USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The 2017 Jackson Estate Fulton Ranch Chardonnay was barrel fermented and aged nine months in 29% new French oak. It opens to saline, crushed shell and quince peel with a core of white peach, toast, almonds and citrus blossom. The palate is medium-bodied and silky with restrained fruits that blossom into nutty and honeyed nuances, finishing long and refreshing. 524 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 Deep ruby-purple, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Jackson Estate Hawkeye Mountain, aged 20 months in 58% new French oak, gives up boysenberry and blueberry to begin, fleshing out to aromas of blackcurrant, hoisin, cedar shavings, roasted plum and a framing of sweet spice. The palate is full-bodied and youthfully dense with a chewy frame, great freshness and a long finish. Give this another 2-3 years in bottle. 1,249 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 A blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot aged in 61% new French oak for 20 months, the deep ruby-purple colored 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Jackson Estate Appellation Series opens to cedar, cassis, dark chocolate-covered cherries, leather, a frame of sweet baking spices and coffee notes. The palate is medium to full-bodied and youthfully dense with a chewy frame and good freshness, finishing with oak spices. Give this another couple years in bottle. 3,275 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 Pale to medium ruby, the 2016 Pinot Noir Les Voisins, aged 16 months in 10% new French oak, opens with aromas of stewed black tea leaves, crushed red cherries, fresh cranberries, orange peel, forest floor and damp earth. Light to medium-bodied, it's bright and fresh in the mouth with a great balance of fresh fruit and earth character, framed with soft, grainy tannins and finishing long. 3,000 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The 2017 Pinot Noir Abel aged 16 months in 25% new French oak. It has a pale to medium ruby color, and the nose offers marionberries, crushed blueberry and cranberry jelly with nuances of fresh tobacco leaves, forest floor, warm blackberries and a soft framing of sweet spice. It’s light to medium-bodied, offering great flavor intensity with a firmer frame of grainy tannins, finishing long and lifted by juicy acidity. This will benefit from another year in bottle. 300 cases were made.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The 2016 Red Wine Innovant is made up of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, aged 20 months in 45% new French oak. It has a deep ruby color opens with cassis, grilled beef, black plum, Morello cherries, cedar and bay leaf touches with a classy framing of new oak spice plus violet hints. Medium to full-bodied, it's plush and intense with a frame of finely grained, ripe tannins and seamlessly woven freshness, finishing long. 613 cases produced.

USA, California, Sonoma: 2017 Vintage – Part 2 The 2018 Sauvignon Blanc Pine Mountain is made of 100% Sauvignon Blanc from a vineyard at 2,850 feet in elevation. It aged in puncheon, barrel and amphora with bâtonnage for 10 months. It opens with notes of candle smoke, wet stone, red pear, kiwi, tarragon, gooseberry and grass with pineapple and white flower touches. It's medium-bodied and rounded in the mouth with great flavor intensity and layering, gaining in intensity as it travels through the mouth. It's enlivened by mouthwatering acidity and finishes long and textured. A lovely expression of Sauvignon Blanc! 500 cases produced.

A juicy full-bodied mouthful with mocha and dark chocolate and black fleshy plums. Pair with grilled meats.

Aromas of blueberries and blackberries with hints of stones. Full body, firm and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Needs time to soften. Plenty going on. Better in 2017.

From the cool and wet harvest of 2011 winemaker Ted Edwards has crafted an elegant Cabernet Sauvignon that would fool most, who most likely would peg it as a Bordeaux. The tannins are firm and crisp and there is a leaness to the fruit on the palate, but not at the expense of flavor and complexity. This is a Napa Cab that will get even better after a few years in the bottle. It's not a muscle wine, but given the vintage it is definitely a remarkable achievement.

This is a beautiful Cabernet Sauvignon. It epitomizes the Napa quality of power married to finesse. Winemaker Ted Edwards deserves kudos for producing a high-production Cabernet (34,000 cases) this good, from a difficult vintage. It’s dry and balanced, with rich, complex blackberry, sage and sweet oak flavors.

Smooth and ripe with plum, spice and herbal notes; complex, tangy and built to age; juicy and complex.

