Vérité Le Désir is one of three Bordeaux-style blends crafted by Vérité in 2018, a hallmark vintage for many California wines. Structured around cabernet franc—with the restrained addition of merlot and malbec—Le Désir shines for showcasing the characteristic flavors and aromas of its primary grape: ripe raspberry, cranberry, and red currant represent the fruitiness of cabernet franc, while savory notes of sage, mint, and cinnamon provide complexity. A bold finish and bright acidity render it a playful wine to drink in its youth; however, those characteristics also suggest that the wine has excellent cellaring potential.

Matanzas Creek Merlot Alexander Valley 2018 has the soft mellowness you anticipate from quality merlot. Very good acidity, a real asset for food pairing. Inky color. Good on pop-and-pour; it becomes more mellow and approachable after extended exposure to air in the glass. Pair with lamb; grilled meats; roast beef; filet mignon; gourmet burgers; grilled or roast chicken; roast pork and pork loin; mushrooms; Swiss cheese, gruyere, parmesan, havarti, gouda, brie, camembert cheese.

Opened to murmurs of pleasure around the table this Pinot Noir has it all. Silky smooth notes of dried rose hips, balanced fruit and cedar spice. Created using a blend of Burgundian and Californian techniques this comes from Jackson FamilyWines, a founder of IWCA.

As usual, the Mt. Brave Merlot 2018 displays all the hallmarks of vines grown at 1,400 to 1,800-foot elevation — a dense, dark ruby-purple hue; notes of cedar, tobacco, sage and chaparral; threads of intense and concentrated blueberries, black currants and plums, permeated by graphite and flint-like minerality; a few moments in the glass tease out hints of violets and lavender, bitter chocolate and loam; the structure is monumental, mountain-like, and tannins embody the old Napa Valley adage about the iron fist in a velvet glove; the finish deep, granitic, supple. Try from 2023 through 2032 to ’35. Exceptional.

South African Chardonnay Will Blow You AwayIn 2014, Jackson Family Wines entered into a partnership with Antony Beck of Beck Family Estates. Today, they jointly manage the Fijnbosch farm in Stellenbosch, with the goal of making Chardonnay wines that can rival the top Grand Crus of Burgundy. Released at $80, their inaugural 2013 vintage of Capensis thrilled the critics with its crystalline fruit, subtle oak, and delicate textural richness. It is a brilliant wine, although Capensis is something of an outlier; the vast majority of Cape Chardonnay is never that expensive.

The Wine You Should Always Drink When Watching This Classic Fall MovieSoul FoodSoul Food may not be a film about the holidays but its plot is rooted in the tradition of gathering around the dining table with family — and what's more seasonally appropriate than that? This 1997 comedy-drama is best viewed with a hearty meal and soulful wine close by, like a Chianti. The grape that’s used to make Chianti is called Sangiovese and it produces dry wines with red-fruit and dried-herb notes. In other words, Chianti is oh so delicious with a plate full of food.Pair It With: Chianti

For those times when only a fantastic balance between sturdy structure and plummy hedonism will do.

A silvery minerality dominates, with fresh apple and citrus flavors moderated by light, toasty notes.

Distinctively delicious with intense flavors of grape skins, tart orange, and white-pepper spiciness in the finish.

The Best Low-Calorie Wines, from Cabernet to Rosé1. Kendall-Jackson Lower Calorie ChardonnayBEST OVERALLKendall-Jackson is a California winery that makes affordable wines and regularly racks up awards, including a winery of the year award in 2017. They also have a line of low-calorie wines, such as the Avant Chardonnay. It has just 85 calories and 3 grams of carbs per serving.

The Truman and Brooks names are from small Clarendon vineyard border roads and Hickinbotham 2019 Trueman Cabernet Sauvignon has 14.5% alcohol, is deep garnet and shows berry pastille aromas and vibrant blackberry front-palate flavour. The middle features Maraschino cherry, spearmint, briar and vanillin oak and a finish of chalky tannins.

This expressive, 14.5% alcohol, Hickinbotham 2019 The Revivalist Merlot shines brick red and has scents of violets. The front palate shows fleshy mulberry flavour, middle palate bramble jelly, mint, herb and mocha oak elements and a finish of earthy tannins.

With deep purple hues, 14.5% alcohol and scents of raspberry and cinnamon, the Hickinbotham 2019 Brooks Road Shiraz has intense, ripe plum front-palate flavour. The middle palate displays cassis, spice, truffle, dark chocolate and savoury oak and minty tannins play at the finish.

