This high-end Cab already has some bottle age on it and is ready to drink now. The nose is a regional expressive combo of ripe plums and dark fruits, coffee, chocolate, ground black pepper, pencil lead and toasty oak. Bottle age has settled the fruit into place, allowing spices to float to the fore. The palate is a neat package of fine tightly wound and slightly woody tannins and fruit... Overall, this is a sturdy, focused wine... – C.P.

A lush, oaky wine, Wakefield's 2014 The Visionary Cabernet Sauvignon spent more than two years in barrel before being blended and bottled. It's full-bodied and plush, with evolved, mellow notes of cedar and tobacco layered over soft cassis flavors. It's a cuddly behemoth of a Cab that will keep you warm on a cold winter night... - J.C.

Smooth and lush, with appealing notes of milk chocolate and framboise on a thick and velvety frame, with juicy berry accents and details of vanilla bean, spice and cedar. Shows plenty of harmony. Drink now through 2029. . — M.W.

...Dense and chocolatey, like a Black Forest cake... tangy red-fruit and licorice notes. There's plenty of wood-spice and cola character from the oak influence, too. The palate is held firmly in place by powerful, woody tannins but the fruit is rich enough to hold its own. Big, polished and fairly well balanced, this should continue to cellar until 2029. – C.P.

Thick and dense, but there's some polish to the tannins, with black walnut, vanilla, mocha and cassis flavors at the core. Generous and velvety on the spicy, espresso-laced finish. Drink now through 2034.  — M.W.

Wakefield's premium Cab offers a heady combo of... oak, dried herbs, licorice, red currant and blackberry fruit. It's full-bodied but not overblown, silky-textured and laced with savory, grainy tannins and a streak of graphite... Drink now–2027. – C.P.

Textbook cabernet aromas and flavors of cherry, cassis, tobacco and pungent herbs, with a hint of vanilla in the background. Juicy, focused and light on its feet, gaining sweetness with air. Shows very good energy and finishes with tangy mineral lift and dusty tannins... Serve this with a strongly seasoned braised lamb dish. – J.R.

EDITOR'S CHOICE: The nose alone is thrilling on this light-footed auslese, wafting of preserved peach, candied pineapple and honey. It’s decadently fruity but balances sunny yellow peach and apricot harmoniously against zesty tangerine and lime. Hard to resist now for its buoyant fruit but this should improve for decades. —A.I.

Aromas of dark-skinned berry, tobacco and cooking spice form the nose. The savory palate offers black currant, clove and white pepper alongside smooth tannins. Enjoy through 2022. —K.O.

Subtle notions of freshly cut green Conference pear suggest both freshness and ripeness. The palate of this wine adds texture and ripe freshness that lend definition to the palate. Glimpses of chalkiness blend with pear flesh. The finish is mild but nonetheless mouthwatering.  —A.K.

The nose of this wine... hints at smoke, chalk and lemon.The palate also has a pleasantly flinty edge of reduction but continues with pure lemon freshness anchored in chalky soil. This wine is fresh, balanced, mouthwatering and promising. —A.K.

Fresh and balanced, this light-to medium-bodied red displays a delicate overtone of herb and smoky mineral, layered with flavors of ripe raspberry, spice box, violet and orange rind. Light, snappy tannins firm the finish. Drink now through 2025.   –A.N.

Bursting with sweet, ripe cherry and plum fruit, this Gattinara also evokes salty licorice, loam, leather and rose hip notes. Firm and balanced, with a minerally aftertaste. Drink now through 2028.  — B.S.

This is youthfully rugged, with lots of bay leaf, cedar and wet stone notes forming a broad-edged frame around a core of steeped bitter plum, dark currant and tar flavors. A long cast iron element smolders through the finish. Offers an alluring old-school hint. For the cellar. Best from 2023 through 2042. From France. —J.M

Mellow, featuring ripe, fading plum and cherry flavors, augmented by licorice, leather and spice notes. Rich and focused, with a long aftertaste of spice and savory. Very complex and velvety. Drink now through 2025. — B.S.

Pungent, deeply scented bouquet evokes peach nectar, poached pear, anise, brown butter and smoky minerals. Broad and densely packed, with a velvety texture and powerful orchard and pit fruit flavors that pick up a toasty element with aeration. Distinctly rich yet surprisingly lively as well, finishing with strong mineral cut and excellent floral persistence. - J.R.