Oh what a beauty! I'm drawn to this release more than the 2017 and that release was gorgeous in its own right. Stunning McLaren Vale Shiraz. A wine to embrace and keep close.Made with 25% whole bunches, it was wild yeast fermented with no pressings used before spending 15 months in Foudre. Certified organic and biodynamic.A little char initially, it's deliciously medium bodied. There's some punch here but it's with padded gloves. I'm captivated by the herby and savoury feels. That wonderful texture brings a calmness to it. I'm loving the width and that persistent length too. They just call you back time and time again. Blue fruits, dark berries and baking like spices all mesh together with ease. Silty tannins slide through but there's no escaping the soft, silky mouthfeel. Fabulous drinking. No one loses here.

Pure bliss. There's not much more to say really. Only last week I reviewed a Grenache and I suggested the variety was currently a purple patch. And then this beauty waltzes through the door. Brilliant and then some.Planted in 1946, the certified biodynamic and organic vines sit adjacent to the famed High Sands block. De-stemmed, crushed and tipped into 675L ceramic eggs, after fermentation it remained on skins for 158 days. No oak seen here. No pressing either - just the purity of Grenache singing from the rooftops.Pristine red berry fruit, fine spices and cut herbs, but that colour! The almost translucent cerise hue is hypnotic. There's an acid crunch but then I shift focus to the soft berry fruit lingering some more. Another wave of spice strolls to the kerb asking for a ride. And it rides long. Then comes the earthiness and herbal touch once more. Stunning. Grenache to embrace.

Sunset sips drenched in rose gold beauty. A fabulous Rosé. Winemaker Peter Fraser has nailed it again.Made from eleven year old bush vine Grenache, hand picked, wild yeast fermented, it sees a little time in old French oak. Gorgeous florals lead to pomegranate, dried cranberries and a finely textured mouthfeel. A red apple crunch adds to a delicious acidty. That texture and length just purr. Wow. Fabulous buying for the asking price.

I hope this wine is an homage to the legendary Holden vehicle rather than parklands named for aristocracy. Biodynamic farmed vines, some whole bunch in the natural ferment, fine winemaking.Slippery, sleek and succulent shiraz of bouncy boysenberry fruit character, an undercurrent of sweet spice, some floral notes, very fine tannins and brisk acidity to cool it all down and finish it fresh. Very even, very medium weight, very flavoursome, indeed, quite remarkable intensity with all that freshness on hand. The fruit shines here – it’s the hero and it’s obvious. It makes you think about how grapes can achieve such multi-dimensional flavour, and that, there, is the art and delight of great wine for me.

Seeing 20/20 – Sonoma & Anderson Valley New ReleasesA rich, unctuous wine, the 2017 Pinot Noir Arrendell Vineyard is going to need a few years to shed some baby fat. Exotic floral, spice and citrus aromatics meld into a core of plush fruit in a deep, textured Pinot that will have so much to offer one it comes together a bit more fully in bottle. The 2017 has the density and richness to develop beautifully in bottle for many years to come.

Seeing 20/20 – Sonoma & Anderson Valley New ReleasesThe 2018 Zinfandel Fanucchi-Wood Road Zinfandel is one of the standouts in this range from Hartford. A burst of floral notes and beams of tannin give the Fanucchi a real feeling of tension and drive. Dollops Petite Sirah in this field blend add character. There is something - many things, actually, about the Fanucchi-Wood Road Zinfandel that are so appealing.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s Reminding me of a Côte de Nuit with its darker berry fruits, earth, blood orange, and spice-driven aromas and flavors, the 2017 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard is medium-bodied, has a beautiful, elegant texture, ultra-fine tannins, and a great finish. Completely destemmed and brought up in 40% new French oak, this seamless, polished, beautifully balanced Pinot Noir will keep for over a decade.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s The 2017 Pinot Noir Rita's Crown Vineyard saw the same one-third stems as well as 16 months in 57% new French oak. It's a more ethereal, elegant effort and has gorgeous notes of ripe strawberries, white flowers, spice, and forest floor. Pure, medium-bodied, and layered on the palate, it shines for its seamless, elegant texture as well as its length. It's unquestionably one of my favorites in the lineup.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s All clone 4 from a site just beside Bien Nacido, the 2018 Chardonnay Katherine’s has an Alsatian slant in its green citrus, tangerine, white flower, and honeysuckle aromas and flavors. With beautiful purity, plenty of minerality, medium to full body, and a crisp, layered style, this gorgeous Chardonnay does everything right. Enjoy it any time over the coming 7-8 years.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s The 2012s have drunk well for a handful of years now, and the 2012 Pinot Noir Machado is no exception. Perfumed notes of caramelized cherries, dried flowers, coffee, and smoked earth notes flow to a medium to full-bodied, silky, beautifully balanced Pinot Noir that’s firing on all cylinders today.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s The 2012 Chardonnay 3D is about as classic as they come, offering perfumed notes of white flowers, apple blossom, citrus, and brioche, medium to full body, a beautiful sense of purity and elegance, and a great finish. Drink bottles any time over the coming decade.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s Starting off the retrospective of the Chardonnay 3D release and from a great vintage for the Sta. Rita Hills in general, the 2016 Chardonnay 3D offers loads of orchard fruits, brioche, and a touch of honeycomb as well as medium to full-bodied richness, a layered, ripe yet balanced style, and a great finish.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s One of the great values out there, the 2017 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills offers thrilling notes of white flowers, white peach, currants, and toasted bread. This ripe, sexy wine is unquestionably at the same level as the more expensive single vineyard releases, and it will evolve for just as long.

