Bright, saturated ruby. Pungent scents of cassis, black cherry, blackberry, blueberry, licorice and minerals, plus hints of pepper, mint and menthol; wonderfully complex, vinous and high-pitched. Plush, concentrated and deep, conveying a sexy sweetness to its generous flavors of black fruits, violet and dark chocolate lifted by flowers. This sappy, pliant wine spreads out to saturate the entire palate, finishing with broad, fine-grained tannins and lovely lingering sweetness. Serious wine but even today the tannins are suave. Drink 2021‑2029. Rated 93. - Stephen Tanzer, vinous.com December, 2019. Regularly $70.00 the bottle, on sale now at:

D2 takes its name from the grand route du vin that winds through the Médoc and passes by the great chateaux in Bordeaux. And D2 in this 2018 vintage is a blend of four of the fab five Bordeaux varietals of 67% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot from 15 different Columbia Valley vineyards including Red Willow, Harrison Hill, Ciel du Cheval, Klipsun, Boushey, duBrul, Upchurch and Grand Ciel; deep ruby red in color with just a whole panoply of alluring aromas suggestive of fleshy blackberry, blueberry, cherry, currant, pomegranate (we remind ourselves, it is made from grapes), shaved dark chocolate, pencil shavings, dusty vineyard floor and more; slippery smooth on entry with a cool sophistication and gently building tannins that hold it all together long and warm to the finish. D2-licious!

The back label states it rather bluntly. 'It was in the 1900s when fierce winds and brutal temperatures got the best of the land, preventing anything from growing and eventually earning the name, Dead Canyon Ranch.' Well, given the events of February, 2021 right here in beautiful downtown Austin, Texas, we know a bit about extreme harsh winter weather conditions and arborial carnage. It appears we've lost all of the wood on all of our trees in our little garden here surrounding the parking lot: 2 olives, a Meyer lemon, a once proud and strong fig, 6 pomegranates and a bay laurel. It remains to be seen whether the suckers will make for good wood. Tellingly, though, all 7 of our grapevines have survived …

Produce of 50% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 8% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Mourvèdre from the Horse Heaven Hills viticultural area. This is bonafide structured claret (if seriously Hermitagée) style wine; ruby purple in color with aromatics that suggest graphite, plum, spice; ample on the tongue, medium in body with a velvety palate feel and ripe rounded tannins that give voice to juicy savory flavors that well-reprise the solid slate of aromatics. This is just silly good value.