The Verna's Vineyard Pinot Noir is 100% Estate fruit from Melville's Los Alamos estate. From the press, the wine was transferred directly into barrel (10% new Sirugue French oak, 90% neutral). It's a classic representation of the hands off approach that Melville is famous for. The wine is delicate, soft, and expresses the true essence of the varietal.

On the nose I get pure fruit aromas of wild strawberry, strawberry rhubarb pie, mineral, chalk, and the unmistakable wildness of Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara. The wine shows amazing varietal integrity....

On the palate the purity of fruit continues to shine through as the wine was only aged in neutral oak barrels and is unadulterated. Flavors of red raspberry, strawberry jam, spice, and mineral touch down in a lightly strewn texture that glides across the palate effortlessly. This is Melville at it's best, soft and elegant wine with little or no influence of excessive oak or winemaking technique. It's almost like it's straight from the vineyard into the glass. 90 points


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Tensley Wines is a family owned and operated winery focusing on vineyard designated Syrah within Santa Barbara County.

On the nose I get enchanting aromas of crushed black currant, gravel, blackberry paste, espresso, and beautiful hints of fresh lavender. It's really a stunning bouquet that exudes the intoxicating essence that's found in the best Syrah's from Santa Barbara.

On the palate the wine shows intense flavors of black currant, ripe blackberry, subtle hints of kalamata olive, mineral, loam, and bacon fat. The tannins are super-ripe and polished and the wine finishes ultra-long and with delicious fervour.

There is real fruit purity here and the delineation of flavor and character make this wine quite breathtaking. It's actually quite a revelation for California Syrah in that it's balanced, deliciously ripe, structured, and a screaming value for the price. 93+ points


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This little gem is a proprietary red blend that Robert Foley Vineyards releases every year with a different blend. The 2009 is composed of 50% Petite Sirah, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 13% Merlot. It's ultra dark in color and displays everything that we've become accustom to with the wines of Robert Foley. That is, super rich and concentrated, fruit driven, and superbly balanced wines.

On the nose I get beautiful aromas of creme de cassis, blackberry pie filling, melted black licorice, graphite,  dark chocolate brownie, camphor, tar, sarsaparilla, and hints of violet. Yes, I know that's quite a load of descriptors......However, the wine is super complex on the nose.

On the palate the wine shows big blackberry, cassis, and dark chocolate flavors, that combine with hints of graphite and mineral. The tannins are still quite aggressive as would be expected from such a youthful wine. The alcohol is definitely large and in-charge on the finish, but I can see the wine improving balance-wise with a year or so more in the bottle. 91 points

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Beckmen Vineyards is a family-run estate winery located in Santa Barbara County's Santa Ynez Valley. It's truly in my opinion one of the better producers of Rhone varietals in all of California. Their Estate Grenache is 100% Estate fruit from their Purisima Mountain Vineyard. It's also 100% Grenache and was aged for 15 months in neutral French oak.

On the nose I get aromas of red raspberry, strawberry rhubarb pie, graphite and mineral, and wet asphalt. The wine is actually quite terrior-driven on the nose and shows lots of mineral and stone character. There is a just a pinch of alcohol that peeks through on the bouquet as well, which is actually quite unfortunate.

On the palate the wine carries a round and full texture and exhibits flavors of spicy red raspberry, red currant, rhubarb, mineral, and all spice. The wine has good acidity and nice fruit character, but becomes just a tad bit disjointed on the finish because of the alcohol. The wine has good purity and is representative of the growing region, but is still perhaps in need of additional bottle age. 87 points

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This relatively small production Cabernet (974 cases) was produced from grapes harvested from a very special dry-farmed vineyard in Northern Calistoga. The winemaker at Jax Vineyards that makes this particular wine is Kirk Venge, son of Napa Valley legend and winemaker Nils Venge. The Wine is a blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.5% Petit Verdot, and 2.5% Cabernet Franc and was aged in 100% French oak for 21 months.

On the nose the wine shows some very nice and intense aromas of cassis, licorice, dark chocolate, ripe plum, and spice. It has just a touch of earth and a very classic Napa Valley soil-meets-fruit complexity.

On the palate the wine touches down with the same dark and ripe fruits that were displayed on the nose, and also shows some really nice black cherry fruit. The tannins are firm, but well integrated, and the wine appears to be very well-made and in balance. 90 Points

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The spectacular estate of Abadía Retuerta is situated just outside the border of the Ribera del Duero region in Spain’s north central province of Castilla y León, near the village of Sardón. It's actually just a few miles away from the uber-famous Vega Sicilia, producer of one of Spain's most revered and expensive wines.

The Rívola is composed of 60% Tempranillo and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and is aged in American and French oak barrels for a period of 12 months.

On the nose the wine exhibits aromas of ripe black cherry, plum, sandalwood, spice, and subtle hints of vanilla and cedar. When the wine begins to open up it also shows some really nice jasmine notes.

On the palate the plum flavors continue to impress along with beautiful impressions of red raspberry, black cherry, and spice. What's really impressive about this wine is the smooth texture and silky tannin structure. It's seems as though they're able to get the fruit pretty darn ripe and even at Abadía Retuerta. Very nice stuff. 90 points

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I have to admit that it's been quite a while since I've written up a Malbec here on the Blog Wine Cellar. To be honest, I kind of got tired of the category temporarily, but now for some strange reason I'm finding that I want to start exploring the nuances of the varietal once again.

This 100% Malbec from Argentina's Maipú district in Mendoza, is aged for 12 months in 8o% French oak barrels and 20% American oak.

On the nose I get aromas of rustic black currant, scorched earth, black licorice, dried blueberries, and just a touch of vanilla. It has a good balance of earth and wild black fruits. It's also a touch musky.... or has a damp forest floor effect.

On the palate the wine touches down with flavors of black currant, spice, vanilla, cedar, and hints of unsweetened coco powder. I also get some seconday notes of black licorice or anise on the finish, along with some nice blackberry flavors.

This is simple everyday table wine folks....It won't blow your socks off, but it's very serviceable and it's a nice change of pace for the typical Cab drinker. I can see it paring well with a Burger or a cheap piece of beef thrown on the grill! 85 points

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I'm generally not a huge fan of the wines from Paso Robles. Yes, I know that all of you wonderful enthusiasts that have been there are probably scoffing at that remark, but in all honesty I believe the majority of wines made in the region are uninspiring. What I generally find are wines that are big, ripe, fruit-driven, and high in alcohol. That being said, I will keep an open mind and keep searching for the wine(s) that will prove me wrong.

The Halter Rantes Cotes De Paso is a tribute to the France's Rhone Valley and is composed of 41% Grenache, 30% Mourvédre, 18% Syrah, 7% Counoise, and 4% Cinsault. It's a small production wine with only 650 cases produced in the 08' vintage.

This lightly colored red has a bouquet that expresses aromas of fresh wild raspberry, soil, dried herb, and subtle hints of coffee grind. The alcohol is unfortunately already noticeable on the nose.....

On the palate I get flavors of red raspberry, spice, raspberry jello, coco, and hints of oak. The wine is definitely fruit forward and very serviceable. However, the alcohol spikes on the finish and throws off the balance of the wine. This is something that just wouldn't happen with about 90% of the producers in the Rhone, and in particular Chateauneuf-du-Pape (which is what I think they were shooting for with this wine). 84 points

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