Dark ruby color...promising and open nose of red and black fruits and spice, highly-extracted, black-raspberry and cherry flavors, full body and light tannin in the structured finish. The wine is young, exuberant, fresh, and pure. Drink it over the next decade.

The 1993 Zinfandel Ciapusci Vineyard exhibits a nearly opaque dark ruby color, and a moderately intense nose of berry fruit and earth. Closed, with moderate tannins, this is a structured, tightly knit wine that will benefit from 1-2 years of cellaring. Drink it between 1997-2007.

A tasty, elegant, fragrant, supple-textured wine with sweet berry fruit, a dollop of spicy new oak and a round, generous finish.

Good sweet berry fruit, ripeness, depth, and a longer finish. Immediately accessible.

Good sweet berry fruit, immediately accessible.

Soft, a little sweet, showing modest apple and citrus flavors.

Kendall-Jackson is rightly proud of its 1993 Sauvignon Blanc Vintner's Reserve. It's right up there with the 1992, which was a gold medalist at the New World International Wine Competition and at the California State Fair, where the wine was chosen the best of region. The winery treated the grapes with the same meticulous care given the best Chardonnay's, and the strategy has certainly paid off. An excellent wine.

Aromatic, spicy, citrus-peel, with forward floral notes; medium floral-lichee flavors; excellent balance; full finish. Good with sesame chicken or chicken salad.

Lemon drops, butterscotch, earth, spice. Zippy acids keep fruit lively. Slightly creamy thanks to an abundance of integrated oak. Richly textured and well made.

Berryish and toasty tones are evident with strong green olive, herbal undercurrents. Fairly smooth and seamless at entry, the wine offers near-mellow, ripe fruitiness. A well-made wine.

Flavors are just as light and engaging as its nose. Medium-bodied and almost juicy in the mouth, this is a zippy, quaffable offering.

With pear-like aromas, this citrus-oriented effort shows some appeal as a refreshing, very faintly spicy quaff. Noticeable sugars are balanced by spry acidity throughout.

Medium to full-bodied. Silky, round. Moderate acidity. Medium to high sweetness. Apricot, orange rind and honeysuckle flavors. Great structure, long finish.

Try this one with ripe mango or papaya as dessert.

Here's a meritage which works superbly. Deep purple color leads to wonderfully expressed aromas of violets and black currants, add to flavors of the same sort. The cabernet/merlot fruit is ripe but elegantly put forth, and oak is present in its proper supporting role. One would have to consider this wine, in style and in quality, in the same league as contemporary vintages of Cheteau Margaux. Its fruit is so compelling that enjoyment over the next two to three years would be best.

What brought California merlot to such present prominence is just the sort of ripe, rich and delicious fruit found here. Plums are the principal impression, with some cassis as well, and the overlay of oak is just as subtle as it should be.

Smoky notes of oak are immediately evident here with delicious fruit to balance.

A structured, deliciously fruity, nicely extracted, expansive, supple, textbook Zinfandel with plenty of smoky, briary, black-cherry fruit. Although forward, the wine possesses enough depth and balance to last for 5-6 years.

Medium-bodied, tart racy acidity. Moderately sweet. Apple, melon and pear flavors. Fruit is dominant.

A textbook example of the type.

Elegant and ripe pear, nutmeg, spice and light toasty oak shadings.

Hits the right notes; clean, correct pear, light oak and spice flavors finish with a crisp edge.

Generous fruit, intense black cherry flavor, a hearty richness and considerable character.

Irresistible aromas of sweet cherries and strawberry jam will get your attention. Rich and smooth and lush, this wine maintains its focus with just enough acidity, tannin and wood to make it ideal for current consumption.

The most elegant of all, with complex currant and mineral flavors, treated to a lavish dose of pretty oak. An outstanding wine.