The Wine Merchant California Collection 2020

CALIFORNIA COLLECTION FIFTY WINES UNDER £50 • A WINE MERCHANT MAGAZINE SUPPLEMENT • MARCH 2020

CALIFORNIA COLLECTION 2020

THE WINE MERCHANT. Published by Graham Holter Ltd in association with the California Wine Institute UK & Ireland www.winemerchantmag.com www.lovecaliforniawines.com Images © California Wine Institute

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he sheer scale of California can sometimes come as a surprise to us Europeans. If it were a country, The Golden State would be somewhat similar in size to Spain and France, and larger than Germany. Its population of just shy of 40 million is bigger than all but seven European countries. And the more patriotic among us may not be all that comfortable with the knowledge that, sometime in 2017, California’s economy officially overtook the UK’s to become the fifth largest in the world.

In wine, too, California’s size is somewhat underestimated. We may know that California is by far the most significant wine-producing state in the USA, accounting for some 85% of the country’s total. But we may not fully grasp how that makes it the fourth-largest wineproducing “country” in the world, behind only Spain, France and Italy.

Certainly, we don’t talk about California in the same way we would talk about any of those equivalently sized European producers.

In the UK – and not just among consumers – there’s still a tendency to see California’s vinous output in monolithic terms. We speak about “California” as if that means a single winemaking style or, at best (and only for the very engaged) two styles. The crude stereotype has been hard to shrug off: whether we’re talking about affordable mass-market brands or eye-wateringly expensive icons, California is a land of big, accessible, loud fruitiness.

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Part of the purpose of The California Collection over the past four years has been to remind readers just how daft it is to treat California in such simplistic terms. As you’ll see when you turn the pages of this supplement (and, indeed, those of previous editions), this is a region of great and ever-increasing diversity. Now more than ever, it makes no sense to speak of a single California style that elides the differences

between Paso Robles and Napa, Sonoma and Santa Barbara, just as no self-respecting wine merchant would ever speak of Italy as if Barolo were somehow the same as Brunello, or France as if there were no real differences between Bordeaux and Burgundy.

In this year’s Collection the diversity of contemporary California is in full bloom. That diversity might be varietal: not one but two (very different) Corteses, two (very different) Fianos, Barbera, Carignan, Grenache, Syrah and Rhône blends. Or it might mean terroir expression, as illustrated by the multiplicity of styles of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet and Zinfandel, reflecting California’s vast array of soil types (sand, clay, loam, granite, volcanic ash, seabed soil, river-run gravel …), expositions, altitudes and microclimates. Or it could owe more to winemaker decision: all kinds of winemaking schools, from the full-on natural to the old-school classical, are featured here. Collectively, however, they show a winemaking culture that can’t be contained by a single glib assessment.

Not that our panel of judges – a study in independence and diversity of opinion – was ever going to arrive at a unified corporate message anyway. Well, not quite. If there was plenty of robust debate about which wines, from a field of just shy of 160 bottles, should make the final cut, there was also agreement that the final list offers an independent merchant-friendly spread of styles (and, crucially, prices) that is truly representative of one of the world’s most important and vibrant winemaking scenes.

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OUR JUDGES matt monk whalley wine shop, clitheroe

sam howard harperwells, norwich

riaz syed Stonewines, london

finn dunlop macknade wines & Spirits, kent

simon newson whirly wines, london

Marianna Sivalli vinoteca, london

richard wilson the good wine shop, london

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Ferdinand Albariño 2018 Borden Ranch AVA, Lodi NEKTER WINES, £27

Assistant winemaker at celebrated winery Kongsgaard by day, visionary boutique specialist in Spanish grape varieties by night: Evan Frazier is one of California’s hardest-working winemakers. He’s also one of the best, as this convincing Albariño shows. Hand-picked, wholecluster pressed and fermented in neutral old oak barrels, the wine spends 10 months on its lees.

“It has great texture and definition,” the judges said, with “lovely zip and peachy ripeness.”

Roederer Estate Quartet Rosé NV Anderson Valley MMD, £28.50

Variously described by the judges as “elegant”, “refined”, “beautifully judged” and just plain “lovely”, this rosé from the great Champagne house’s California venture was the pick of a range of fizz tasted on California Collection 2020 judging day. It’s a classic 60/40 Pinot Noir/ Chardonnay blend of 100% estate-owned fruit from the Anderson Valley, with a 5% dollop of red wine bringing both colour and finesse to a wine aged a minimum of two years on the lees.

