly earthy finish. Good to very good length. Tasted November 2019