New oak and ripe Cabernet fruit mesh seamlessly in this 100% varietal wine, grown at very high elevations in the Mayacamas Mountains. Full-bodied and lush, it brims with blackberry tart, black cherry jam, mocha, root beer, cola, molasses and sweet vanilla oak. Enormously complex, the wine unfolds in delicious layer after layer. Best opened young to enjoy it voluptuous fruit.

Randy Ullom is crafting some of the best Cabernets in California these days, small-lot releases made from selected mountain vineyards. This one's made in the house style, offering tiers of ripe fruit wrapped into a soft, velvety wine of great style and complexity. Fully dry, this 100% varietal is instantly appealing for its plush cherry, chocolate and blackberry flavors that finish with the smoky sweetness of new oak.

Like the 2003, this is creamy and supple, but the fruit is fresher and livelier also. The result is a lovely blend of mocha, raspberry and spice accented by hints of vanilla and crushed herbs that linger elegantly on the finish.

What a great Chard. Just delicious in palate-filling tropical fruit, buttercream, pineapple jam, honeysuckle, vanilla custard and spice flavors that are so rich and refined. For all the opulence, the wine is dry, with the firm acidity the Arroyo Seco is known for.

Fresher and more floral than the 2003, with flavors that run toward mulberry while adding hints of vanilla and maple syrup. It's richer, creamier and longer than the 2003, showing the results of Seillan having full control over the property for the entire year. Drink now-2015.

This wine's black cherry and plum flavors veer dangerously toward prune-no doubt a product of the exceedingly hot summer. It's creamy and supple in texture, adding just enough tobacco, vanilla and smoke for complexity. But for all the fruit and ripeness, it finishes with great elegance and precision. Drink now-2020.

A serious Merlot. Well-oaked, it shows lots of crowd-pleasing caramel, toast, vanilla and sweet woody flavors, but the fruit, acids and tannins are fully supportive of all that oak. Cherries, black raspberries and mocha flavors are pure and refined, leading to a dry finish.

Here's a lush, soft Bordeaux blend, based on Cabernet and blended from vineyards around the county. Showing beautifully now, the wine opens with ripe cherry, blackberry, raspberry and coffee notes, surrounded by elegantly refined tannins.

This is a great expression of what winemaker Randy Ullom calls the Santa Maria Bench. Full malolactic fermentation has softened the wine, while barrel fermentation adds to the honeyed, creamy texture. Yet there's enough acidity to balance the lush tropical fruit-pie filling, kumquat, pineapple, apricot, vanilla custard and buttered toast richness.

Saturated ruby. Super rich aromas of blackberry, flowers and toasty oak, along with some almost porty black cherry and chocolate notes. Fat, chewy, and very deep, but with excellent vinosity framing the black cherry and spicy oak flavors. Finishes very sweet and long, with noble, dusty, fine-grained tannins. I love the sugar/acid balance here.

A beautifully crisp Pinot, dry and silky and loaded with ripe cherry, raspberry, cola and Asian spice flavors. Tastes so opulent in fruit, yet has a subtle complexity leading to a long, spicy finish. This Pinot, from one of Monterey County's top growing areas, is a sommelier's dream.

Deep, bright ruby. Crushed blackberry, violet and bitter chocolate on the nose. Suave on entry, then lush, broad, dry and light on its feet. With its very fine-grained texture this is more elegant than the richer 2005. Finishes with big, building tannins and excellent snap.

Starts off with vanilla and black cherry scents, with just a sprinkling of dried herbs. This blend of 60% merlot and 40% cabernet franc is creamy and supple through the mocha-tinged midpalate, then finishes crisper than expected, with some dusty tannins. Drink 2008-2015.

Black from start to finish, this shows more oak influence in its flavor (coffee and chocolate) than any direct fruit character. Mostly about texture-soft, round, full and rich-it's easy to enjoy.

With a little Merlot and Petit Verdot, this is a softly lush, opulent Cab. It shows the intensity of the fruit that comes from mountain viticulture, with concentrated cherry, blackberry and mocha-cola flavors, layered with one-third new French oak. The tannins are rich and refined.

A rewarding Merlot; polished, supple and dry, that floods the mouth with cherry, blackberry and black raspberry flavors, and a coating of toasty oak. This is really a finely balanced, elegant wine.

Big, rich and opulent, filled with tropical fruit, lemon mousse, vanilla cream and buttered toast flavors. Really viscous, a soft, honeyed wine of power and charm. Firm acidity balances the richness.

Saturated ruby. Aromas of blackberry, cassis, licorice, graphite, bitter chocolate and smoky oak. Juicy minerality and firmly built, with lively acids leavening its sweetness. But this has excellent flavor intensity, and the dusty tannins avoid dryness.

Costs a buck or two more than it used to, but the quality of VR has risen, as the winery's grape sources are entirely from estate coastal grapes. This Cab is very ripe and soft, with lavish cherry, cassis and chocolate flavors. The finish is dry and clean.

Deep medium ruby. Deep aromas of black fruits, game and smoke. In a rounder style than the Lassegue, with musky black raspberry and game flavors showing good intensity but less flesh and density than the estate's flagship cuvee. But this offers good mouth coverage, even if the broad tannins are a bit less successfully buffered. This should offer earlier drinkability even if it comes off as a bit muscular today. Seillan ferments this in stainless steel, giving it a gentler vinification, with less post-fermentation maceration to respect the fruit.

Dark and soft, this Syrah has an enormous depth of fruit. The cherry liqueur and pie filling, mocha, cola, plum and gingerbread flavors finish dry...

This 60-40 blend is oddly perfumed, almost like a hand lotion or petroleum jelly, but its bouquet also features likeable hints of melon and citrus. It's truly dry and more Provençal in style than most Australian rosés, finishing with some chalky minerality

An appealing syrah with good balance. Complex, with notes of toast, leather and black pepper. Nice Oak.