Wine Spectator Top 100: 2011 #59! The bouquet consists of mature red berries, with hints of smoke, vanilla, and spice. Well-structured in the mouth, this Crianza is expressive and meaty and possesses a good balance of red fruit and toasted flavors. The tannins are mature and lead to an elegant, long finish. While this wine can be enjoyed now, it will also keep for 5-10 years. ...More

The 2008 Caiarossa Pergolaia (85% Sangiovese, 10% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Cabernet Sauvignon) there is no use of new oak. The wines can be aged in different kind of casks: barrels of second to fourth wine or bigger "botte". The aging time in wood is about 12 to 16 months, and then the wine is kept in concrete tanks until his bottling, about two years after the harvest. ...More

“The Barolo Castiglione deftly balances the open, radiant personality of the vintage with considerable underlying structure. Warm, dense and full-bodied, the Barolo Castiglione flows effortlessly across the palate with generous fruit and fabulous overall balance. The wine was even better when I tasted it from bottle a few months later. It is another overachieving wine from Vietti and a bottle that is exceedingly fairly priced”. -Antonio Galloni, The Wine Advocate ...More

The 2008 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a dark, rich full-bodied wine with great tannic structure and mouth-feel. It has a garnet color and a nose of ripe boysenberries, cherry liqueur, dark chocolate, sandalwood and a hint of roasting meat. On the palate, it is mouth-coating and incredibly rich in umami. It has a very long, savory finish with the slight grip of fine-grained tannins. Given proper cellaring, this wine should give drinking pleasure through 2030. ...More

The ruby hue and lively varietal aroma of the 2008 Zinfandel are so appealing.This is a medium-bodied wine with rich raspberry flavor that gets a spicy lift from notes of black pepper. Nicely balanced with supple texture and focused acidity, it is smooth and silky mid-palate with a pleasing toastiness on the finish. The classic proportions of this Zinfandel make it an excellent choice for enjoying with a wide range of foods. ...More

This wine comes almost entirely from Olsen Ranch vineyard, which is located on the east-facing hillsides on the west side of the Salinas Valley near the towns of Greenfield and Soledad. The wine is clear with a transparent ruby hue. Although this is a lighter hued Pinot Noir, it does not lack for flavor; it has a youthful explosive aroma of cherries and candied red fruit. Exuberant in its nose, it is silky and fine in its texture. This is an elegant, light and expressive Pinot Noir from a great appellation and wonderful vintage. ...More

Broodingly dark in aromatics, flavors and appearance. Yet there is brightness to the wine, exotic in nature, with its compote of black and blue fruits. All highlighted by minerality that gives structure to a whirlwind of aromas and flavors, ranging from ground red peppercorns, lavender and bittersweet chocolate to freshly baked raspberry tarts. ...More

The growing conditions produced dark fruit flavors, very well balanced acids and tannins, and beautifully colored wines. This vintage is packed with intense fruit aromas of cherry, blackberry, cassis and sweet oak. Plus, there is sweetness to the intense fruit and oak flavors and a mouth watering, velvety structure from the tannins. The resulting character makes this a great vintage for enjoying now as well as aging. ...More

The 38th vintage of Napa Valley Chardonnay is a classic Trefethen Chardonnay which highlights tropical and floral aromas with a hint of almond. This Chardonnay has a soft mouthfeel balanced with acidity and a stony minerality which makes this a very food-friendly wine. Flavors of apple pie and citrus, especially that of lemon zest, fill the palate of this rich and balanced Chardonnay. ...More

This 2008 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a complex and layered expression of California Cabernet. The wine has a dark garnet color and is bursting with fruit even as it is poured. It has a nose of cassis, violets, licorice, allspice and roasting coffee. On the palate, it has an extraordinarily rich attack, a satin texture and an exuberant expression of fruit on the mid-palate that comes from picking grapes at the peak of their ripeness. The wine finishes with notions of savory umami, and fruit with a medium tannic grip. Given proper cellaring, this wine should give drinking pleasure through 2032. ...More

Garnet red with characteristic tinges of orange that become more evident with age. Ethereal, pleasant and intense, recalls withered roses and violets. Dry, full, vigorous, austere but velvety, harmonious. ...More

The 2009 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon leads with generous aromas of dark chocolate, black cherry and spice which are layered with dusty cedar and loam. ...More

Intense and rich, the "7" Cabernet displays a complex bouquet of black and red berries, intermixed with roasted and mineral notes. The youthful tannins are true to their mountain origin and will age beautifully well over the next decade or more. ...More

"The 2005 Columbia Crest Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon was "Wine Of The Year" on the Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2009!" This wine delivers an enticing bouquet of spice, anise and rose petals. On the palate, a perfect balance of cherry, berry and cocoa flavors lead to a powerful and complex finish. ...More

An alluring bouquet of toast, spice box, mineral, earth notes, raspberry, and cherry. Mouth-coating on the palate, it has layered savory fruit, ripe tannin, lively acidity, outstanding concentration, and a lengthy, pure finish. ...More

