This deep red Pinot seems to waiver on the fulcrum of wood and black cherry fruit, with a very distinct tomato leaf aroma. High extract yields plenty of tannin for structure, and the weight of the wine seems to balance the herbal qualities it possesses. Well blended, from numerous coastal sources.

The palate is filled with gobs of briar fruit and bing cherries. Herbal notes on the nose reemerge on the mid-palate adding hints of tarragon and black pepper. The wine finishes with incredible warmth and chunky tannins. The lush, round mouthfeel offers enjoyment now, however, the tannins and great concentration suggest moderate aging potential.

Plummy fruit attracts, and a delicious balance of oak, fruit, and soft tannins finish the wine with style.

Baked apples, toasty oak, vanillin, bright acidity; lingering rich flavors; good price.

Lemon blossoms and cloves define the nose, which leads to deep, lively flavors of citrus and spice. Lots of body and absolutely delicious.

Fragrant scents of vanilla custard, light toast and caramel lead to deep, luscious flavors of citrus, butterscotch and vanilla. Mouthfilling and delicious; a big wine worth the price.

Firm and tight, with crisp tannins and plenty of toasty, buttery oak, but the currant and plum flavors are chunky, bright and lively. This is a solid 1989 that needs cellaring; it should be softer and more complex in 1996.

Soft and lush with herbs, earth and berry fruit; balanced and long.

Multiple layers of raspberry, black cherry, cocoa, spice flavors; fine balance; big but soft. Very drinkable now, should develop interesting bottle; age flavors for 5-8 years more.

Made of grapes from cool-climate vineyards in Carneros and Russian River Valley, it gets eight months of aging in French oak and is bottled unfiltered. It has the aroma of orange peel and is packed with dry, rich butter and raspberry flavors that mellow and become plummy as it warms.

Legacy is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc. The 1990 Legacy on wine-shop shelves has the color of black cherries, aromas of cedar, warm cinnamon, bursting with plum and raspberry flavors with rich, sweet tannins. It is softer than the merlot, more complex, with an aftertaste that goes on forever. It's a lot of work. But it's working.

It is 89 percent cabernet sauvignon, 11 percent merlot from those 20-year-old vines, fermented more than a month and aged 20 months in French oak barrels, 41 percent of which are new. The wine has brilliant blackberry color, a delicate, perfumy aroma of cedar and plums, flavor that is bursting with fruit, packed with sweet tannins and nicely balanced with crisp acid.

Soft and luscious, rich and loaded with fruit.

Recommended. Attractive, floral, bright cherry fruit aroma; fairly rich, supple, smooth, slightly toasty, ripe black cherry fruit flavors. Enjoyable to drink now.

Good texture and mouthfeel; intense flavors leading into a warm, spicy finish with the oak peeping through.

A complex nose of cedar, dark fruit and tobacco. Profuse flavors of chocolate, black cherry, and tobacco fill out this round and supple glass. Viscous and full-bodied, with a pleasantly spicy and minty ending. Drink with rich dishes through the millennium.

A knock-out bouquet of tropical fruits (oranges and pineapples) and spicy new oak. This is a full-bodied, decadent style of Chardonnay for drinking over the next year.

A delicious, fruity, opulently-textured Chardonnay that provides immense pleasure and satisfaction for a fair price.

A sweet nose of candied cherries. Additional cola and tree bark flavors decorate the edges. A Pinot to buy for in your face fruit intensity and a full finish.

Big and ripe with lush fruit and oily, dense texture.

It has the aroma of orange peel and is packed with dry, rich butter and raspberry flavors that mellow and become plummy as it warms.

If you're wondering why wine writers increasingly are excited about the reliability and intensity of Pinot Noir produced in California, pull the cork from a bottle of 1992 Julia's Vineyard Pinot Noir. It's what the varietal is all about when it can be coaxed into flaunting its finest stuff--plum berries and cherries in smell and flavor, a rich satiny texture, a structure wiry yet resilient, a critic tanginess in the finish.

A heftier, spicier and more complex version of the varietal.

Forward pear-apple nose, the fruit character is surrounded by vanilla and brown spice oakiness. Very crisp palate, and a lean finish.

A provocative bouquet of bacon fat, toasty new oak, smoke and black fruits.