"The best of the reds is the value priced 2006 Shiraz 'Terra Barossa'. Opaque purple, it has an enticing spicy perfume of blueberry and blackberry that jump from the glass. Plush and ripe, it tastes like Shiraz selling for three times the price. It has outstanding depth and length and, best of all, it can be enjoyed now."

"A very subtle white. Flavors of cream, light honey, lilac and apple follow through to a full-bodied palate, with a rich, powerful structure and a long, flavorful finish. Gorgeous. Best after 2007. 1,500 cases made. -JS"

"Eric Monne assembled his many, geologically-diverse parcels of old vines as well as promising unplanted plots during the 1990s, and from them crafts three cuvees (all raised in barriques, but of differing ages), the most approachable of which is his 2005 Cotes du Roussillon Villages Compagnie des Papillons from old Carignan and Grenache vines planted largely on gneiss. With bitter-sweet cassis, wet stone, licorice, lead pencil, game, and alluring floral elements emerging on the nose (these wines perpetually need to 'breathe') it offers a plush, refined palate with no superficial sweetness but impressively layered with black fruits, minerals, herbs and meat. Infectiously juicy throughout, it nevertheless finishes in anything but simple fashion, with impressive salt, stone and graphite minerality, subtly sweet cassis and blackberry fruit, and deep meatiness. (The 2004 is equally fine and perfect for current consumption.)"

"Orliac's 2005 Coteaux du Languedoc Clos du Prieur - a 50:50 Grenache:Syrah blend grown just outside the Pic Saint-Loup appellation in St.-Jean de Bueges and raised in barriques - smells of plum paste, clove, black pepper and resin. Juicy and intensely-fruited yet (like his tank wine) firm in underlying structure and not at all superficially sweet, it clings beautifully with resinous herbs and exotic, wide-ranging spices. I wouldn't hesitate to follow it 2-3 more years in bottle."