BB | Ruby to lively pink. A touch closed on the nose, yet complex and refined, with small red fruits, cassis, fresh and dried herbs, blood orange, and star anise. A super palate, with very refined tannins, layered, small red fruits, and a long, weightless finish. Wow. 96
AJ | Bright, deep cherry-red; translucent. A little more vegetal in aromatic profile than most of its peers: leafy notes with mushroom, too. Not unattractive: warm, ripe, a sense of site expression rather than misjudged harvest. Deep, firm, almost tarry in flavor, with fine, expressive tannins, lifted herbal notes, and restrained forest-berry fruits. Just a touch dry on the finish, but this is almost to carp. Another fine-grained expression of southern mountain fruit—a distant southern echo of Valtellina. 90
MP | An intense and robust nose, jumping out of the glass. Notes of cherry jam, cooked plum, raspberry, and black cherry are allied to subtle notes of toast and cedar. The tannins are firm and the acidity is finely chiseled, with more-than-sufficient structure for the ripe red and black fruit. Although dusty and drying at the moment, the weight of fruit suggests that this will develop well in bottle. 92