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Forward red fruits give a good beginning to this light and fruity blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. It is crisp with red currant flavors and layers of acidity. Drink now.

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Fresh cranberry and black raspberry show on the nose of this bottling that also offers black-pepper sauce, savory soy and a touch of iodine. There's a tarry tension to the palate, but with tart dark cranberry and richer dark cherry flavors as well, mixing up the savory smoke with dense fruit.

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This magnum-size wine, named after the Tensleys' son, Oliver Gunnar, is still very young, especially for the large size, but the aromas of purple flower, tar, salt, pepper and black plum are very promising. Zesty pepper and thyme show on the sip along with black-plum paste and savory hoisin touches, held together by a very grippy texture. This heavy-duty wine needs time to blossom. Drink 2019–2030.

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All Riesling, this aromatic wine conveys notes of jasmine, peach and pear. It drinks off dry, with spritzy soda water and stone-fruit flavors and mouthwatering acidity.

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Ruby red in the glass, this bottling shows bright cranberry and boysenberry on the nose with a hint of rose petals. There is decent tension to the sip, where tart plum skins meet with graphite flavors.

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Here is a delicately fragrant blend of Sicilian grapes with pretty tones of white flower, acacia, kiwi and peach. This competitively priced wine is fresh and light and would make a perfect pairing with tuna salad or salmon carpaccio.

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This is an easy-going Merlot, at a very affordable price with a brilliant ruby appearance and simple aromas of berry fruit, cedar, spice and leather. The wine has a short, no-fuss finish and ends with crisp freshness.

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If this isn't cl's best Syrah, then it's among the top three. Graphite, tobacco, leather, blackberry, baked black plum and spice aromas set up a lively palate, with firm tannins and good acidity. Stewed plum, blackberry, toasty oak and licorice flavors finish with a grabby feel and lingering flavors of anise and black pepper. Drink through 2020.

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From a cool climate region, this brings crisp raspberry fruit with underlying minerality. Aging in one-third new French oak adds in notes of dusty coffee grounds and a hint of milk chocolate. The wine starts out tight, then fans out through the finish.

us

This is a somewhat dull red, leathery in texture and simple in approach, offering a mix of black cherry and licorice.

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The aromas are fruit forward, with notes of berry and black currant. The flavors are ripe, with the oak pulled way back. There's plenty of easy drinking enjoyment to be had.

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There's a savory roasted-meat quality to the nose of this blend of 68% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre and 12% Syrah that also offers crushed riverstone, a touch of violet and coffee-syrup scents. The hefty, meaty character carries right into the palate that is thick in body, chalky with structure and redolent in roasted blackberry and tangy elderberry fruit.

at

Aromatically intense notes of flint, smoke and gunmetal already hint at the precise and profound nature of this Styrian Sauvignon Blanc. Everything is in abundance: concentration, savory undertones of boxwood and moss and an integrated acidity that gives both length and structure to this intense wine. Drink 2015–2018.

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A bit overripe and hot in alcohol. That's the price of getting such rich fruit flavors. Dark chocolate, blackberry preserves, red currants, black raspberries and spicy satsuma flood the mouth, leading to a super-spicy finish.

fr

Named after the creation of the estate in 1610, this is a big, rich and extracted wine. The tough tannins need to soften further, with a powerful core of dryness. As it develops, the wine will reveal more of the rich red fruits and juicy final acidity that are there. Drink from 2017.

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A blend of 80% Nebbiolo and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in barriques, this opens with aromas of bell pepper, cedar and red currant. The palate delivers dried black cherries, coffee, mocha and grilled herbs alongside firm, fine-grained tannins.

es

Sweet and heavily oaked, with candied fruit, loads of vanilla and milk chocolate-covered raisin aromas. Feels choppy on one hand and lactic on the other, with mostly oak-based, sweet flavors of maple, vanilla and mocha. Feels O.K. but creamy on the finish, and it tastes candied and artificial throughout.

us

Merryvale's '05 is very rich and balanced, and shows fine Napa Cabernet character in the intense focus of cassis, enriched with new French oak. It's not an ager, but showcases very high Napa quality for immediate drinking.

ar

Despite having several years in bottle, this Malbec opens with a huge blast of charred oak, shoe polish, lemon peel and rooty berry aromas. The palate is clipped and linear in feel, while flavors of coconut, vanilla and generic berry finish with lasting coconut and unsettled oak.

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There's lots of rich, jammy blackberry, cherry and oak flavor in this Merlot, with a gentle scour of firm tannins. It's not an ager, but offers plenty of upfront pleasure for drinking now.