No additions of any kind here, not even sulphites. It's deeply coloured with a wonderfully vibrant, sweet raspberry and blackberry nose, with some spice. The palate shows dense fruits, with a touch of blackcurrant jam.

Dark fruit notes with hints of black licorice,olives and leather. Grapes from high elevation to render a medium body but serious merlot.

Also made by Chris Carpenter but using grapes from Mt. Veeder, this merlot is lusher with forward, concentrated black cherry and cassis flavors with hints of cedar. Very delicious.

Winemaker Chris Carpenter takes advantage of the Howell Mountain fruit to craft a bold merlot that is blended with a bit of petit verdot and tannat. Although it shows promise for a long and illustrious future, the wine has approachable plum and blackberry fruit character. Nice dried herb aromas and long finish.

Since its beginning in 1977, this Sonoma County winery has been crafting award-winning wines. Some of the earlier vintages were crafted by the great Merry Edwards and the legacy continues on today. The winery is located in Sonoma's Bennett Valley and is known for their Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot. The 2019 is showing awesome now and will be a real crowd pleaser. Aromatics of passion fruit, white peaches and jasmine notes fill the glass. Succulent flavors of honeydew melon, ripe pears and hints of spice coat the palate. The wine has mouthwatering acidity and excellent balance.

Matanzas Creek, founded in 1977 in Sonoma County’s at-the-time remote Bennett Valley, built its reputation on merlot and sauvignon blanc. Presently, the winery releases five separate bottlings of each of those grape varieties, as well as a bit of chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and pinot noir. Since October is Merlot Month (#MerlotMe), I’ll focus today on the Matanzas Creek Merlot 2018, Alexander Valley. The wine aged 533 days (!) in French oak, 32 percent new barrels. I’ve never seen a producer list length of aging in days, a device that seems counterintuitive. Anyway, the color is opaque ruby-purple with a transparent magenta rim; florid aromas of ripe black currants and raspberries are permeated by notes of iodine, mint and graphite, lavender and bittersweet chocolate; a few moments in the glass bring out touches of woody spices like cloves and allspice; the wine is quite dry, animated by keen acidity for a lively mouth-feel, and juicy with black fruit flavors, abetted by hints of blueberry and pomegranate; dusty, velvety tannins provide support and lend some austerity to the finish. 13.8 percent alcohol. Now through 2024 to ’26. Winemaker was Marcia Torres Forno. The winery, part of Jackson Family Wines, is certified sustainable. Excellent.

Medium to dark garnet in the glass, this wine smells of forest floor, thyme and rosemary, licorice and black fruits. In the mouth, gorgeous, powdery tannins wrap around a core of black cherry, blackberry, dried and fresh green herbs. Wonderful bright acidity and freshness still. Outstanding. 14.2% alcohol. Tasted out of magnum.

The Tenuta Di Arceno Strada al Sasso Chianti Classico Gran Selezione 2017 is the result of a new chianti classico designation implemented in 2014. This classification is a level above riserva and requires slightly higher minimum alcohol levels and six months more aging than riserva. Tenuta Di Arceno is sourced from one vineyard on their estate and is 100% sangiovese. The result is a complex chianti classico featuring fresh and dried cherries and plums with hints of earth and leather.

The Tenuta Di Arceno Chianti Classico Riserva 2017, however, displays a deeper, richer quality with softer and riper plum and cherry fruit notes. It is 90% sangiovese and 10% cabernet sauvignon. Very elegant.

The Tenuta Di Arceno Chianti Classico 2018 is crafted from 85% sangiovese and 15 percent merlot grapes and presents youthful fresh fruit notes of fresh cherries. The merlot softens the sangiovese acidity to make a very agreeable package.

You Had Me at MerlotFor good measure, we included a Bordeaux wine with some age on it, the 2012 Chateau Lassègue Saint Émilion Grand Cru, an opulent wine with brooding aromas of violets on the nose and classic blackberries and herbal notes.

If I get my hands on another bottle of the 2017 Chateau Lassègue Saint-Émilion Grand Cru, I’m going to set it aside for a while. First, it’s plenty special for a special occasion. Second, I would love to see what it becomes. This is not to say the wine isn’t beautiful now, and indeed ready to drink; for a wine this young, it is exceptionally balanced and complete.But two hours after I opened it, those waves of lush fruit that had been prominent at the outset folded more thoroughly into the mouth filling, lush tannins. Minerals emerged on the long finish, decorated with warm florals. Yes, if I can get my hands on another one, I hope I can get my hands on two: I’ll share one with good friends now, and the other some time in the future.