Behrens & Hitchcock Cemetery Red, Napa Valley, USA

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Year-in and year-out one of my favorite labels is Cabernet Sauvignon Cemetery and the 2011 is another 100% Cabernet Sauvignon with a bone-chilling label, but generous, warm, inviting aromas and flavors. Juicy and fleshy with an unctuous texture (somewhat surprising for a 2011), this wine transcends its vintage, offering lots of cassis, blueberry and blackberry notes, no oak, and a thick texture. Enjoy this mouth-coating red with a hearty slab of roast beef over the next decade. The always interesting, creative Behrens Family operation high on Spring Mountain has fashioned another enticing portfolio of wines with some of the most creepy and funny labels in the wine business. The labels often belie just how serious this estate is about its vineyards and the quality of its wines. Tel. (707) 963-1774

Deceptively medium in body, the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Cemetery is endowed with serious depth and power. Plums, violets, menthol, espresso and cloves all come alive in this rich, structured Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2010 needs another year or two for the tannins to better integrate, but the wine is strikingly beautiful, even today. A precise, crystalline finish laced with sweet floral notes and licorice rounds things out in style. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2022. The Behrens Family Cabernets are all about textural richness and sheer opulence, qualities all of these wines have in spades. Tel. (707) 963-1774

The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Cemetery is a viscerally thrilling, exciting wine loaded with dark jammy fruit, violets, jasmine and licorice. It possesses fabulous inner perfume and striking balance. Hints of espresso and mocha wrap around the finish. Opulent, intense and impeccably polished pretty much sums it up. Cemetery is a first class effort. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. I was very impressed with the wines I tasted from Behrens Family Winery. These bold, racy wines are long on exuberance and sheer personality. Tel. (707) 963-1774; www.ernaschein.com

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Cemetery, from a well-known parcel of vines planted near a graveyard (with a portrait on the label that resembles me after two weeks of 12-14 hour days spent tasting), exhibits a deep ruby/purple color along with classic aromas of creme de cassis intermixed with floral undertones. With sweet fruit as well as impressive balance, this is a wine of considerable flavor authority, integrity and richness. Given its forward, precocious style, it should drink well for 10-15 years. Les and Lisa Behrens are two of my favorite people in Napa Valley for the simple reason that they love wine and make gorgeously delicious wines with a fun approach that is reflected in their creative labels. They had issues with some of the synthetic corks they used early on, but they are now back to true corks and are, hopefully, on the road to even greater success and good fortune. All their wines now appear under the label Erna Schein. Les and Lisa are like truffle dogs in terms of sniffing out somewhat underrated top sites for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. Early on they discovered many vineyards that were later swiped away by people with more money. However, the Behrens still have a loaded deck of Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards. If you haven’t yet discovered these wines, it’s about time you do. If there is a future in the wine world for real people, Lisa and Les Behrens have to succeed. Tel. (707) 963-1774; www.ernaschein.com

Another Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated offering, the 2006 Cemetery (75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Petit Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, all from David Abreu’s vineyards) displays a stunning bouquet of graphite, smoked herbs, blueberry and blackberry liqueur, chocolate, and toasty oak. The outstanding aromatics are followed by a lavishly rich, extravagantly fruit-driven wine with superb body, richness, and texture as well as a compelling, hedonistic appeal. It should drink well for a decade or more. Known as Behrens and Hitchcock until the departure of Bob Hitchcock, this artisinal winery on the top of Spring Mountain has changed its name to Erna Schein. The proprietors, Les and Lisa Behrens, continue to fine tune an intriguing portfolio of wines. Because of disappointing results from synthetic closures, they have now gone back to traditional cork. Lisa is widely regarded as one of Napa’s most capable viticulturists, and appears to have a knack for finding forgotten vineyard treasures. In addition to the name change, the Behrens seem to be moving away from varietal names, using instead a series of colorful, often provocative labels. All the following wines are flavorful, exuberant, full-bodied offerings made with indigenous yeasts, and are bottled unfined and unfiltered. They represent true low-tech wines. Tel. (707) 963-1774; Fax (707) 963-8206