Wine Enthusiast: A Bordeaux-style blend of 56% Merlot, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc, 4% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot, the Z is typically more immediately approachable than the Fu...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Opaque ruby. Smoke-accented dark berry aromas are complicated by violet, cured meat and anise nuances. Offers sweet blackberry and cassis flavors, with suggestions of candie...

Wine Front: Opens a little stinky and charred but there's a good amount of fleshy cherry and plum fruit along with Hunter earth and some vanilla oak. Appropriately firm, but fine tannin, ...

Wine Spectator: This is lightly firm, with the vintage's plum skin and raisin notes at the edges, but the core of black currant, licorice and anise is juicy and very solid, with spice and iro...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Pale yellow. Complex, fragrant bouquet of pear skin, melon and ginger, along with a bright mineral overtone. Succulent orchard fruit and honeydew flavors are brightened by z...

Wine Spectator: Dense and grippy, this is a bit backward now, with a core of black currant, fig and roasted apple wood flavors. Yet despite the dark profile, there's still an overriding silky...

Wine Spectator: This sings with spicy, creamy pear and lanolin flavors, finding restraint as the finish lingers enticingly. Cries out to accompany shellfish. Drink now through 2018. — H.S.

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Slightly hazy medium red. Musky aromas of raspberry, coffee and smoke. Lush, silky and sweet, with velvety plum and earth flavors spreading out to saturate the palate. Seam...

Wine Spectator: Juicy, focused and concentrated, with rich blackberry, plum and currant fruit, sliding smoothly over polished tannins as the finish picks up intensity. Syrah, Cabernet Sauvign...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Bright medium red. Pungent aromas of cherry, redcurrant and minerals. Concentrated, spicy and light on its feet, with a restrained sweetness to the flavors of red berries, flo...

About this Wine: Dutton Ranch farms over sixty unique, separate vineyards located in the coolest areas of the Russian River Valley, primarily in the Green Valley sub-appellation. Galante and <...

Wine Enthusiast: Man O’ War’s 2008 Dreadnought put the winery on the map, and, although not quite as dramatic, the 2009 is a worthy successor. Aromas are lifted, peppery and cherry-filled, whi...

Wine Spectator: This has a flattering, fleshy feel, with dark smoked mesquite and tobacco notes giving way to cocoa, plum sauce and roasted fig. Solid, hedonictic style, though perhaps a bit ...

About this Wine: The grapes that go into the Rosso are exactly the same as those used for the Brunello. The decision is taken about which wine to use them for only after the vinification has b...

Wine Spectator: Aromas of toasty oak and berries follow through to a medium body, with chewy tannins and a medium finish. Polished and attractive. This has a solid core of fruit. Best after 2...

Wine Spectator: This has a distinctive apple wood and mesquite mix up front, with racy linzer torte and cherry pit notes leading the way for extra plum and cassis flavors. Toasted wood and sp...

About this Wine: The vines of Secret de Cardinale are located on a 1.20 hectares plot bordering Château Fleur Cardinale. This wine is made in small quantities using the same growing and wine m...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: (40% carinena, 30% merlot and 10% each of garnacha, cabernet sauvignon and syrah; 15% alcohol): Opaque ruby. Aromas of dark berry compote, violet and licorice, with a bright...

About this Wine: Created in 2002, Quinta Sardonia is a joint project between star winemaker Peter Sisseck of Pingus (Ribera del Duero) and Jerome Bougnaud. Located just 400 meters from the...

About this Wine: In 1990, Maté Brajkovich reworked the land at Kumeu River and planted a new vineyard of Chardonnay on the site of the family's original vineyard, purchased in 1944. The fi...