The 2008 Cote de Lune Blanc Saralee's Vineyard (41% Marsanne, 39% Roussanne, and 20% Viognier) offers up intriguing notes of licorice, lychee nut, honeysuckle, clove, and yellow apples. This well-made, medium to full-bodied, richly fruity, complex white is meant to be consumed during its first 1-2 years of life. This is another impressive group of wines from one of the most consistent winemakers and long-time veterans of the California wine scene, Dick Arrowood. He has always had the Midas touch with white varietals, yet he also continues to impress me with what he can do with red varietals. Moreover, Arrowood is also one of the pioneer Rhone Ranger producers, and his Syrah program has been supplemented with red and white French Cotes du Rhone-like blends called Cote de Lune as well as an outstanding Viognier.

A pioneer with high quality Viognier, Arrowood's 2008 Viognier Saralee's Vineyard continues his mastery of this difficult varietal. It is easy to make a competent wine from this varietal, but it is very hard to produce a top-flight example. Arrowood is able to keep the acidity and minerality in the background, while not sacrificing the exotic tropical fruit and lychee nut characteristics of Viognier. This rich, medium to full-bodied 2008 should be drunk over the next 2-3 years. This is another impressive group of wines from one of the most consistent winemakers and long-time veterans of the California wine scene, Dick Arrowood. He has always had the Midas touch with white varietals, yet he also continues to impress me with what he can do with red varietals. Moreover, Arrowood is also one of the pioneer Rhone Ranger producers, and his Syrah program has been supplemented with red and white French Cotes du Rhone-like blends called Cote de Lune as well as an outstanding Viognier.

Even better, but more limited in production, is the 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Helena Bench. Made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc with the Sauvignon Musque clone representing nearly 25% of the blend, which gives the wine a more aromatic character, it also offers an intriguing gravelly, smoky nose with intense melon-like fruit notes, medium body, and a richer, more complex personality than its sibling.

Another outstanding effort, the 2007 Pinot Noir Russian River offers up scents of rhubarb, wild strawberries, black cherries, and a hint of spice box as well as a plush, succulent texture, silky tannins, and a long finish. As the wine sits in the glass, sassafras/cola notes also emerge. Drink it over the next 3-4 years.

Another outstanding effort, the 2007 Pinot Noir Russian River offers up scents of rhubarb, wild strawberries, black cherries, and a hint of spice box as well as a plush, succulent texture, silky tannins, and a long finish. As the wine sits in the glass, sassafras/cola notes also emerge. Drink it over the next 3-4 years.

The 2008 Chardonnay Grand Reserve, which comes from their vineyards in Monterey and Santa Barbara, is a richer, fuller wine with loads of tropical fruit and honeysuckle. It is crisp, full-bodied, and again, an impressive wine to drink over the next several years.

The 2007 Zinfandel Piffero Vineyard is more restrained aromatically, but it still reveals plenty of briery, uncomplicated, pure fruit. Medium-bodied, tart, and slightly shorter as well as more compact than its siblings, it will benefit from a few more years of bottle age (not something I normally recommend for Zinfandel). It should drink well for 6-7 years.

The 2007 Merlot Lost Pine is a dense, structured, tannic example whose best days are 2-3 years in the future. A big, dense ruby/purple hued effort, it offers up notes of mocha, black cherries, and chocolate in a full-bodied style. Forget it for a couple of years, and drink it over the following 10-15 years. These are far and away the most impressive group of Stonestreet Alexander Mountain estate wines that I have ever tasted.

More backward, elegant, and highbrow, so to speak, is the 2007 Highland Estates Merlot Taylor Peak. This 100% Merlot from the Bennett Valley should turn out to be an outstanding wine with another 1-2 years of bottle age. The wine displays plenty of dark berry fruit, along with some crushed rock, coffee, and blueberry notes. It is a pretty wine to drink between 2010 and 2020.

A strong effort, the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma possesses rich black currant notes intermixed with hints of tobacco leaf, licorice, and mile chocolate. Already delicious, graceful, and medium to full-bodied without a hard edge to be found, it should evolve nicely for 7-8 years.

The 2008 Sauvignon Blanc exhibits a light straw color in addition to lots of lemon zest, lime, and other citrus notes in a crisp, steely, fresh style loaded with texture and intensity. A 100% Sauvignon Blanc aged six months in neutral oak, it should provide plenty of pleasure over the next 1-2 years. These are far and away the most impressive group of Stonestreet Alexander Mountain estate wines I have ever tasted.

I enjoyed the flowery, blue fruit-filled 2007 Pinot Noir Anderson Valley (mostly new Dijon clones).This delicate, elegant, feminine-styled Pinot offers juicy, succulent blue fruits, a hint of spice, and lots of spring flower-like characteristics. It should drink well for 3-4 years.

The 2008 Chardonnay Carneros reveals a slightly weightier, bigger mouthfeel. It offers hints of caramelized citrus, honeysuckle, nectarine, and spice as well as an attractive steely minerality. Enjoy it over the next 3-4 years.

The 2007 Grand Reserve Merlot, also from Sonoma, is a slightly bigger wine than the 2007 Vintner's Reserve Merlot with similar character but more density and more fruit.