Full bodied and creamy in the mid palate and very complex. One of the few Chilean whites that will improve over the years. ...More

A deep ruby red color. Explosive, rich, lush aromas. On the palate variety of dark currants, black cheery, jam, licorice, and tobacco leaf. A refreshing finish. This wine is extremely food versatile and will be a excellent choice to drink on it's own or pairing with some of your favorite dishes. ...More

The 2008 Merlot has been aged in thirty-three percent new French and American oak barrels for eighteen months. The resulting wine shows intense aromas of black cherry, blackberry, and cassis. Complex nuances of cocoa and coffee bean emerge as the wine opens up. This is a "big" Merlot that will age for many years to come. ...More

The resulting wine is a big, world-class red wine capable of improving with bottle aging for 10 to 15 years in most vintages. Although the wine varies with the vintage, they have a consistent thread of complex aromas of black berry fruits, black stone fruits, chocolate, tobacco, spice and floral notes with a mineral overtone. On the palate the wine has a big silky mouth feel, well balanced, with flavors of berries, fruit, cocoa, cassis, and spice, and a long spicy finish. Fruit tannins in our wines tend to be big, but not harsh and are well integrated with the strong fruit component. ...More

The 2008 Blanc de Noirs has lively aromas of apricot and persimmon, which gracefully lead to nuances of honey and lemon. The fruitful nose is complemented by vanilla spice and candied almond. The palate offers crisp and tart flavors of orange and lime rind, supported by a touch of roasted coffee. The finish is long and lingering. ...More

Schramsberg Brut Rosé is flavorful, complex and dry, making it both versatile with food and delicious by itself as an apéritif. The character of the wine is most strongly influenced by bright, flavorful Pinot Noir grown in Carneros, Anderson Valley, and the Sonoma and Marin coastal areas. A few small lots of Pinot Noir are fermented in contact with their skins to add depth and subtle color to this unique sparkling wine. Chardonnay gives spice, structure and length on the palate. ...More

The 2008 saw good stability of color and flavor and a wine that got steadily better as it aged. Coming from a vintage that still unjustly sits in the afterglow of 2007, the 2008 Casa Piena will surprise a lot of people both as a wine that surpasses anything they have ever done before and as the beginning of a high-quality trajectory for this young estate vineyard. ...More

One of California’s and the world’s great wine estates, Araujo continues to exhibit remarkable consistency and impeccably high quality. Little seems to change other than some minor tweaking with respect to viticulture and winemaking. The team of Bart and Daphne Araujo, their talented longtime winemaker, Francoise Peschon, and the globe-trotting oenologist, Michel Rolland, are to be commended on the extraordinary elegance of these wines. -RP ...More

The 2008 Cemetery was without a doubt the wine of our tasting! Deep red, leaning towards black with a vivid bouquet of coffee, granite, sweet cream and toasty oaky, this wine is one for the ages. The palate is mouthcoating, lush, intense and savory, dominated by dark, ripe plums, while the finish is laden with baked blackberry and pepper lasting for 30-40 seconds. ...More

The color of our signature Old Hill Zin is dark purple and the aromas are wonderfully complex. The spice character tends towards black-pepper and cardamom while the fruit component is very intense and has an impressive array of raspberry, blackberry, and ripe plums. The French oak contributes toast and vanilla aromas while the tannins are big, ripe and smooth on the finish. Follow the evolution of this wine in your glass as it opens up or decant if you are in a hurry. The wine will reach its peak maturity in 10-12 years. ...More

Extremely refreshing aromas and flavors, that make this wine a great pick to accompany you to your next meal!!! ...More

The Buoncristiani O.P.C. is our Napa Valley proprietary red blend. In the quest to create a wine uniquely ours, we discovered the synergy of marrying Napa Cabernet Sauvignon with Syrah, while also folding in further complexity of texture and flavor with Napa Malbec and Merlot blenders. Grapes are sourced from some of Napa’s most prestigious vineyards including Hyde, Stagecoach, Hossfeld, and Bennett. Just like our winemaking fathers before us, with “Ol’ Pa’s Cuvée” we four brothers continue the family tradition of handcrafting blends that help accentuate the enjoyment of life. ...More

Perhaps one of the best reserve cab's from Lewis Cellars! Cedary sweet oak spice, black fruit and cocoa aromas are potent. On entry the wine is deeply fruited, plush and round with kirsch, café mocha and blackberry flavors supporting very supple, fine-grained tannins and delivering great texture and length. ...More

Rated 95-98 Points by Robert Parker! The flagship offering, the 2008 Harlan Estate is nearly as promising as their perfect 2007. This vintage has fleshed out considerably since I tasted most 2008s last year (although I did not have an opportunity to taste this wine). Its dense purple color is accompanied by hints of burning embers, charcoal, sweet creme de cassis, chocolate and licorice. Full-bodied and voluptuously textured, by Harlan Estate’s standards, it is forward and approachable. Still not bottled, it appears to have exceptional potential, and should be relatively approachable in its youth, yet be capable of lasting 25+ years.-RP ...More