Matthiasson Family Vineyards Tendu Cortese 2018

Clarksburg AVA, Sacramento County NEKTER WINES, £20 The Matthiassons need no introduction to fans of California: their label is responsible for some of the state’s most elegant and most sought-after wines. Their second label, Tendu, may be less familiar. But with its commitment to upholding the elegant family signature at accessible prices, it’s no less impressive, not least in this “pithy, vibrant, saline” take on Italy’s Cortese with its “long, lively finish”.

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Ruth Lewandowski Chillon 2017

Trefethen Dry Riesling 2018

Talmage Bench, Mendocino Les Caves de Pyrene, £32.95

Oak Knoll District, Napa Valley Daniel Lambert Wines, £20

The second Cortese in this year’s selection is the handiwork of Evan Lewandowski, another of California’s most creative winemakers. The grapes are sourced from a vineyard on the rocky/ pebbly terroir of Talmage Bench on the slopes of Cow Mountain, and, after a manual harvest, fermentation with natural yeasts takes place in egg-shaped tanks and neutral barriques. The result? A “thrilling, textured, funky” wine with a “ripe fruit core”.

It may not be the state’s best-known variety.

But in the right hands, with fruit from the right places – such as, in this case, Trefethen’s Main Ranch Vineyard in Napa’s Oak Knoll District – California is capable of making some stunning Riesling. The first of two in this year’s Collection was described by the judges as “a great dry style that is just looking for summer: fresh, clean and zesty with citrus and peachy fruit.”

Honig Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2017 Rutherford, Napa Valley Vineyard Cellars, £35

A top-flight Californian take on the Graves-style barrel-fermented Sauvignon Blanc (including a touch of Semillon and Muscat alongside the 91% headline variety), this won over the judges for its balance of richness and freshness. “There’s barrel here, with creamy, oaky, nutty flavours,” one of the judges said. “But there’s a lovely brightness behind it, a quality that takes it on and on. Not the easiest sell, perhaps, but I could definitely find shelf space for it.”

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Skylark Wine Company Orsi Vineyard Pinot Blanc Mendocino County Stannary Wines, £27.50

“Should Pinot Blanc be this good?” asked one of the judges after tasting Skylark’s Pinot Blanc.

Should it be so “nutty, bright and smoky with spicy notes, and yet clean with amazing texture and a saline finish”? It’s certainly unusual to come across something so accomplished from the variety, the key to the quality most likely found in the combination of a special site and the winemaking panache of ex-sommeliers John Lancaster and Robert Perkins.

Chateau Montelena Riesling 2017

Ryme Cellars Sonoma Fiano

Potter Valley AVA, Mendocino Bancroft Wines, £28.45

Dry Creek Valley AVA Les Caves de Pyrene, £23.95

Harvested in two passes from a parcel in Chateau Montelena’s Potter Valley vineyard, this off-dry Riesling delighted the judges with its “great mouthfeel and long, long finish. It has lots of tropical fruit and a little pleasing touch of sweetness”, the judges added, “but it has great balancing acidity, too.” A fine if little-known part of the celebrated Montelena portfolio, it spends six months ageing in a mix of stainless steel and French oak.

A family of Italian wine growers planted the Fiano (as well as a handful of other Italian varieties) used in this cuvee among their plots of Zinfandel in California in a vineyard above Dry Creek Valley. But it’s husband-and-wife winemaking team Ryan and Megan Glaab who have crafted the grapes into what the judges called an “astonishing” white wine. “Nutty, saline, persistent, complex: a listing to surprise your customers.”

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Giornata Fiano

Cartlidge & Browne Chardonnay 2018

Paso Robles AVA Boutinot, £24.99

North Coast Alliance Wine, £15.99

A universal hit with the judges, this Fiano, sourced from two adjacent plots in northwest Paso Robles, is “fat and ripe with stone fruit,” the panel said. “It’s an opulent style, showy and dense but with bright acidity, too, which also means it’s a keeper, mixing the precision and broadness on to a finish that seems never-ending!” It’s the result of careful modern winemaking, with cool fermentation in stainless steel to preserve the pristine fruit.

