So Your In-Law's a Wine Geek. Here's a Holiday Gift List Vérité Winery La Muse, La Joie and Le Désir 2016 from Sonoma. These wines cost $420 each and we would never have tasted them if the winery had not sent them to us to review. That’s a lot of money. But if your in-laws love wine, they might really enjoy a bottle of this and we’ll explain why. The first, La Muse, is primarily Merlot, the second Cabernet Sauvignon, and the third Cabernet Franc. We didn’t immediately warm to any of them. But a funny thing happened. We talked about all three from beginning to end. We never lost interest in them. And not only that, but we disagreed about all three! John preferred the Le Désir and Dottie preferred the La Muse and we agreed that the La Joie was our least favorite, but we disagreed on the reasons. Our notes on these French-inspired wines take an entire typewritten page as we debated the merits of these young wines and weighed each sip as they changed. If your in-laws enjoy talking about and, yes, sometimes even arguing (politely) about wine, this is for them.

Start Thanksgiving planning with wine choice Where most old-vine zins can be quite hearty, robust and higher in alcohol, Edmeades has a history of blending interesting old-vine fruit with some younger, more exuberant juice to create a more civil, well-textured rendition that still has plenty of mojo at its core. It’s a great value and relatively easy to find. This is the wine to savor with smoked turkey and all its fixings.

Host's Guide 2019 For a truly decadent holiday dinner—preferably involving a standing rib roast or beef Wellington—Lokoya’s 2015 Spring Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon is the wine you should be pouring. I’m partial to Spring Mountain wines; it’s a rugged and beautiful place, and the wines are fragrant and chewy. The notes of bay laurel and pine in this one remind me of the holidays, and its dense, fine-grained tannins are a perfect match for a high-quality, well-marbled cut of beef that is as flavorful as the wine.

Gold Medal

Lynn Penner-Ash, an early consultant for Alexana and the 2019 recipient of the ¡Salud! Legacy Winemaker Award, earned a double gold medal and best of class for the Penner-Ash Wine Cellars 2018 Viognier, a bottling driven by Southern Oregon fruit.

Gift Guide: The Best White, Red, Sparkling, and Dessert Wines to Give This Year Possibly the most bang for your buck on this list, La Crema Russian River Valley Brut Rosé is a lovely bottle of bubbles that will leave a lasting impression—likely the impression that the bottle is more expensive than the brut therein. A newer offering from the California winemaker, the Russian River Valley brut rosé benefits from the fog’s gentle embrace with a soft yet crisp finish. Crafted in the méthode traditionnelle, the brut rosé is a blend of 73% Pinot Noir and 27% Chardonnay grapes. It’s also ideal for holiday entertaining—specifically, holiday eating. Recommended pairings include starters such as baked brie and crostini to mainstays like turkey and fish.

La Crema Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir – Cherry, Cola and Coffee The 2016 La Crema Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir begins with very pleasant aromas of red and black cherry, cola, roasted coffee, vanilla and a hint of rhubarb. The wine tastes wonderfully smooth, balanced and is full of flavors of black cherry cola, strawberry, a little earth and oak. This is a super easy and fun to drink wine. A nice streak of spice, licorice and even a little citrus zest lead into the dry, very long finish. Excellent!

Best Buys in the Market Not only has Syrah carved out an increasingly important niche in California’s portfolio of fine wines, there are more than a few very good bottlings that are as affordable as they are delicious. Leading the way on this month’s roster of Best Buys, the ** 93-point BOOTLEG Prequel Sonoma County 2015 is a bold, mouthfilling wine rife with Syrah’s dark fruit and spice...

Here’s how to spend, wisely, on a splendid wine for your holiday dinner Chateau Lassegue 2011 Saint Emilion Grand Cru probably found its way to me because this property is now owned by California’s Jackson Family Wines, of Kendall-Jackson fame. It is cabernet franc and merlot done up in the smooth, red berry fashion of Right Bank Bordeaux.

