Top 7 wines in the US press

2013 Coppola Director’s Cut Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley, California

Dennis Sodomka of the Augusta Chronicle kicks off the first US press round-up of 2016 with a look at this wine from Francis Ford Coppola.

“It is a beautiful, deep garnet in the glass, with powerful aromas of blackberries, cherries, cloves and black pepper,” he writes. “The first sip reveals raspberries and black currants, which are later joined by vanilla, spices and anise. It is a rich, lush full-bodied wine, with a velvety mouthfeel.

“The fruit all comes from 40- to 80-year-old vines in the Dry Creek Valley, a great region for zinfandel. Some Petite Sirah is added for structure.”

2010 Villadoria Bricco Magno Nebbiolo, Langhe DOC, Piedmont, Italy

Next, Rebecca Murphy at Dallas Morning News focuses her attention on this solid example of an Italian Nebbiolo.

“It’s got the textbook light ruby colour with garnet highlights and savoury, dried rose, red cherry aromas and flavours,” she writes. “In the mouth the fruit is juicy with mouthwatering acidity and sturdy tannins.

“Like most Italian wines, it is meant for food, not as a cocktail, so pair it with a hearty beef stew or a sausage and mushroom pizza.”

2013 Matanzas Creek Chardonnay, Sonoma County, California

This Chardonnay is for people who love to taste power in a white wine — and not just the fruit, but the oak and alcohol,” Sandra Silfven of the Detroit News assures us.

“It’s a complex wine built of cool mountain fruit with a bright citrus/apple/marzipan character and granite minerality. Balancing all that flavour is a sturdy spine of acidity.

“It’s made to order for pairing with fresh-caught seafood or delicately cooked chicken, veal or pork.”

2013 Cape Point Vineyards Isliedh, Cape Peninsula, South Africa

Next, Dave McIntyre of the Washington Post begins an in-dept round-up with this “stunning wine” from the South African Cape.

“It is expensive but worth seeking out if you love the minerally Sauvignon Blancs of the Loire Valley,” he writes.

“Stones and chalk dominate the impression, but there’s good red-currant and stone fruit here. Most of all, this wine has an intensity evocative of searing sunlight on a hot summer’s day.”

2012 Nicolas Chemarin Régnié La Haute Ronze, Beaujolais, France

“Beaujolais is a consistently underrated wine,” McIntyre continues, “and the “crus” such as Régnié provide exceptional value.

“These are not blockbusters: They seduce with subtle charm,” he argues. “They don’t demand your attention; they win it.

“This lovely wine offers dried-cherry flavours with some earth and mushrooms, as if the vines had somehow tapped into the Earth’s secret store of umami.”

2014 Paradise Springs Santa Barbara Sauvignon Blanc, Happy Canyon, California

And McIntyre’s final contribution this week is this Santa Barbara pour.

“Happy Canyon is on the eastern — and therefore warmer — end of the Santa Ynez Valley, where the cooling ocean fogs that caress the pinot noir vines in the Santa Rita Hills, closer to the coast, fade against the inland foothills”, he writes.

“This Sauvignon Blanc features lovely, fleshy grapefruit and passion-fruit flavours and a bracing acidity that will give it life and make it food-friendly.”

2013 Gutzler Pinot Noir, Germany

And finally, Michele Parente of the San Diego Union-Tribune, who is urging her readers to “drink smarter” in 2016 by recommending this German Pinot.

“Medium bodied and perfumed with bright cherry aromas, it’s got meticulously balanced acidity and structure,” she writes. “It’s a racy, feminine wine, that will envelop you in its charm.

“Serve it at your next dinner party and watch people as they discover how delicious it is and that it’s not from Santa Barbara, Oregon, New Zealand, Sonoma or Burgundy. Pair it with game, beef Burgundy, cassoulet or grilled salmon, for a truly eye-opening meal.”