Once conceived as a Merlot specialist, Northstar seems to have drifted, well, south, and is now crafting more of a Right Bank Bordeaux blend. A confusing array of vineyard sites are packed into the wine, which seems to have wandered into a kind of mid-life identity crisis. Pleasant strawberry and raspberry fruit anchors a rather simple palate. ——P.G.(12/15/2005)—— 87