($150; 91% merlot and 9% cab franc) Good deep ruby-red. Penetrating aromas of blackberry, violet, licorice, bitter chocolate and espresso. Less fleshy today than the cabernet but with a compelling, subtle sweetness to its dark berry, brown spice and bitter chocolate flavors. Very sexy, juicy wine that spreads out to saturate the palate without conveying any sense of heaviness. Finishes broad and ripe, with excellent structure and grip. This is downright serious and ageworthy for Napa Valley merlot. Don't make the mistake of opening this wine in the next couple of years: this baby needs bottle aging.

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A glorious effort, the 2005 Roberta's Reserve State Lane Vineyard (91% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc) gets my nod as one of the finest Merlot-based wines being made in Napa. A Right Bank-styled offering (think Pomerol), it boasts huge aromas of chocolate, mocha, sweet black cherries, and black currants. Dense, opulent, full-bodied, and fleshy with extravagant depth and richness that hides some rather serious tannins, this stunning red can be approached now, but it should be at its best in 3-4 years, and will keep for 20-25.

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Complex and well-structured, with dried red currant and Asian spice aromas and dense, tightly wound flavors of black cherry, mineral, cedar and sage. The tannins are ripe but muscular. Merlot and Cabernet Franc.

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