Bright golden cast. Full-bodied. Balanced acidity. Moderately extracted. Heavily oaked. Smoke, yeast, cream. Quite heavily oaked, with a big, smoky flavor profile. Luxuriant and rich, with easty complexity and enough acidity to maintain a sense of balance through the finish.

Complex, intense and well integrated, with ripe, rich fruit, lots of currant, anise, earth, mineral and spice, picking up leather and meat notes on the finish. Has the tannic strength to age…

To put it in technical winemaking terms, this Mendocino County product is one big mutha - big fruit, big oak, powerful sweet spices in the nose and mouth and a very long, lingering finish.

…round and fruity, and it goes down easy.

This dry white wine offers rich flavors of figs, melons, peach, pear, wood smoke and herbs. With its rounded, oak-mellowed texture, this is a sauvignon blanc that is well-suited for serving with salmon or swordfish.

We like it and always do. It's got good tropical fruit, gobs of fruit and that slightly sweet taste.

Counting ripeness, rich oak and solid structure…

The wine reveals attractive fruit and softness on the attack…

…is a smoky, soft, simple yet pleasant offering with the grape's lively, briery character displayed in a straightforward manner.

…black raspberry/blackberry character, fuller body, and a less evolved personality. Intense, with beautifully ripe fruit, outstanding purity and equilibrium…

A superlative effort from K-J in what is shaping up to be a rather tough vintage for premium California Chardonnay. Sporting a floral and honeyed nose, this wine speaks volumes about the power of fruit over oak, and about multiple sources of quality fruit. While there are some sweet vanilla and wood nuances courtesy of nine months of aging in small barrels, the high point of the wine is its vibrant pear and apple flavors. Layered and rich, this wine is extremely clean. It also has the perfect level of acidity to handle foods with aromatic spices. I enjoyed it with lightly cured prawns and couscous with apples and raisins. It was just right for that aromatic and flavorful dish. While there may "only" be a California appellation on this wine, which in many cases denotes that the grapes were harvested from inferior vineyards, in this case it simply means that K-J has sourced excellent fruit from its top vineyards throughout the state.

…displays a thick-textured, dark purple color, and moderately intense cranberry/cherry liqueur- like aromatics nicely dosed with spicy new oak. Pepper and subtle herbs are also noticeable.

"Bright medium-gold in color, the '96 Grand reserve holds to its style of ripe fruit character and toasty oak structure. The grapes used are sourced from Santa Barbara, Monterey, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, giving it a melange of tropical, stone and citrus fruit flavors and aromas. Fermentation in French oak barrels adds notes of nutmeg, butter and toast, rounding out a very stylish wine. It's medium-bodied rather than dense or powerfully concentrated, and it will pair will with big foods such as lobster tempura, as there is enough acidity to cut the richness.

This Zinfandel-dominated wine (there is 17% petite sirah and 5% Pinot Noir in the blend) reveals a dark ruby color, followed by a fragrant, smoky, oaky, raspberry and cherry-scented nose. Supple and medium to full-bodied, with easy-going fruit, this is a friendly open-knit, expansive wine to consume over the next 1-2 years.

A Burgundian-like, straightforward, cherry and earthy spiciness in both the aromatics and flavors gives this wine a soft, easy-going, charming appeal. Neither deep nor complicated, it is elegant, pleasant, and ready to drink.

Massages the intense tannins with supple currant and plum-laced flavors, shows off cedar, spice and mineral, too. Holds its focus through the long and complex finish. (Also appeared 11/98)

A full-textured, somewhat oily wine, with hints of gooseberry, herb, lemon and grapefruit. Toasty butterscotch notes

…from California is supple and seductive, with ripe cherry-berry fruit in sweet vanilla, white chocolate and spicy nuances.

Ripe and more than a little oaky in style, this full-bodied effort shows attractive dried straw and toasted oak tones in its light, melon-backed aromas. Round and fairly glyceriney in palatefeel, this wine is a bit milder in flavor than its heft might suggest and turns fairly brisk and even a bit stiff in its clean and medium-length flavors.

.tropical fruit flavors and a slightly sweet impression on the palate but with just enough acidity to bolster the layered fruit.

…revealing an attractive tropical fruit and citrusy-scented nose, good ripeness, medium body, and off-dry flavors that are nicely balanced by the wine's acidity.

…grassy, herbaceous, citrus qualities generally associated with Sauvignon Blancs, though its acid was balanced by a touch of sweetness in the finish. It's a full bodied wine with a pronounced creamy texture, making it a good match with shellfish in assertive sauces, toasted nuts or grilled vegetables.

Deep-set floral aroma, earthy, slightly herbal accents; light apple/mineral flavors; medium balance and finish.

It is magnificent, lush and dense with firm structure and lots of ripe plummy fruit. It provides a seamless marriage of fruit, oak and soft spices. It is drinking brilliantly now, displaying a seductive generosity, a rich robe and a seemingly endless finish. I would expect this lovely wine to only get better over time.

Dark, tannic and rich with lots of smoke, spice and tangy plum fruit; rich and long.