2018 Red Wine from North Coast

Wine Enthusiast, 97 points: Editors’ Choice. This is such an outstanding wine at any price, but here we’re talking about outstanding value as well. Notes of iron and crushed rock lead to a lengthy balance of juicy red fruit and clove. With small...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 96 points: The 2018 Vin Perdu is a blend of 38% Syrah, 33% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Petit Verdot, 11% Cabernet Franc and 6% Merlot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it comes skipping out of the glass with bright, cheery notes of baked...

jebdunnuck.com, 97 points: Another head-turning wine from this project, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Project 18 got a handful of expletives in my notes. A plush, sexy, full-bodied 2018 delivering pure dark fruits, hints of menthol and tobacco, a...

jebdunnuck.com, 95 points: The 2018 Hourglass Cabernet Sauvignon Blueline Estate shows the classic, more focused, elegant – yet also concentrated – style of the vintage brilliantly. Sporting a dense purple hue as well as killer notes of crème de...

jamessuckling.com, 97 points: Intense aromas of black fruit, cocoa powder, black olives, dried violets, tar and cigar box. Some black peppercorn, too. It’s full-bodied with firm, chalky tannins. Incredible intensity and purity of fruit with gorgeous...

Wine Enthusiast, 96 points: This is the first vintage of the Australian producer's foray into Napa Valley. It is tightly structured yet supple, bursting in bright currant and strawberry flavors. Savory components of sage, dried herb and black pepper...

jamessuckling.com, 93 points: Very attractive blackberry and blueberry character with cedar and dried flowers. It’s full-bodied with tight, chewy tannins and enticing, transparent fruit underneath. Flavorful finish. Drink after 2022.

Wine Spectator, 95 points: Very lush, with warmed plum sauce, cassis and linzer flavors gliding through slowly, but persistently, while cast iron and mesquite notes add range along the way. Stays on the dark side of the spectrum, with a flash of...

jebdunnuck.com, 93 points: Moving to the reds, the appellation 2018 Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast was just about completely destemmed (2% stems) and spent 10 months in 18% new French oak. Lots of spice box, earthy forest floor, cherries, and redcurrant...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 94 points: Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Bordeaux Blend Papillon springs from the glass with plum preserves, baked blackcurrants and black mulberries with touches of menthol, tobacco leaf and pencil lead. Full-bodied, the...

jebdunnuck.com, 98 points: The 2018 The Bard is beautiful and certainly in the same realm as the 2015 and 2016, both magical wines. This cuvée reveals a deep purple color followed by a beautiful perfume of crème de cassis, blackberries, roasted...

jamessuckling.com, 95 points: This has a deliciously ripe and perfumed nose of blueberries, cloves, potpourri and gravel. It’s full-bodied with firm, chewy tannins and fresh acidity. Creamy and elegant with a driven, focused finish. Cooler and more...

jamessuckling.com, 99 points: Blackberry and black chocolate with mint, conifer and clove. Sweet tobacco, violets and flowers, too. Some graphite. Cool and complex. Full-bodied with ultra fine, dusty tannins and a wonderful, extremely long finish...

jebdunnuck.com, 94 points: The 2018 Napanook showed incredibly well, with fabulous crème de cassis, spring flowers, graphite, and green tobacco aromas and flavors. With terrific ripeness, medium to full body, and ripe, yet polished tannins, this...

jamessuckling.com, 93 points: Lots of blackcurrant and blueberry with violet and boysenberry. Some chocolate, too. Full-bodied with lightly dusty tannins that give a special texture and beauty to the wine. Flavorful and intense at the finish. Better...

Wine Enthusiast, 96 points: From a range of sites and expertly blended by Philippe Melka and his team, this wine has 5% Petit Verdot and spent 18 months in French oak, half of it new. Black olive, pencil shaving, sage and cedar provide a savory...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 92 points: Medium ruby-purple, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley opens with classic aromas of cassis, cedar, cigar box and bright touches of mint chocolate and red cherries. The palate is medium-bodied with pure, restrained...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 93 points: The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Coombsville is a lovely wine from winemaker Julien Fayard. It offers the darker fruits and mineral tones of the best Coombsville Cabernets. Deep ruby-purple, the nose blossoms to pure cassis...

jebdunnuck.com, 98 points: Coming from a site in Coombsville, which is a cooler region of the valley, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Meeting With The Mentor reveals a vivid purple color as well as an Haut-Brion-like bouquet of cassis, unsmoked...

jebdunnuck.com, 94 points: Readers looking for a textbook Russian River Pinot should check out the 2018 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley. Offering up a medium ruby hue as well as lots of spiced red fruits, cola, leafy herbs, and flowery incense...

jamessuckling.com, 90 points: A firm, rather linear Napa cabernet with dark berry, currant and hints of chocolate and walnut that follow through to a medium body. It drinkable and attractive. Drink now or hold.

jebdunnuck.com, 96 points: A bigger, richer effort based on 96% Zinfandel and 4% Carignan from a site in the Russian River, the 2018 Zinfandel Papera Ranch offers a meaty, powerful bouquet of black cherries, red plums, Asian spices, and chocolate...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 96 points: The 2018 Pinot Noir Harmony Lane Vineyard is lush and inviting on the nose: aromas of rhubarb, boysenberry, crushed blackberries are accented by licorice and loads of potpourri-like nuances. The palate is wonderfully...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 94 points: (94+ points) Composed of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Malbec and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate displays a deep garnet-purple color and fragrant notes of Black Forest cake, crème de cassis and wild...

jebdunnuck.com, 95 points: The 2018 Alec's Blend is a step up, offering a beautiful nose of crème de cassis, scorched earth, chocolate, and charred meat. It's rich, full-bodied, and concentrated, yet still shows restraint and purity, with terrific...

jebdunnuck.com, 94 points: These wines are made by Thomas Rivers Brown, with the viticulture handled by Josh Clark. These are all tiny production releases with quantities under 300 cases for each. Starting with the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 95 points: (95+ points) The 2018 Pinot Noir Far Coast Vineyard was aged for 16 months in French oak barrels, 39% new. A little closed to begin, with coaxing it reveals notes of warm black cherries, black raspberries and kirsch plus...

jebdunnuck.com, 94 points: As to the Cabernets, these are all terrific, with the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon offering textbook, ripe black fruits, toasty oak, chocolate, and spice-driven aromas and flavors. This full-bodied, incredibly satisfying...

jebdunnuck.com, 95 points: A rock star of a Merlot, the 2018 Merlot Blueline Estate boasts a deep purple color as well as a sexy, up-front bouquet of blueberries, ripe cherries, spring flowers, candied violets, and cedary spice. With medium to...