There was a ringing endorsement for Cartlidge & Browne Chardonnay from the California Collection judges. “Great value and really well presented, this is just the sort of Californian wine an indie range needs, with tropical fruits balanced by good acidity on the palate,” the judges said. It’s the work of a Californian negociant that has been hunting out fruit to craft into fine wines from across the state for the past 40 years.

Domaine Anderson Chardonnay 2014 Anderson Valley AVA MMD, £39.99

Domaine Anderson has 13.7 acres of Chardonnay vineyards in the fog-cooled Anderson Valley in Northern California, a variety of terroirs that brings great complexity to its 100% estate-grown Chardonnay. With the majority of the blend fermented using natural yeasts in French oak barrels (of which 15% were new) there’s “a big oak influence, with vanilla and stone fruit, but it’s so well done: it would appeal to lovers of statement Chardonnay.”

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Crossbarn Chardonnay 2017

Wente Riva Ranch Chardonnay 2017

Once dubbed “the Steve Jobs of wine” by Time magazine, Paul Hobbs remains one of California’s biggest winemaking names. Since he began producing them in 2000, his Crossbarn wines have been all about providing “lively and youthful expressions of Sonoma and Napa fruit” – both adjectives that the judges found fit very well with this “excellent quality Chardonnay, which is lighter and more delicate than the 14.5% alcohol would lead you to expect.”

A long, cool growing season and deep gravelly soils: according to Wente it’s this combination that makes Arroyo Seco in Monterey County one of the best places to grow Chardonnay in the whole of California. It’s the site of the company’s Riva Ranch vineyard, source of the eponymous cuvee that the California Collection judges praised for its “deep, rich, full flavour and lovely balance” as well as its “really superb value for the quality”.

Sonoma Coast Alliance Wine, £28.99

Arroyo Seco AVA, Monterey Fells, £20.99

Paul Hobbs Chardonnay 2016 Russian River AVA Alliance Wine, £49.99

The second Chardonnay from master winemaker Paul Hobbs in this year’s Collection is an estate wine that “really reflects the terroir of Russian River”, according to the judges. Barrel-fermented with indigenous yeasts for four months, and then aged in French oak for a further 12 months, it’s “rich and full-flavoured, and yet elegant, restrained and classy with all kinds of complex flavours, and superb length. This is really classic world-class Chardonnay.”

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Fess Parker Chardonnay 2017 Santa Barbara County Amathus Drinks, £20.80

A blend of fruit sourced from four different sites within Santa Barbara County – Santa Ynez Valley, Los Alamos, Santa Maria Valley and Santa Rita Hills – Fess Parker’s much-loved-by-the-judges 100% Chardonnay is 100% barrel-fermented and aged in a mix of French and Hungarian oak, of which 28% is new. Those are the technical details. As for the taste: “Proper California: ripe stone fruit and vanilla,” the judges said. “Rich, nutty, very good value.”

Peter Franus Chardonnay 2016

Buena Vista North Coast Chardonnay 2017

A mere 96 cases of this “gorgeous” Chardonnay were made in 2016. But it’s not scarcity alone that makes it special. Fermented and then aged for 10 months in French oak, it’s sourced from a single, top site: the Stewart Vineyard in Carneros, home of many of Peter Franus’ best grapes. “It has great fruit appeal,” the judges said, “coupled with brightness and energy.

There’s something subtle and delicate about it, too. Fine wine.”

There was no equivocation for one judge on tasting Buena Vista’s blend of Chardonnay from Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake Counties aged in a mix of stainless steel and French oak for nine months. And it proved popular with other tasters, too. “Yes, love this,” the judges said. “It’s great value for starters. And it has great balance of acidity, citrus, nuts and vanilla. Great length, accessible style.”

Napa Valley ABS Wine Agencies, £45

North Coast Berkmann Wine Cellars, £22.76

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“i hadn’t tasted california chenin before.” riaz syed stonewines I really loved the tasting. I’m a convert to Californian wines. You know what you’re going to get with the big oak-influenced Chardonnays, as a great alternative to Burgundy. There were two really lovely and interesting Chenin Blancs; I hadn’t tasted one from California before, so I thought that was fascinating.

The fuller-bodied Cabs and Zins gave me exactly what I wanted: bags of fruit. There were some great Zins in there.

The standout for me was Lo-Fi Gamay. So much character, but a lightness of touch, too: the balance between acidity and fruit was perfect.

The value wine – and a new one on me – was Bogle, which everyone else seemed to know. I’ll be looking into them.

