1997 Hess Select
California Cabernet Sauvignon
Score: 86.0
"Good concentration of blackberry fruit, some licorice and herbal flavors, moderate tannin, decent balance. "
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1998 Fetzer Vineyards Eagle Peak
California Merlot
Score: 85.0
"A very elegant style of Merlot with a fruit cocktail melange of bright cherry and raspberry flavors, a hint of oak, moderate tannin, and a drying fruity finish. "
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1997 Fetzer Vineyards Home Ranch
California Zinfandel
Score: 86.0
"Spicy raspberry with a hint of hazelnuts in the background, smooth tannin and a spice and fruit finish of considerable length. Beautifully balanced for pairing with such foods as chile, grilled eats and vegetables, and pizza. "
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1999 Fetzer Vineyards Sundial
California Chardonnay
Score: 86.0
"Rich apple, pineapple and vanilla flavors, full-bodied and lightly spicy in the finish. Serve with roasted chicken."
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1999 Fetzer Vineyards
California Gewurztraminer
Score: 85.0
"Americas best selling Gewurztraminer is a sweet wine with a crisp, spritzy texture, litchee nut and pink grapefruit character. Good aperitif."
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1997 Fetzer Vineyards Valley Oaks
California Cabernet Sauvignon
Score: 87.0
"Cherry and blueberry wrapped in cinnamon with a touch of vanilla and a firm acid backbone. Good match for grilled meats, from poultry to steak."
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1998 Fetzer Vineyards
California Syrah
Score: 85.0
"A wine showing plummy fruit with some bittersweet chocolate notes opening up on the palate, tart acidity and moderate tannin. Angular and capable of further aging, you could enjoy it now with full-flavored fare like barbecue. "
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1998 Cosentino The Zin
California [zinfandel]
Score: 89.0
"A full-bodied, velvet textured wine with an aromatic nose of cracked black peppercorns, cinnamon and blueberry jam. So ripe it seems sweet. So intense that it will overpower most food. Rather like a port, where this wine really excells is as an accompanyment to strong cheeses, and bittersweet chocolate. "
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1999 Canyon Road
California Sauvignon Blanc
Score: 88.0
"Sauvignon Blanc is what wine should be all about-affordable, good tasting, showing fruit and an ineffable complexity. Lets face it, the cache is often the result of price: If its expensive it must be good. But Sauvignon blanc is naturally complex and for now, at least, comparatively inexpensive. Heres a good example of a refreshing Sauvignon Blanc with bright honeydew and gooseberry fruit coupled with mineral complexity. A first rate bargain."
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1998 Beringer Vineyards Founders Estate
California Sauvignon Blanc
Score: 91.0
An outstanding Sauvignon Blanc with velvety texture and complex mineral overtones. The fruit is tending toward melon with a touch of papaya. Very dry and well balanced.
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1998 La Pantera
California Barbera
Score: 88.0
"Understated and elegant, this is a very different style f rom its predecessor, less voluptuous but more refined, with typical plum and cherry fruit and soft tannin, backed by sandlewood, allspice, and some earthy notes. Like the '97, this is alsoblended with a little Nebbiolo"
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1997 La Pantera
California Barbera
Score: 88.0
"Barbera with a little Nebbiolo blended in, this is a full-bodied wine with rich sweet plummy fruit and notes of licorice. Big and boisterous, it makes an impression, but lacks grace. our consumer tasting panel prefered the '97 to the '98, while I prefered the more elegant '98."
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1997 La Famiglia di Robert Mondavi
California Barbera
Score: 91.0
"Its a mystery to me why this grape is so underappreciated, when there are wines such as this one on the market. The blackberry-black plum fruit is bright and focused, with fine aromatics, light tannin, nutmeg and cardamom notes on the palate, and an incredible finish."
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1998 Beringer Founders Estate
California Chardonnay
Score: 85.0
"Buttery oak, toast, ripe tropical fruit, oily texture. Packs a wallop for the price."
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1998 Hess Select
California Chardonnay
Score: 87.0
"Strikes a balance between the contrasting styles of Chardonnay-the heavily oaked style and the bright fruity style. This wine has an oaky nose, but on the palate the focus is on the appley fruit. Nice cinnamon notes round out the mid-palate and carry through to the finish. "
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