There are over 2 million cases of the 2008 Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay, all 100% barrel fermented Chardonnay from Jess Jackson's own estate vineyards. This wine displays plenty of tropical fruit, lemon butter, and citrus in a fresh, lively style, with the wood clearly pushed to the background. Hats off to winemaker Randy Ullom, who has been behind this massive winemaking task for many years. This is another hugely successful wine that can be found discounted in the $10-12 range, and should be drunk over the next year. The lowest level of the Kendall-Jackson empire, the Vintner's Reserve series, goes from strength to strength. For consumers hoping to maximize their dollar value, these serious wines are consistent choices. Their Chardonnay has always been good, but dramatic increases in quality have taken place in the Pinot Noir, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon programs.

The 2007 Pinot Noir Sevens Bench Vineyard exhibits a dark ruby color along with notes of sweet boysenberries, wild strawberries, rhubarb, underbrush, and earth. Medium-bodied with good acidity and a pleasant finish, it is produced from Dijon clones 667 and 777. One of the best wineries in Sonoma, Hartford Family Winery, under the guidance of winemaker Jeff Mangahas, continues to fine tune an impressive portfolio of wines, all from cool climate sites.

Probably the best they have made to date, the 2007 Vintner's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon exhibits an exuberance, richness, and intensity that belie a production of 155,000 cases. Coming entirely from Jess Jackson's vineyards, the final blend - 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot - is sourced primarily from Sonoma and Napa, with a small percentage of Mendocino. This wine is a beauty, with ripe berry fruit, as well as hints of cedarwood, tobacco leaf, licorice, and plenty of black currants and black cherries. This wine should drink nicely for 5-6 years, possibly even longer. The lowest level of the Kendall-Jackson empire, the Vintner's Reserve series, goes from strength to strength. For consumers hoping to maximize their dollar value, these serious wines are consistent choices. Their Chardonnay has always been good, but dramatic increases in quality have taken place in the Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon programs.

The generic 2007 Chardonnay Sonoma, which goes through 100% barrel and malolactic fermentation, was still somewhat tight when I tasted it. However, it displays pure notes of citrus blossoms, white currants, brioche, green apples, and hints of clove as well as vanilla. It is a mid-weight, crisp, elegant white to drink over the next 4-5 years. This is another impressive group of wines from one of the most consistent winemakers and long-time veterans of the California wine scene, Dick Arrowood. He has always had the Midas touch with white varietals, yet he also continues to impress me with what he can do with red varietals.

The 2008 Sauvignon Blanc exhibits plenty of honeyed grapefruit, flint, and citrus notes in a light to medium-bodied, pure format.

There are just under one-half million cases of the 2008 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast, which is an excellent value, particularly when one considers it comes from the high rent district of the Sonoma Coast. Elegant white peach, apricot, and lemon blossom notes are present in this medium-bodied, crisp, well-made, barrel-fermented Chardonnay (almost three-quarters is put through malolactic fermentation). The wine possesses good freshness, purity, and depth. It should drink well for 2-3 years.

The 2008 Highland Estates Pinot Noir Los Robles is slightly better, but obviously not the bargain that the Vintner's Reserve represents. Underbrush and floral berry and cherry notes are present in this medium-bodied wine. Anticipated maturity: now-2013.

A real breakthrough is the 2008 Vintner's Reserve Pinot Noir. Entirely from Jackson Estate vineyards, this wine is loaded with rhubarb, wild strawberry, cherry, and berry fruit in a medium-bodied, very Pinot Noir-tasting style. Dark ruby-colored with good freshness and liveliness, there are just under 100,000 cases of this Pinot Noir, meant to be drunk in its first 2-3 years of life. The lowest level of the Kendall-Jackson empire, the Vintner's Reserve series, goes from strength to strength. For consumers hoping to maximize their dollar value, these serious wines are consistent choices. Their Chardonnay has always been good, but dramatic increases in quality have taken place in the Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon programs.

Another clear upgrade in quality is the 2007 Vintner's Reserve Merlot. This is even stronger than the 2006, which was an upgrade over earlier efforts. Elegant mocha and berry fruit intermixed with some herbs, coffee, and spice make for a delicious, round wine that is actually a blend of 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, all from Sonoma. Drink it over the next 2-4 years. The lowest level of the Kendall-Jackson empire, the Vintner's Reserve series, goes from strength to strength. For consumers hoping to maximize their dollar value, these serious wines are consistent choices. Their Chardonnay has always been good, but dramatic increases in quality have taken place in the Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon programs.

The red Cotes du Rhone look-alike, the 2007 Cote de Lune Rouge (nearly equal parts of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre) displays copious amounts of strawberries, black cherries, pepper, underbrush, and lavender in its medium-bodied, hedonistic personality. Enjoy it over the next 2-3 years. This is another impressive group of wines from one of the most consistent winemakers and long-time veterans of the California wine scene, Dick Arrowood. He has always had the Midas touch with white varietals, yet he also continues to impress me with what he can do with red varietals. Moreover, Arrowood is also one of the pioneer Rhone Ranger producers, and his Syrah program has been supplemented with red and white French Cotes du Rhone-like blends called Cote de Lune as well as an outstanding Viognier.

Slightly more serious is the medium ruby-hued 2008 Pinot Noir Monterey. Revealing the berry fruit side of Pinot Noir, with additional texture and depth, it should drink nicely for 2-3 years.