Central Coast: The 2017s and 2018s From a site on the northern side of the appellation, just behind Clos Pepe, the 2017 Chardonnay Machado is a medium to full-bodied, rich, seamless effort that has lots of minerality as well as notes of caramelized peach, apple tart, brioche, and honeysuckle. It’s a powerful, age-worthy beauty.

This dark yellow colored Chardonnay from Stonestreet is Excellent! It opens with a musty oak and light lemon tart bouquet. On the palate, this wine is full bodied, super smooth and balanced. The flavor profile is a very tasty oak and pineapple blend with notes of nutmeg and chamomile tea. I also detected hints of apple strudel. The finish is dry and its flavors drift away nicely. This Chard delightful on its own. Share a bottle with the Chard lover in your life.

USA, California, Napa Valley: 2017 — Napa's Perfect Storm Two percent of the Malbec in the blend this year comes from the 2018 vintage. Very deep garnet-purple colored, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Mt. Veeder bursts out of the glass with vivacious black currants, black cherries and wild blueberries notes with touches of dark chocolate, licorice, violets and cloves. Full-bodied, firm and very finely grained in terms of texture, the palate explodes with fruit and freshness, finishing very long and wonderfully fragrant. Impressive! 2,807 cases produced.

An elegant style, featuring lilting flavors of red currant and dried raspberry that show hints of cedar and paprika. Fine-edged, with savory richness midpalate. Dried green herbal notes emerge on the minerally finish. Drink now through 2026.

The nose is black fruit, geranium, currant and plump blueberry. So much going on. The palate is a deeply saturated black plum and blackberry with excellent length and precision through the finish. Drink 2020 – 2030.

The nose is a pure lemon and chalk with lively sweet pear. The palate entry is lively white berries, lemon, mineral and saline. Beautiful stuff! Drink 2019 – 2030.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Réserve Spéciale is a stunner! It was aged 32 months in 62% new oak and bottled unfined and unfiltered. It has a deep ruby color and is youthfully slow to open, unwinding to kirsch, crushed blackcurrants, blueberries, cedar, cigar box and iron layered with accents of grilled meats, rosewater perfume, dried herbs and classy new oak spice. Medium to full-bodied, it's silky in the mouth, slowly unfolding to mineral-laced fruits, with a chalky frame and great freshness, finishing very long. This should be very long lived. 643 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The deep ruby colored 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Knights Crown aged 32 months in 95% new oak and was bottled unfined and unfiltered. It opens to oodles of lilac, violet and exotic spice perfume with iron, cedar, cassis, cocoa powder, Morello cherries, black plum, aniseed, blueberries and grilled meats—so many layers! Medium to full-bodied, it unfolds slowly in the mouth, offering gobs of ripe, spiced fruits. It has great freshness and firm, chalky tannins, finishing very long. Gorgeous! This needs more time in bottle for sure. 224 cases were made.

The darker, more powerful side of Cabernet comes through in Freemark Abbey's 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Sycamore Vineyard. An exciting melange of plums, smoke, incense and black currants coats the palate in this super-ripe, racy wine. I find great density and sheer muscle on the finish in this dark, brooding Cabernet. The style is huge, flashy and exuberant, but it all works. This is a stunningly beautiful wine from Freemark Abbey. The 2009 is 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc.

Very rich, ripe and complex, showing a near-perfect display of flavors and textures. The riper blackberries and black cherries have a chewy, meaty edge, with notes of cola and bacon. Very fine tannins and acidity suggest midterm to longterm aging, but it's a splendid sipper now. Should develop through 2018, at least.

Drier and earthier than many Napa cabs these days, this wine has subtle sage and sweet licorice that grounds its fruitier flavors of blackberries, cherries and raspberries. Very beautiful are the tannins, which are rich and pure, suggesting perfect ripeness. The small Bosche bottling has been a premier one for the winery for many years, and this '05 in one of the best in memory. Should age effortlessly for at least a dozen years.

A real success story for this hot vintage. Feels gracious and generous in the mouth, offering complex, fat flavors of blackberries, cherries, raspberries, mocha and cedar that turn spicy on the finish. The tannins are elaborately ripe and fine. the well-known vineyard is on the Rutherford bench, and production was 2,300 cases. Drinkable now, and should age well for at least a decade.