A powerful, direct wine, the 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon hits the palate with a blast of dark cherries, plums, violets and spice box. The tannins remain quite firm, so another few years of cellaring is probably a good idea. I very much like the sense of energy and direction, especially on the finish. The 2009 is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc, from parcels in Stage Coach, Potelle, Veeder Peak, Bosche and Sycamore.

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Bosche Vineyard is a round, inviting wine. Layers of soft red fruit, spices, savory herbs and licorice flow from this plush Cabernet. Despite the intensity of its fruit, the wine has plenty of underlying structure. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2028.

The Surprise of 2015 in Napa and Other California Wine Reviewed A big and soft old cab with so much raspberries and currant jam. Yet, there is firmness and freshness holding the full body and richness in check. Little old-school. Drink and enjoy.

A first-rate Cabernet, with deep, dark berry fruit flavors, echoes of cedar and tobacco offering secondary complexity, and just a hint of vanilla-laden sweetness from oak barrel aging, this wine offers extremely impressive depth and length. How nice to see red wines from Freemark Abbey tasting this good. A leader twenty-five years ago, this venerable Napa Valley property lost direction for awhile due to changes in ownership and management. Now part of the Jackson Family group of California wines, it seems to be running on all cylinders.

This starts off as black satin, mostly tannin and dark fruit, before air brings up more distinct black cherry and earth in the middle of the wine. The plush texture doesn't get in the way of the firm structure, allowing the wine to build complexity as it develops in the glass. Cellar it for a few years, or decant a bottle for roast leg of lamb.

Offers notes of cigar box, roasted coffee, chicory, blackberry and wild berry, with touches of dried herb and cedar. Ends with firm, ripe tannins and good length.—2005 California Cabernet blind retrospective (September 2015). Drink now through 2022.

Marked by strong, dry tannins now, which lock it down and make it astringent through the finish. Yet beneath the toughness is plenty of ripe fruit, with waves of blackberries and black currants. Oak shows up as toast, and also contributes to the tannins. Nowhere near ready, this wine should begin to come into its own after 2011.

There's an earthy, loamy feel to the tannins of this wine, buried under fresh, floral, fruit-skin tension. The fruit itself is juicy and firm, held tight by the tannin, opening to a supple cabernet texture and flavor that will meld well with rack of lamb.

From the high-pedigree of the Bosche Vineyard, the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Bosche, a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Merlot aged in French oak for 24 months, exhibits an opaque ruby/purple color and a wonderfully sweet nose of camphor, underbrush, black currants, and spice. The wine is deep, full-bodied, with superb richness, depth, and intensity. This is a beauty with silky tannins and low acidity. It should drink beautifully for 15-20+ years.

From the well-known Rutherford vineyard located on the alluvial fan on the west side of Rutherford, the 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Bosche Vineyard is a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot aged 24 months in French oak. This mature 2002 exhibits plenty of creme de cassis, vanillin, cedarwood, licorice, underbrush and forest floor notes in a medium to full-bodied, richly fruity, seductive style. Although not the most concentrated wine of the vintage, it is beautifully round, elegant, and ideal for drinking now and over the next decade.

Freemark Abbey's latest Chardonnay release shows the fine hand of winemaker Ted Edwards, who chooses to ferment part of the batch in French oak to develop richness and a creamy texture, and part in stainless steel to preserve freshness and acidity. The result is a well-balanced Napa Chard that delivers a complex palate of lemon oil, pear and baked apple, with hints of wood spice.

Longtime winemaker Ted Edwards has fashioned a beautiful 2013 Chardonnay, an 11,000-case, non-malolactic, 70% barrel-fermented cuvée from multiple sources throughout Napa. One-third new French oak was used. Notes of delicate pear, apple blossom and tropical fruits emerge from this classic Chardonnay. Medium to full-bodied with a greenish hue to its color, it exhibits impressive layers and minerality. Enjoy it over the next 4-5 years.

This is an oaky, leesy Chardonnay, and quite a good one. Although it's super rich in fruit, it shows a crisply acidic minerality that grounds it and makes it serious. That fruit is wildly forward in pineapple tart, pear butter, Key lime pie and golden apricot.