Dedicated to cool-climate merlot, this producer continues to make a steady, dependable merlot that is reasonably priced for the complexity it delivers. It bursts with cherry and plum flavors with intriguing hints of cocoa and sage.

This is a very well put together merlot with an intense ripe cherry and plum nose. In the mouth very soft tannins and mouth filling plum, cherry and spicy cinnamon flavors dominate. Delicious by itself or with red meat dishes.

Other selection: the 2012 Matanzas Creek Jackson Park Vineyard Merlot, $60, is an age-worthy beauty from the terraced hillside estate vineyard across the road from the winery. It’s loaded with dark berry, plum and bittersweet chocolate flavors with a hint of tobacco and brown spices. Grapes are the Petrus clone.

Intense aromas of flowers and black raspberries, flavors of dark chocolate, spices and herbs, long, smooth finish.

Matanzas Creek Jackson Park Merlot 2012 is an elegant red with cocoa, blueberry and grippy in tannins. Made from the Petrus clone. Side-by-side, the Jackson Park 2013 ($60) is a little meatier and more tannic. It’s medium bodied, darker in the glass and has flavors of cracked pepper, fresh plum and tomato leaf on the finish.

This is Merlot with a big engine under the hood — bold aromas, flavors that roar, plenty of structure and body. It opens with oak-infused aromas of cherry, raspberry, plum and sage. Tannins are round and supple, acidity is firm. It’s a wine with body and power that is still evolving. It’s produced off vineyards in Bennett Valley, Alexander Valley and Knights Valley.

2012 Matanzas Creek Winery Merlot, Sonoma County (97.7 percent merlot, 2.3 percent cabernet sauvignon): aromas and flavors of red raspberries, mocha and herbs, smooth tannins, long finish.

Very rich dark cherry notes with threads of earth and spices. Elegant with a refreshing mineral aspect on the finish.

The 2012 Matanzas Creek from Sonoma County had plum, cherry and a hint of incense on the nose, plus some savory spice.

This venerable wine producer can be counted on to make a consistently solid merlot, which is not something many California winemakers can declare. The producer's Jackson Park Vineyard merlot ($60) shows the depth and character the producer can get from this grape, but the Sonoma County merlot is more affordable. Classic cherry and plum flavors with a dash of chocolate.

Merlot is often vegetal and pruney for our tastes, but this terrific version from Sonoma County reminds you of how good merlot can be. Loaded with rich fresh cherry and plum flavors, it has good character and balance. Very aromatic with black cherry and herbal notes. For what you get, it's a good price.

What makes the Journey a standout is this blend’s striking red raspberry note coupled with its supple texture. It’s weighted to red fruit, with a high-toned note of cranberry. Balanced. This is absolutely worth the price for those with the disposable income. 4½ stars.

Matanzas Creek Journey 2012 is dominated by dark chocolate flavors. It's framed nicely in the background by dark fruit flavors with tannins that grab on the finish.

Review of Matanzas Journey Red Blend & Chardonnay This is a rich and decadent red Bordeaux blend with a majority of Merlot. Flavors are intense with blackberry, black currant, and spice. It offers exotic aromas of black fig, black cherry, and chocolate. Incredible structure and a long length of finish. The wine has velvet tannin and high acidity, as well as complexity and a long length of finish. Even at nine years of age the wine is fresh and vibrant.

Matanzas Creek Knight’s Valley Merlot 2012 is bigger, riper and fuller bodied than the Jackson Park. Just 20 miles separates the two vineyards, but Knight’s valley has more red fruit than blue. It’s got chewy tannins and will get more impressive over the next 10 years.

This Merlot holds estate fruit as well as sourced grapes from several sites, creating a well-blended wine with tiny percentages of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Aged in both French and American oak, the wine is balanced in cranberry and blackberry, with an herbaceous underbelly.

A seamless merlot with a great melding of flavors. Notes of black cherry fruit, herbs and spice. Bright acid. Nice length. Solid.

2010 Matanzas Creek Winery Merlot, Sonoma County: aromas and flavors of black cherries and dark chocolate, firm tannins; $28.

A plush red wine with well-integrated tannins. It has a seamless texture and deep, rich notes of cherry, black cherry, herbs and pepper. Worth the splurge.

This proprietary red wine is brought to you by the Matanzas Creek Winery and is made up of 88.6 percent cabernet sauvignon with the balance made up of merlot, malbec, and a dash of petite verdot. This big-bodied wine was aged in 63 percent new French oak for about a year and a half before release, and exhibits a complex nose and flavors of red and black currants, some herbal notes and a hint of licorice. This wine, although expensive, shows the care of the winemaker and is very full and pleasing.

This full-bodied merlot has a seamless texture and layered flavors. Notes of blackberry, herbs and pepper. Lingering finish.

2007 Matanzas Creek Winery Merlot, Bennett Valley: soft, ripe and lush, with aromas and flavors of black plums, anise and cinnamon.

This is one of the best premium merlots we have tasted in a long time. It is aromatic and generous in complex, rich flavors: thyme, cloves and licorice in the nose with blackberry, cassis and pepper notes on the palate. We love the mushroom, forest-floor character and the pure fruit flavors.

Matanzas Creek Winery uses 86 percent merlot and 14 percent cabernet sauvignon for, of course, its muscle.