1997 Arneis Central Coast – slightly deeper color than the other two examples of this rare varietal I have tasted today – and more lush and forward citrus and nectarine notes on the nose – more depth of fruit on the palate also – would probably pair better with food – a touch of briar in the finish – stems?

1997 Pinot Grigio Central Coast – pretty, but light peach notes in the nose – fairly smooth entry - not the crisp acidity of other Pinot Grigios – nice flavor palate, and a clean finish with just a touch of briar.

1997 Tocai Friulano Central Coast – very pretty honeysuckle and nectarine notes on the nose – slightly reminiscent of Muscato – the best balanced of the whites so far – lovely sweet fruit and very nice balance.

1997 Malvasia Bianco – just beautiful sweet honeysuckle and floral notes on the nose – finishes a bit tart and short on the palate – just not my style.

1996 Sangiovese Two Heart Canopy – dusty rose color – a bit tight in the nose with a pleasing dusty quality -–very nice depth of sweet Sangiovese fruit on the palate – still some tannins on the midpalate, so needs a little time to come around, but shows good promise.

1995 Colline di Sassi Napa Valley Sangiovese – deeper color – more typical and fairly forward fruit in the nose – very nice aromatics – lovely sweet Sangiovese fruit interrupted on the palate by some unresolved fruit tannins – with a little bit of time I think this wine will turn out to be a real beauty!

1997 Barbera Sonoma County – dark purple color – restrained fruit, but interesting overtones of smoked meat on the nose – very interesting – very ripe flavors of black plum and Barbera across the palate – this is a most delicious wine – it has good intensity of fruit, and will obviously improve with more time in bottle.

The fruit comes from the Kunde estate in the Valley of the Moon, and was picked at 28 Brix, yet does not come across as being overly ripe or having residual sugar – it’s absolutely delicious.

1997 Terol Dego Central Coast – dense purple color - dense purple and black stone fruits on the nose – purple robe in the glass – forward and rather dense fruit palate – another beauty! (Did I mention dense?)

The red wines from Pepi showed better overall than the whites, with the last three in particular displaying the potential for these varietals in California. Very impressive!

Next stop was Gabrielli Winery from Redwood Valley in Mendocino County, and I enjoyed chatting with their representative Loretta Byrne.

1997 Sangiovese Redwood Valley – dark purple color – shy, but identifiably Sangiovese fruit in the nose – very pleasing intensity of black stone fruits with hints of road tar on the palate – obviously needs a little time in the bottle, but shows excellent promise, and I’d love to taste this one again.