| Winery | Special Designation | Vintage | Varietal | Rating | DateTasted | Notes | Buy Again? |
| Beaulieu Vineyard | Reserve, Napa Valley | 2023 | Cabernet Franc | 97 | 9/10/2026 | Blackberry, blueberry, coffee, vanilla, ripe raspberry, baking spice, black cherry, anise, toasted bread and mocha.
The tannins on this thing are full, sizzling but not tight. The body is full. The concentration and finish are all full and long. The fruit on the palate is intense, lush and rustically alluring.
Wow, that an effort from BV. Their Cab Francs have always been good, but this is better than the stellar 2020. This wine is a tour de force. Talk about a massive palate with richness, complexity and amazing approachability. Do not miss this one. | y |
| Beaulieu Vineyard | Reserve, Napa Valley | 2023 | Merlot | 94 | 9/9/2026 | This was just released from BV. The nose has blackberry, black plum, cocoa, coffee, leather, salted pretzel, sage, bay leaf, tar and burnt sugar. It is a very dark fruit nose.
The palate is very intense with black fruit, high acid, med+ body and concentration. The finish is long and the tannins are high and sizzling.
This is the most intense BV Reserve Merlot of the 2020-2022 mix. It is dark as night and very intense. Drink it with Greek food -- Tzatziki, hummus, spanakopita, grilled chicken or salmon. | y |
| Beringer | Steinhauer Ranch Vineyard, Howell Mountain, Napa Valley | 2021 | Cabernet Franc | 96 | 9/7/2026 | Blueberry, plush blackberry, Gravenstein apple, cinnamon, nutmeg, pie crust, vineyard soil, nori, leather, burnt sugar and black currant.
The palate is plush. I mean, it is fully bodied, concentrated, intense and high acid. It has a long, beautiful finish, silky, sizzling tannins and full bodied. Cab Francs do not get much better. It is balanced but nuanced enough to be very interesting. Acid, tannins and fruit are just magnificent!!
Final word: magnificent! | y |
| Beringer | Knights Valley Expressions, Mallacomes | 2023 | Petit Verdot | 92 | 9/6/2026 | Blackberry, blueberry, bay leaf, dried herbs, coffee, cocoa, black cherry, black plum, bright florals and black tea.
The palate shows high acid, firm tannins, long finish of intense dark fruit, black tea and bitter herbs. The body is med+, as is the concentration.
A friend told me about this series of KV Expressions. She said they were a must-try. So, for the first offering we get a very rare Petit Verdot -- you don`t see a single varietal PV ever. This is a Bordeaux blending wine! It has some very nice concentration both on the nose and the palate. | y |
| Beringer | Knights Valley Expressions, Mallacomes | 2023 | Cabernet Franc | 94 | 9/6/2026 | Boysenberry, blueberry, white peach flesh, leather, coffee, pine, juniper, honeysuckle, cherry, graphite, anise and black plum.
It has firm tannins, concentrated finish of dark fruit, earth and coffee. The body is full, the acid high and high intensity.
The wine is intense with a weighted concentration at the bottom end of the fruit scale. But thankfully, after breathing a bit, the raspberry pops up. Give it a sec or you get the raspberry in the last glass! | y |
| Beringer | Knights Valley Expressions, Mallacomes | 2023 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 95 | 9/6/2026 | Blackberry, black raspberry, cherry, black plum, coffee, lilac, earth, dried herbs, stone fruit pit, nutmeg and sweet paprika.
The palate is concentrated, intense, full bodied, long finishing with firm tannins that stick to the teeth. The acidity balances the tannins and concentration. It has much bright/dark fruit balance. It is a mighty wine that rivals some of the much higher priced Beringer releases. This is what you get from 2023. | y |
| Beringer | Rhine House Reserve | 2016 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 94 | 9/5/2026 | We picked this up at the TWE store where they have a lot of great deals on damaged labels. This 10-year-old is kickin it!
It has so much fruit, and it is getting some nice bottle age notes as well. We get blackberry, dried black cherry, raisin, raspberry, cooked oats, leather, black plum, dark earth, coffee and dried herbs.
The palate is lush, fully concentrated, firm tannins, med+ acid, long finish, high intensity and full body. Bottle age is more prevalent on the palate. Black plum, tart, dried cherry and cranberry predominate.