“california’s top end is exceptional.” sam howard harperwells Because of the costs of real estate and labour, California should keep to what it does well: brands and premium-level wines.

California’s top end is exceptional, full of good producers doing good things.

The Ferdinand Albariño and the Lewandoski skin contact wine: these are thrilling wines at £30.

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Bogle Chardonnay 2018

Cline Cellars Viognier 2018

A big hit with the judges, Bogle Chardonnay earned praise for its “excellent nose and fabulous fruitiness, long finish and all-round juiciness” and its “really well presented design … and all that for under £16?” Fermented 50/50 in stainless steel and new American oak, and aged for nine months on the lees, the wine is produced using certified sustainable practices from vineyards in Clarksburg, Dunnigan Hills and Monterey.

Fred Cline has long been a specialist in Rhône varieties, so it’s no surprise that his take on what is, with just 2,000 acres, still a rare variety in California, should be such a hit with the judges.

The Viognier fruit is sourced from sites across the North Coast region, and is fermented in stainless steel to preserve the “delightful juicy apricot fruit” in a “very well made, balanced style”, according to the California Collection judging panel.

California Enotria & Coe, £15.95

North Coast Boutinot, £13.99

Bogle Chenin Blanc 2018 Clarksburg AVA Enotria & Coe, £15.95

Described by one judge as “an excellent food wine – fresh, vibrant, balanced and so, so drinkable with tropical fruit and citrus and apple pie flavours”, Bogle Chenin Blanc also scored highly for hitting “that key price point between £10 and £20 – which is not always easy in California.” It’s made in a fruit-forward style from grapes sourced exclusively from the Sutter Ranch in Clarksburg, with no oak influence to preserve that freshness and vitality.

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Masút Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016

Eagle Peak AVA, Mendocino County New Generation Wines, £35 Scions of one of the most influential of California wine families, Ben and Jake Fetzer’s Masút project takes its name from the 1,200-acre property established in what has since become the Eagle Peak AVA in Mendocino County by father Bob Fetzer in the early 1990s. “Fullbodied, with spicy and savoury oak, dense fruit and a plush feel, it really stands out as something a bit different,” the judges said.

Populis Wabi Sabi White 2018

Cycles Gladiator Pinot Noir 2017

Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Colombard are the ingredients in a blend that is explicitly inspired by the Loire appellation Cheverny. Sourced from sites in the Calpella and Redwood Valleys, the grapes are fermented with indigenous yeasts at ambient temperatures with minimal SO2 and six months on the lees. It all adds up to an “appealingly savoury, natural and nervy style with bags of idiosyncratic appeal”.

One of the most strikingly packaged brands from California – or, indeed, any wine region – Cycles Gladiator was also one of the best value wines in this year’s Collection, according to the judges.

“It’s a wine that’s really improved since it was first launched,” the judges said. “It’s much less jammy, much brighter and with a touch of grip, while still being really good easy drinking. It’s a wine (and brand} that works.”

Mendocino County Les Caves de Pyrene, £23.49

California Castelnau Wine Agencies, £17

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“there’s an interest in those fresher styles.” richard wilson the good wine shop

“the red blends provided something different.”

My focus was on the white wines, and I found interest in the unusual varieties, and the Fianos – which stack-up well against the southern Italians – and the Rieslings.

With regards to reds, the lighter styles – the fresher, crunchier, red-fruited styles – rather than the big dense styles, are the wines that appealed to me. Wines such as the Wonderwall Pinot Noir. There’s a place for them, from our market point of view; there’s an interest in those fresher styles.

It’s true that some of the wines on offer seemed quite pricey, but actually a lot of them seem quite sensible to me.

marianna sivalli vinoteca I really enjoyed the line-up, because I don’t usually get to try so many Californian wines at the same time.

I actually really enjoyed the Chardonnay.

There was lots of difference between the freshness of some and the special oak of others.

I enjoyed the red blends, which provided something different. And I definitely found things to sell. There aren’t enough California wines in London bars; they always have one Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, there’s not enough to compare. The pricing was surprising in some cases – there was some good value in there.

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Field Recordings Wonderwall Pinot Noir 2018 Edna Valley AVA, Central Coast nekter wines, £24

Field Recordings’ main man Andrew Jones maps out and plants vineyards for his day job, so when it came to starting his own winemaking venture his insider knowledge of promising (and often untapped) vineyard sites really came into its own. For the Wonderwall Pinot, Jones blends fruit from four plots into a wine that “has just so much freshness and delightful berry fruit”, the judges said. “Very cool in all senses!”

