Producer note: Olivier Bernstein described 2015 as "one of those weird vintages where you, as a winemaker, just don't like your wines at first. However, once I finally got them out of the fermenters and into barrel, then boom, they took on life, freshness and personality and now I absolutely love them! I have never seen such a dramatic change in quality in such a short period of time. Granted, I have only been doing this since 2007 so it's not like I have a huge amount of perspective but it would be fair to say that not only was I surprised but also I believe that these wines are the best that I have made to date. I used more whole cluster in the vinifications, which is to say up to 80% and I'm very happy that we did as I believe that doing so helped to preserve freshness. It was necessary to really watch the extractions though because the color and tannins came so easily that I began to worry that they would lack refinement. Obviously they're still not in bottle but the potential that they already show surpasses everything that I have made to date." While it is of course entirely possible that M. Bernstein's prognostication that the 2015s are the best he has ever made, and indeed they are lovely wines, but I am not sure that they will ultimately outshine his 2010s. Either way, both are worth considering and for that matter, don't forget Bernstein's 2014s as they too are most impressive. Bernstein again underscored that because his wines are bottled with slightly higher levels of CO2, he suggests that readers decant them if they're going to open bottles early on. (Wilson Daniels, www.wilsondaniels.com, St. Helena, CA; Berry Brothers & Rudd, www.bbr.com and Fields, Morris & Verdin, www.fmvwines.com, both UK; Berry Brothers & Rudd, www.bbr.com/hk, Hong Kong; Berry Brothers & Rudd, www.bbr.co.jp, Japan).