I hope folks realize how many great single vineyard cabs, merlots and cab francs Beringer puts out. This is just one of many we have tried that are showstoppers. Try this, marinate a couple steaks or lamb chops overnight in a rich vinaigrette, grill them and this wine will accompany them like the instrument you were missing in a song. But this wine has enough port qualities that it would be great with charcuterie. | y |
| Trader Joes | Reserve, Sonoma Coast, Lot #278 | 2025 | Chardonnay | 93 | 9/3/2026 | Ummmm, what is going on here? This is delicious. We have tasted dozens of Sonoma Coast Chardonnays in the last few years. This is right up there with the best of them. It has green apple, caramel, pear, sweet, cantaloup melon, stone fruit, baking spices and great minerals.
The palate is very concentrated with all of the fruit notes above. The texture is amazing. The finish is med+, but the initial flavors are powerful, rich and alluring. The thick fruit tricks the tongue into thinking this might be mildly off dry, but it`s just the insane fruit!
This is a chardonnay that should be consumed by itself. You are not going to get oak or butter -- just a ton of great fruit!! But you also get great acidity, minerality and balance. Ok, if you want food -- consider it with triple cream cheese, nuts, olives and charcuterie. It is the perfect appetizer wine. Baked Brie!!! | y |
| Trader Joes | Reserve, Santa Barbara County, Lot #241 | 2024 | Pinot Noir | 91 | 9/3/2026 | Raspberry, black cherry, vanilla, brown sugar, strawberry, graphite and honeysuckle.
The palate has med+ intensity, concentration and body. The tannins are light; the acidity is high. The finish is medium.
The wine is nice, has plenty of fruit and would be great with grilled chicken and rice. It would pair nicely with gentle Mediterranean foods. | y |
| Trader Joes | Platinum Reserve, Stags Leap District, Napa Valley, Lot #132 | 2023 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 95 | 9/3/2026 | Blackberry, black cherry, vanilla, anise, yellow peach, cedar, cardamom, carnation pink, black pepper, barley, wet potting soil, steamed milk, speculoos and warm hay.
The palate has sizzling tannins, full body, high concentration, intensity and acidity. The finish is med+. All in all, this is an incredible cab with a flavor profile like a speeding bullet. It is streamlined, textured, sleekly flavored and intense. It hits you head-on without pulling any punches.
This wine is screaming out for Au Jus French dip sandwich, onion soup, gently spiced lamb shank or grilled steak. Also, think Middle Eastern food like Spanakopita, hummus, Tzatziki, garlic naan and tabouli salad. Or drink it by itself. Consider this for a wedding where you want cases of wine that will be enjoyed (wowing the wine people) and won`t break the bank.
94 pts upon opening, 95 after breathing 1-2 hours. But boy is it worth it!! This might be the pinnacle of the recent TJs releases. | y |
| Wrath | KW Ranch, Santa Lucia Highlands | 2021 | Pinot Noir | 96 | 9/2/2026 | | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Rose | 2025 | Rose | 92 | 8/28/2026 | Mourvedre, Grenache, Consault blend | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Columbia Valley | 2023 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 94 | 8/28/2026 | This wine is composed of 64% Merlot, 26% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec, 4% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc. This is a classic Washington version of a Right Bank blend. For the price this the deal of the year. I picked up a half case. | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Harrison Hill Snipes Mountain | 2023 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 95 | 8/28/2026 | 67% cab, 24% merlot | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Chaleur Estate, Red Mountain | 2022 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 95 | 8/28/2026 | 65% cab, 24% merlot, 9% Cab franc and 2% petit verdot | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Chaleur Estate, Red Mountain | 2023 | Blend (Red Table Wine) | 97 | 8/28/2026 | This wine is composed of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot.
It is stunning wine with dark fruit, massive palate with concentrated long finish. I took half a case of this home. | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Red Willow, Yakima Valley | 2023 | Malbec | 94 | 8/28/2026 | | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Grand Ciel, Red Mountain | 2022 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 95 | 8/28/2026 | | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Four Flags | 2022 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 94 | 8/28/2026 | | y |
| DeLille Cellars | Le Dessien | 2022 | GSM | 93 | 8/28/2026 | | y |
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