Cycles Gladiator Pinot Noir Cans NV

Three Thieves Pinot Noir 2018

With a different blend from the 2017 vintage, bottled version of the Cycles Pinot Noir range, this canned version is deliberately made to be smoother and to work when chilled, according to its makers, characteristics that were noted by the judges: “Very decent indeed,” they said. “A really good idea that has been well executed and with a juicy, fresh, smooth-tasting wine that stacks up well price-wise against the bottled wine.”

Charles Bieler, Joel Gott and Roger Scommes are the titular three “thieves” intent on bringing good quality California Pinot to the masses at an affordable price. Blending fruit sourced from Central Coast, Lodi and Clarksburg, and ageing it with a touch of French and American oak, the resulting wine is “very good at this price point”, one of the judges said, “with lots of fruit and a really attractive nose. Very well done – I can see this selling very well.”

California Castelnau Wine Agencies, £9

California Trinchero Family Estates, £14.99

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Talbott Vineyards Sleepy Hollow Pinot Noir 2014 Santa Lucia Highlands AVA Gallo, £39.99

One of California’s most coveted vineyards, Sleepy Hollow in the Santa Lucia Highlands is located on benchland above the Salinas Valley some 13 miles from Monterey Bay, where a long, cool growing season is perfect for Pinot. Aged for 10 months in French oak (30% new), “there’s a lot of joy about this wine”, the judges said. “It’s a cultured mix of freshness and Cali fruit with a smoothing, complexing touch of age.”

Chanin Wine Company Zotovich Pinot Noir 2013 Santa Rita Hills AVA Stannary Wines, £43

A star of contemporary California wine, Gavin Chanin learned his trade working with Jim Clendenen at Au Bon Climat and Bob Lindquist at Qupé before starting his own Santa Barbara-based label in 2007. As the judges said, this single-vineyard Pinot is typical of the Burgundian-inspired “In Pursuit of Balance” style of modern California. “With depth, character and finesse, it shows real flair in this vintage.”

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au bon climat pinot noir 2017

Pax Sonoma Hillsides Syrah 2017

An inspiration to the “In Pursuit of Balance” movement of modern California producers, Jim Clendenen’s Au Bon Climat continues to plough its own elegant furrow, marking its 35th anniversary with the 2017 vintage. “This has a really natural feel with great purity of fruit,” the judges said of this blend of fruit from eight different sites and two AVAs. “Savoury, Burgundian, different, yet refreshing and elegant and a good price.”

The wines of St-Joseph in the Northern Rhône are the inspiration here for cool-climate California Syrah specialists Pax and Pam Mahle.

In this cuvee, fruit sourced from a variety of hillside vineyards is whole cluster fermented and aged in neutral oak puncheons for five months and concrete for six months. “Serious Syrah that takes a walk on the wild side,” the judges said. “There’s white pepper, savoury notes, dark cherry and great texture and length.”

santa barbara county FMV, £30

Sonoma County Indigo Wine, £50

Lo-Fi Gamay Noir 2017 Santa Barbara County les caves de pyrene, £25.95

Lifelong friends Mike Roth and Craig Winchester set up Lo-Fi with the explicit intention of making wines “to be enjoyed, not collected”, and this Beaujolais-esque Santa Barbara County Gamay is very much in keeping with their “easy-drinking” lower alcohol philosophy. “An excellent naturalfeeling wine with all the vivid fruity succulence of cru Beaujolais,” the judges said. “Crunchy, with a nice bit of acidity that cuts into the red cherry and blackcurrant fruit.”

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Crossbarn Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 Napa Valley Alliance Wine, £47.99

According to one judge, Paul Hobbs’ Cabernet was “so good, it makes you wonder why he also makes Pinot!” Joking aside, the judge continued, this “deeply classy, cassis-rich” red is “velvety and rich with that real depth of fruit and fragrance. Beautifully full but balanced.” It’s made from grapes sourced in prime sites across the Napa Valley and aged for 20 months in a mix of French and American oak, of which 18% is new.

