Nicely fresh and long in the mouth, this combines steely lemon and minerals with ripe, racy tropical fruit. Stylistically, this has Burgundian weight and texture, but the fruit is unmistakably California.

A freebie bottle courtesy of a local retailer. Certainly questionable provenance/storage conditions over the years. Medium brick in color with a clear rim. The nose holds faint promise, revealing some medium cherry fruit and dried herbs, but quickly turns funky and nasty. Riddled with VA/Band-Aid smells and flavors, this is sherried, dilute, and cheesy. Badly over-the-hill.

Decanted 2-3 hours. Soft, plummy, oaky, sweet red fruit that tastes pruny and overripe. Some cinnamon/baking spice. Creamy, milky texture. A touch green on the finish. Fully resolved tannins. This wine was not built to age and is a couple of years past its peak.

A complex, lively nose leads to a palate of red cherries, earth, iron, and smoke. Really nice, lively fruit; rich flavors without being heavy. Medium bodied, with soft ripe tannins, excellent supporting acidity, and a long finish.

Tasted side-by-side with the '01 Montelena Estate (see TN), the '02 was much riper on the nose. Deep, jammy dark fruit, spearmint, and minerals. Long, deep finish. This is a bigger wine than the '01, in addition to being a year more primary. Both are excellent; I slightly preferred the more classically styled '01.

Bursting with creamy, explosively dense black fruit, chocolate and creamy oak. Unabashedly opulent in style. Silky texture, with ultra-fine, ripe tannins on the super-long finish. As rich and dense as this is, it also has an impressive sense of balance, structure, and (dare I say it) refinement. The alcohol is under control, too, which is somewhat unusual for this producer in my recent tasting experience. Not a particularly easy wine to pair with food; this is best enjoyed on its own. My (surprising) WOTN.

This has held up surprisingly well since my last tasting over two years ago. Bursting with very sweet, super-ripe dark fruit on the attack. This pulls itself together on the midpalate, and shows some nicely complex cinnamon/clove and tobacco flavors along with the fruit. Long finish that shows some oak. Like the '01 Pride CS Reserve, tasted side-by-side (see TN), this was surprisingly well-structured and balanced. Should be drunk reasonably soon, IMHO.

This bottle was in a bit of a strange state, and may have been a bit shut down or affected by low-level TCA. Signature Quilceda blueberry nose. The palate is soft and ripe, showing simple blackberry fruit and earthy flavors. Creamy, almost lactic texture. Flat midpalate and finish. Judgment reserved.

Sweet blackberry fruit, mint, and cinnamon. Some earthy/leathery secondary flavors. Big, teeth-staining style with low acid and very prominent oak. Well-made but not particularly exciting to my palate.

Tasted side-by-side with the '01, the '02 Merus was darker and more brooding on the nose and palate. Rich dark fruit, chocolate, and cinnamon/spice. Very extracted with lots of oak, low acidity, and a touch of heat on the finish. I slightly preferred the richer fruit of the '02.