Bright red-ruby. Vinous, claret-like aromas of redcurrant, tobacco and menthol. Sweet, juicy and aromatic in the mouth, with a pliant texture for Diamond Mountain cabernet and lovely floral lift. In a rather round style, and offering considerable early appeal. Finishes with supple, building tannins and very good lingering sweetness of fruit.

Taylor Peak is 100 percent Bennett Valley grown fruit that spends 17 months in French oak, of which 37 percent is new. Look for cool black fruit and blueberries with bits of tobacco, spice, compost chocolate and licorice. Impressive styling that focuses on mountain fruit giving it power but with Bordeaux Right Bank-like finesse. You can easily drink this merlot, for a decade. Well done and fine value.

Bright gold. Potent orchard fruit and floral scents are complemented by smoky lees and sweet butter. Finely etched pear and guava flavors coat the palate, taking on a spicy quality on the back end. Blends richness and energy deftly and finishes with excellent clarity and length. There are 790 cases of this wine, which is made from a selection of barrels.

Ruby-red. Black raspberry, smoked meat and flowers on the nose. Graceful red and dark berry flavors stain the palate without conveying any excess weight. Extremely fresh and focused zinfandel with excellent finishing clarity and spiciness. There's a pinot-like quality to this wine that's very appealing.

Medium ruby. Black fruits, licorice, menthol and a slightly syrupy note on the somewhat medicinal nose. Quite tight and tannic today, and not yet as pliant as the 2006. In a tough stage, displaying solid underlying minerality but currently hiding its fruit sweetness.

Deep ruby. Intensely perfumed nose offers redcurrant, cherry and tobacco, with a suave floral quality adding complexity. Deep, chewy red and dark berry flavors are framed by velvety tannins and pick up a sweet tobacco note on the back end. Youthfully tangy on the finish, with the cherry and tobacco notes repeating. This needs some cellar time.

Good deep red-ruby. Black cherry, dark berries, minerals, cola and sexy oak on the nose; became more perfumed with aeration. Sweet and fine-grained, but with solid underlying spine to its dark fruit, spice and cola flavors. Thanks to its impression of lushness without weight, this is the most refined wine yet from this property.

Vivid red. Exotic aromas of red and dark berries, olive, anise and violet; the syrah element is really pronounced today. Deep, sappy blackberry and cassis flavors are very supple and show no tannins. A smoky mineral note creeps up on the finish, which is long, sweet and well-focused. I like this wine's clarity and balance.

Bright ruby-red. Black cherry, bitter chocolate, licorice and a hint of menthol on the nose. Supple and sweet, with a slightly medicinal cast to its rather velvety redcurrant and menthol flavors. A bit youthfully tight on the back end, with firm tannins and juicy acids currently limiting the wine's length. Needs some patience.

Good ruby-red. Ripe, aromatic nose offers plum, currant, chocolate and graphite. Nicely sweet and dense, with ripe flavors of currant, plum, spices and tobacco framed by juicy acidity. Finishes with good verve, the big, broad tannins reaching the front teeth.

Yellow-gold. Exotic aromas of poached pear, smoky lees and iodine. Sappy, palate-coating orchard fruit and melon flavors are braced by gentle minerality and dried flowers. The smoky note repeats on the broad, persistent finish.

Light yellow-gold. Mineral-driven aromas of Meyer lemon and apple, with a mounting floral honey quality. Fleshy and smooth, offering gently sweet orchard fruit flavors and good mineral lift. Open-knit and easy to drink, with very good finishing breadth and cling.

Here's a nicely balanced chardonnay that shouldn't be too hard to find around town and that drinks especially well for the price. The nose is fairly restrained for California chardonnay, with bits of butteriness and mango on the nose. The taste is smooth but not overly soft, with well-integrated flavors of apple and tropical fruits. Oh, and for you point-chasers out there: Robert Parker rated this wine at 90 points.

The flavors exceed what you would expect from a wine at this price. Ripe apple flavors with citrus notes and a hint of mango. a little residual sugar give it generous mouthfeel.

8 Terrific Sommelier Pairings - Grilled Halibut with Tomato Butter. Try the cherry infected 2006 Cambria Julia's Vineyard Pinot Noir.

A toasty chardonnay with a lush texture. Notes of pear, melon, toffee, caramel and spice.

The blend is 85 percent merlot, 12 percent cabernet sauvignon and 3 percent syrah. Cherry and mature oak nose. Expressive complex cherry flavors in the mouth that really add up to a terrifically pleasing wine.

Wine Country recipe Herb-Marinated Chicken Skewers with Harissa paired with the spicy aromatic 2007 La Crema Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir.

The nose is a sensational mix of oatmeal, subtle oak and vanilla, with bits of butter, mineral and spicy orange flecks. The palate is a creamy mix of pineapple, papaya, citrusy lime notes, along with a créme brûlée finish. Perhaps the best finesse yet, with only 55 percent new French oak in the barrel ferment. A first-class chardonnay that over-delivers.

Massive in structure, this blend of merlot with cabernet sauvignon (18 percent) and cabernet franc (5) finds its power in the mixed soils of this estate in central Tuscany. It's grown in clay, sandstone, basalt and schist. The tannins ease up after a few hours, revealing ripe flavors of plum and savory dark chocolate notes. Built for the cellar, this should continue to evolve over the next ten to 12 years.

Forest floor scents of ferns and conifer contrast with brighter fraise de bois and violet notes in this pinot noir. the structure is clean and transparent, allowing the wine's complexity to show through. The impression is gentle yet concentrated, a wine built to age or to decant for coq au vin.

Aromas of ripe strawberries balance the rich oak spice in this wine. The fruit feels fresh and plump, held firm by strong tannins. This has the structure for rack of lamb.

Made in the Edmeades style of high alcohol and exceptional ripeness, this is a powerfully explosive Zin. Fully dry, it's packed with black currant, cassis, plum jam, dark chocolate and spice flavors that are wrapped into hard tannins. Will soften in time. Best now through 2012.

A lovely Pinot, polished and supple. Ready to drink now for its crisp acidity, lush coat of smoky oak and, above all, exotically complex flavors of cherry pie filling, black raspberry tart, cola, red plum and mocha. Should evolve through 2012.

Smoky oak and flavors of plums and cassis mark this wine. It finishes sweet. For flank steak.