Giornata Barbera 2018 Paso Robles Boutinot, £24.99

Wine number two in this year’s Collection for Italian variety specialists Giornata is a convincing take on Barbera – a grape variety that, as the judges said, “isn’t always successful outside Piedmont”. Sourced from two vineyards (one in Shandon and one in the new Paso Robles Creston district AVA, the wine is fermented and aged in 1,000-litre Garbellotto casks. “Authentic, beautifully presented Barbera,” the judges said.

“It’s juicy, with refreshing tangy high acidity and bright red fruit.”

Francis Coppola Diamond Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 California Seabrook Wines, £18.99

The great Hollywood film producer is the godfather of celebrity vintners, and his Diamond Collection remains, in the words of the judges, “one of the best value California ranges around”.

The Cabernet, which also features a little Petit Verdot and the rather more obscure 1950s French crossing Segalin in the blend, is typically “fragrant and generous of fruit”, the judges said.

“Love the red and black fruit and vanilla touch.”

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“i found some real stunners, and some surprises.” matt monk whalley wine shop I like this sort of tasting – it helps you build your portfolio for the shop. A bit heavy on the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but I’m a big fan of them. I found some real stunners in there, and surprises.

The other stunners came from the lighter style reds: the Syrahs and the Gamay. I really enjoyed the Sauvignon Blancs and Rieslings.

I really liked some of the Zins, and I think the standout producer was Joel Gott: he’s making Californian wine with a bit of subtlety in there. Loved it!

“there are some very accessible wines.” finn dunlop macknade wines & SPIRITS I particularly enjoyed going from Chardonnays to the Zins and blends – there’s some very accessible wines in there. And there are definitely quite a lot that I might consider stocking. At the moment, we don’t have a huge Californian range, and this tasting will be great in forming a stronger Californian representation in the shop.

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Joel Gott 815 Cabernet 2016

Silverado Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

California Berkmann Wine Cellars, £20.45

Napa Valley Berkmann Wine Cellars, £48.78

“Great balance, silky tannins, delicious dark fruit, chocolate and good length – this is a wine with a lot going for it,” said the judges. “And the price is right!” It’s conceived as an ode to the art of blending with, according to the winery, each of the constituent sources bringing a different attribute to the blend, from Napa’s complexity to Lake County’s minerality and richness to Sonoma’s spice and Mendocino’s structure.

Family-owned for four generations, Silverado Vineyards has a reputation for its estate-grown wines. In this case, Cabernet from three of the Miller family’s vineyards (Silverado Vineyard in Stags Leap district; Mt George Vineyard east of Napa; and Oakville Station) is blended in a wine that is aged in barrel for 17 months, yielding “something really grown-up but with loads of hedonistic fruit and complexity”, the judges said.

Sebastiani Alexander Valley Cabernet 2016

Alexander Valley Berkmann Wine Cellars, £34.99 Two vineyards in the Alexander Valley provide the fruit for Sebastiani’s highly rated Cabernet.

Aged for 14 months primarily in new and one-year-old French oak barrels, the wine has “some classic California Cabernet characters”, the judges said, “with notes of dark chocolate and kirschy/dark cherry and lots of fruity fun plus a touch of fresh herbaceous/mintiness and pepper. There’s lots of charm here.”

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Birichino Besson Grenache Old Vines 2015 Central Coast FMV, £30

If you thought Grenache mostly arrived in California with the Rhône Rangers in the 1980s, then think again: George and Martha Besson’s vineyard near Gilroy has centenarian Grenache vines. It’s a favourite site for Birichino, who use it in this intriguing new-wave red, with, as the judges said, “lovely elegance, sage and other dried herbs, smoky notes and red fruit”.

Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 Napa Valley Bancroft Wines, £45.45

One of the great names of Californian wine may have earned its stellar reputation with a white wine (the estate’s Chardonnay was famously the white winner of the 1976 Judgement of Paris). But its red wines are no less diverting, not least this very fine Cabernet. “It has real Napa Cab varietal character, but with a balance of structure, complexity and ageability that sets it apart,” the judges said.

Seghesio Old Vines Zinfandel 2014 Sonoma County Liberty Wines, £49.99

Now owned by the Crimson Wine Group, Ted Seghesio remains the winemaking heart of one of California’s greatest Zin producers, aided these days by Italian consultant Alberto Antonini.

“Pricey for a Zinfandel, but it more than justifies it,” the judges said. “There’s real balance, with texture and structure to go alongside the ripe, deep fruit. One for aficionados.”

