Glass-coating opaque purple; balsamic, incense, leather, and black fruits, dense, over-delivers;Importer: TGIC, Woodland Hills, CA

Quite ripe, featuring soft but persistent fig sauce, blackberry and boysenberry flavors laced with cocoa and pudding hints. A lacing of graphite keeps this together on the finish. Drink now. 3,600 cases imported. -JM

Rooty, sweet and heavily oaked for a $15 blend, with alfalfa, green notes and a blast of root beer float. The palate is tannic and also creamy due to wood resin, with earthy, foresty flavors of olive, leaves, tobacco and mocha. Good but overly oaked and herbal.——M.S.(7/1/2011)—— 86