Steve Heimoff

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Steve Heimoff

California Bureau Chief Steve Heimoff was born in New York City and moved to California to attend graduate school. He quickly discovered wine and it became his passion. He has been with Wine Enthusiast for 19 years and reviews all California wines produced in the premium coastal counties. He has written two books for University of California Press: A Wine Journey along the Russian River [2005] and New Classic Winemakers of California: Conversations with Steve Heimoff [2008]. He is also the author of the popular wine blog, steveheimoff.com.

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Yao Ming 2009 Family Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)

Price $625

The former basketball star’s initial release immediately establishes itself among the elite Cabernets of Napa Valley. Made from mountain vineyards on Atlas Peak and benches in the Rutherford appellation, it combines intensity with elegance. Bursts with upfront, delicious blackberry, crème de cassis and dark chocolate flavors that are wildly sweet on the midpalate… — S.H. (6/1/2012)

Venge 2009 Family Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)

Price $135

A massive wine, decadent and splendid, and a worthy followup to the near-perfect 2008. Densely packed in fruit, it explodes in blackberries, cassis, dark chocolate, minerals and sweet, toasty new oak. That richness is lifted to brilliance by the tannic structure, which is world class. So deliciously approachable, it’s drinkable now, but it should develop over the… — S.H. (6/1/2012)

De Loach 2009 Pennacchio Vineyard Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley)

Editors' Choice

Price $45

With the 2009 vintage, De Loach is at the top of its Pinot Noir game, and this one, from a chilly vineyard south of Sebastopol, is among its best ever. The crisp acidity, like a squirt of lime, that accompanies the raspberry, cherry and persimmon fruit is bracing. Meanwhile, a mushroomy earthiness gives complex layers that don’t stop. It should age through the next… — S.H. (6/1/2012)

Roar 2010 Sierra Mar Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Lucia Highlands)

Editors' Choice
Online Exclusive

Price $45

A brilliant Chardonnay, displaying both the terroir of this fine upland part of Monterey County, and the cool vintage that let the grapes hang on the vines until they were perfectly ripe. Dazzles with pineapple and mango fruit, with a perfect jacket of sweet, vanilla-scented oak. Best of all is the acidity, which is brisk, bright and clean. — S.H. (6/1/2012)

Yao Ming 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)

Price $170

A lovely Cabernet, richly attractive and deeply flavored in blackberries, blueberries and black currants. Made from vineyards scattered across Napa Valley, the wine has been blended with a splash of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. It shows a dramatic structure marked particularly by firm, smooth tannins, and it finishes dry. Shows the stuffing to age for… — S.H. (6/1/2012)

St. Supéry 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon (Rutherford)

Price $85

This rich wine is a great success. It’s enormously rich, almost flamboyant in blackberry jam, blueberry cobbler, anise and smoky new oak, as delicious as any Cabernet out there. Yet it shows a fine structure and relatively modest alcohol, a feature of the 2008 vintage. Good as it is now, you can safely cellar it for the rest of this decade and watch it evolve. — S.H. (6/1/2012)

Frank Family 2008 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (Rutherford)

Cellar Selection

Price $85

A major league Cabernet, capable of extended aging. Blended with a few drops of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it shows massive flavors of blackberries, cassis, dark chocolate and sweetly smoked cedar wood. Just superb and delicious, but tannic and locked down in astringency. If you can keep your hands off it, cellar this beauty. It should begin to come into its… — S.H. (6/1/2012)

Robert Mondavi 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon (Oakville)

Editors' Choice

Price $45

Dry, smooth and distinguished. Shows Mondavi’s ability to get the grapes ripe in blackberries and currants, yet the fruit pulls back at the last moment, letting earthy, herbal notes take over, providing complexity and endless pleasure. The tannins are pure Oakville—sweet, soft and supple. Drink this elegant, balanced wine over the next six years. — S.H. (6/1/2012)

2009 Native 9 Rancho Ontiveros Vineyards

A lovely Pinot, dry, crisp and silky, with ripe raspberry, strawberry…

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