2005 Jonata La Fuerza de Jonata

(100% petit verdot) Glass-staining purple. Brooding cherry and dark berry aromas are compact and unyielding. Aeration exposes fresher dark fruit qualities but this is seriously musclebound and shut down, only slowly offering powerful bitter cherry and dark chocolate flavors. This chewy, tannic wine is more impressive than pleasurable at this stage, and in need of serious cellar time. I'd stay away from it for a decade.

Made from 100% Petit Verdot, the 2005 La Fuerza de Jonata offers impressive notes of sweet, peppery, blueberry, blackberry, cedar, loamy soil, and roasted herb aromas, and plenty of sweet, well-integrated tannin. It should drink nicely for a decade.

Made from 100% Petit Verdot, the 2005 La Fuerza de Jonata offers impressive notes of sweet, peppery, blueberry, blackberry, cedar, loamy soil, and roasted herb aromas, and plenty of sweet, well-integrated tannin. It should drink nicely for a decade. It appears 2006 has produced slightly lighter, but high-class wines without the weight and power of the 2005s. The Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc, and Cabernet Franc are especially noteworthy. The only wine that did not excite me was a non-vintage blend of 81% sweet botrytised Semillon and 19% Sauvignon Blanc. A combination of 2004, 2005, and 2006, the La Miel de Jonata was decidedly monolithic and one-dimensional compared to the other brilliant wines from this spectacular new producer in the Santa Ynez Valley. Fasten your seatbelts as these wines will give purchasers a serious ride for their money! Tel. (805) 564-8581