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Cline Cellars Old Vine Lodi Zinfandel 2017

Chateau Montelena estate Zinfandel 2014 Calistoga, Napa Valley Bancroft Wines, £35.45

Lodi Boutinot, £13.99

Reaffirming its status as one of California’s most illustrious producers, Chateau Montelena’s third entry in this year’s California Collection is a “simply superb” example of Zinfandel sourced from vines in the Calistoga district of Napa Valley.

“Old World meets New,” the judges said. “Love the almost Bordeaux-esque earthiness here and the restrained fruit. Really classy, classic drinking that shows that Zinfandel can age.”

Is this the best quality-to-price ratio in this year’s Collection? More than one judge thought so.

“Wow!” they said. “Just wow – and that’s coming from someone who doesn’t even like Zinfandel usually! Great value. Lots of big fruit, really attractive, I can imagine selling loads of this.”

It’s a blend of 14 prime Zin sites in Lodi, aged in barrel for eight months.

Joel Gott Zinfandel 2017 California Berkmann Wine Cellars, £17.90

Joel Gott has some fans among the judges in this year’s California Collection. “This is a Zin with a lot of character and balance,” one judge said.

“It has a touch of black pepper, great fruit; real presence. It’s typical of what I’ve tasted from Gott today: good, well-made wines at decent price points.” Sourced from Amador and Lodi counties, its aged in a mix of new American and used French oak.

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Populis Reversée 2018

Showdown Man with the Ax Cabernet Sauvignon 2017

Mendocino County Les Caves de Pyrene, £23.49

California Boutinot, £10.99

A red for anyone looking to sample the funky California new wave. The trio of winemakers behind Populis have come up with an unusual blend of Carignan, Valdiguié and Zinfandel from the old, dry-farmed Venturi Vineyard in Mendocino County. Low alcohol (12.5%), indigenous yeast and a good proportion of whole-cluster fermentation yields a wine that is “dextrous, youthful, full of juicy energy”, the judges said. “A summer red you could lightly chill.”

Can you still find interesting California wine at around a tenner? The answer, according to the judges after tasting this “brilliantly put-together” Cabernet, is an emphatic yes. “Soft, juicy, easy, great value,” said one judge. “Simply great value Cab that’s going to make a lot of punters happy,” added another.

Martha Stoumen Post Flirtation 2018 Mendocino County and Del Barba Contra Costa County Les Caves de Pyrene, £29.95

Martha Stoumen works from 50-year-old Zinfandel vines from the famed Del Barba vineyard in Contra Costa County (55% of the blend) and 70-year-old Carignan from the Redwood County AVA (45%) to produce what the judges called a “super-drinkable cracker of a modern tangy-zingy Californian red which has loads of character and life.”

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Tablas Creek Côte de Tablas 2015 Paso Robles FMV, £36

A collaboration between the Perrin family of Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape (among other claims to fame) and the Haas family of California’s Vineyard Brands, Tablas Creek has been making fine Rhône Ranger wines for 30 years now. This blend of Grenache, Syrah, Counoise and Mourvèdre, aged for a year in 1,200-gallon French oak foudres, is “very, very good”, the judges said. “Like a Cali Châteauneuf, it’s spicy, meaty and brambly, with herby notes.

A winter night warmer.”

stag’s leap wine cellars hands of time 2014

Hope Family Estate Troublemaker Blend 11 NV

Another of Napa Valley’s most storied names shows itself to be on fine form with this Cabernet-led blend, which also features Merlot and Malbec. Aged for 17 months in neutral (predominantly French) oak, it has, the judges said, “a really sumptuous Napa feel, with chocolate-dusted black fruit. This is a stylish wine that is a best in class at a very reasonable price.”

A wine that, as one of the judges put it dryly, “may not be for everyone, but those that it is for, will absolutely love”, the Hope Family’s Troublemaker mixes up Grenache, Mourvèdre, Petite Sirah, Syrah and Zinfandel into something “absolutely outstanding … you’ve got dark chocolate, black fruit, tobacco, leather – intense and full on and fits just right for a certain profile of drinker”.

Napa Valley Enotria & Coe, £29.50

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Paso Robles ABS Wine Agencies, £23.75

THE WINE MERCHANT. Published by Graham Holter Ltd in association with the California Wine Institute UK & Ireland www.winemerchantmag.com www.lovecaliforniawines.com