There’s more to Graham Weerts than just Chardonnay! While Capensis focuses solely on Chardonnay, Graham produces single-varietal reds and Bordeaux blends for other brands within the Jackson Family portfolio, including this stunning Legacy Red Blend from Alexander Valley. The 2013 vintage is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot. A Dense purple color, with concentrated black fruit aromas on the nose. This full-bodied wine is layered and rich. Flavors of black cherry, earth, spice, pepper and cedar. This wine is aging beautifully and will only improve over the coming years. An impressive wine.

My personal favorite of the two Capensis Chardonnay vintages I tasted for this piece. This wine is jam-packed with luscious aromas of tropical fruit, lemon, grilled apple, cedar, brioche, vanilla, butter and some minerality. Great mouthfeel. The acid is high which perfectly matches the richness of this wine. A real pleasure to drink and an eye-opening experience of what the Western Cape can deliver. A South African Gem! Delicious now but can be tucked away for a few more years.

2013 was the first vintage of Capensis Chardonnay and it’s a stunner right out the gate. The fruit was sourced from some of the finest and most unique plots in the Western Cape by renowned viticulturist, Rosa Kruger. Noticeable oak (but not overdone) mingles with concentrated aromas of stone fruit, spice and a hint of minerality. The mouthfeel is creamy and round with beautifully balanced acidity. This wine is drinking well now but can be tucked away for at least a few more years.

Top 100 Wines 2019 From Jackson Family Wines, this Jess Jackson-inspired blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot was grown on the company’s Jimtown and Alexander Mountain vineyards, at elevations of up to 2,400 feet. Although it’s not labeled as Cabernet Sauvignon, it could be, with that variety comprising 87% of the blend. Layered and so seamless that no one characteristic sticks out from the others, its solid tannin and acid structure suggest cellar longevity.

Top 100 Wines 2019 Here is a Chardonnay that has both power and purity. It’s full-bodied and rich, with peach, Meyer lemon, guava, and fresh-baked bread character, and a thread of minerality running from the aroma through the finish.

La Crema: NV Brut Rose, California. A blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that offers flavors of strawberry and cherry along with crisp acidity and a fresh well balanced texture on the lasting finish.

By the Bottle: Oregon pinots for Thanksgiving Dramatic on the palate with notable quality across the board, including strength, thick body, wonderful fruit, finely honed balance, engaging complexity, smooth integration, clean refinement, forward personality and extended length.

By the Bottle: Oregon pinots for Thanksgiving Tops in its price range, La Crema delights the eye, nose and palate. I loved its strength on the attack, full body, beautifully balanced fruit and pleasing tannins, along with complexity, integration, refinement and length.

Top three Pinot Noir: – La Crema Pinot Noir Monterey 2016 (California)

5 Grappoli

Three Glasses - The Big Names

Wine and Thanksgiving Putting the vin in Thanksgiving. For a meal or palates that call for more robust red wines, there is no shortage of candidates. ...Yangarra ‘High Sands’ Grenache (McLaren Vale, Australia) is rich and delicious…

This silky Anderson Valley pinot is light and aromatic with hints of orange peels and cherries on the palate. Pair this with a rosemary stuffed roast chicken or hold onto it for the Thanksgiving Turkey.

Best Buys in the Market, 1 star ...and the * KENDALL-JACKSON Grand Reserve Santa Barbara County 2017 ($22.00) among those that are especially attractive at the price.

Idaho native Shane Moore, a product of Washington State University’s winemaking school, took over the high-end Gran Moraine and Zena Crown programs in 2013 for Jackson Family Wines. The deft touch with Pinot Noir (56%) and Chardonnay that he honed while working for the Sonoma Coast giant comes to bear here. The lots spent two years en tirage before disgorgement in spring 2018, and the results rank alongside the most elegant and inviting brut rosés in the Pacific Northwest. Complex aromas of strawberry, raspberry and hibiscus are ushered out by bright and tight bubbles. Underneath those red fruit tones is a squirt of lime and fleck of minerality, making for terrific balance and remarkably long finish. Outstanding.

There’s a great sense of balance in this wine, with elements ranging from mint to blackberry to gingerbread — though the more iconic violets aren’t really showing here. A very light pepper element and a touch of balsamic notes both endure on the finish, giving this merlot a weight that will likely appeal to cabernet fans. Either way, I think it’s a delight. A-