A bit tart with raspberry and strawberry fruit flavors.

Hints of Kijafa give the aromas an almost too sweet character when combined with the vanillin scents of the oak. In the flavors, the ripe black cherry flavors and ample presence of sweet oak again give the wine a forward, accessible character that has some appeal. Dark chocolate notes surface in the lengthy finish.

Ripe, deep, almost perfumed aromas carry smoky, toasty notes from oak and these same ripe, rich qualities continue to show in the flavors of this wine. Big, tough and almost chunky in the mouth…

Offering quiet fruit as a foil to notes of oak, dust and dry chocolate…

This, the most plentiful of Kendall-Jackson's "reserve" Cabernets, is a rounded, slightly herbal, relatively uncomplicated, mid-sized wine that is fit with attractive fruit and trim of sweetening oak. It is lightly tannic yet and could do with a few years of age…

Very strong aromas of plum, blackberry, oak, vanilla, smoke and spice. A fairly austere wine notable for power and finesse rather than fruit. The tannins are soft and it's very dry.

"Tropical fruit, floral nose' soft, fleshy flavors, ripe melons, hint of grass; medium acidity; medium fruit finish. Good with fried fish and chips, corn chowder.

Earthy, with stemmy cola, herb and cherry flavors…

Firm, with a narrow range of strawberry and tea flavors...

Ripe, rich and concentrated, with a firm core of earthy cherry, cola, spice, anise and tea notes, holding a tight focus, turning supple on the finish.

Supple, elegant an dwell defined, with pretty black cherry, plum and wild berry character that's complex…

Tight and crisp, with firm, detailed tannins, the core of cherry, strawberry and tealike notes will benefit from short-term cellaring as this is a well-balanced, concentrated young wine.

Supple, with polished cherry, currant, anise, tar and toasty oak, folding together nicely on the finish.

Delicate and balanced, with spicy, tea, cola and cherry flavors that linger on the soft finish.

Tight, with spicy strawberry, cherry, cola and tea flavors, finishing with light grainy tannins.

Supple, showing tea, cherry and wild berry flavors with toasty oak nuances that linger on the lightly tannic finish.

Tangy, with raspberry flavors and some oak. Good tannic structure.

Big, ripe, and tannic, with dark berry, black pepper and oak flavors. Tasty.

Sweepstakes winner at the New World International Wine Competition, a delightfully seamless example of the varietal, with a lift that just begs for it to be poured with tri-tip or some other cut of beef off the grill this Labor Day weekend. The wine is lush with suggestions of blackberries and raspberries, a touch of peppery spiciness and the caress of vanilla form the French oak in which it was aged.

From an underrated North Coast winery making some of the best Zins in the state. You'll go wild over the bold complexity of this beauty. Packs twice the power of most Zins and gets away with it. This is a wine to show a visitor form foreign shores what California Zin is all about.

..shows pretty melon, fig and grapefruit notes. Very extracted and rather on the sweet side, but crisp and stylish. Widely available and affordable.

Dark, rich, intense and tannic, with roasted coffee, currant and toasty oak flavors. Hard and unyielding now, but has a solid core of fruit and oak.

Weaves together rich, complex cherry, currant, plum and spicy flavors, with pretty, toasty oak and elegant tannins. Beautifully crafted.

Bright and intense with lovely acidity and snappy, aromatic flavors and along and complex finish.