The Cabernet Sauvignon is aged 18 to 24 months in French oak and is100% varietal. The 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Rancho del Oso’s deep purple color is followed by a big, sweet nose of white chocolate, espresso roast, and fudge-infused cherries. Deep, chewy, rich, and impressive, it is exuberant and flamboyant enough to be drunk now or cellared for another 12-15 years. With all these wines, it must seem like Ed Sbragia must have left Beringer to start his own operation, but he’s still at Beringer, and they would be smart to keep him there given his undeniable talents. He’s been a fixture at Beringer for decades, and it speaks highly of the Beringer brain trust to allow him the flexibility to have his own label. He features mostly Chardonnay and Cabernet, but there are a couple Zinfandels and one Merlot in the portfolio.Tel. (866) 222-4342

The more backward 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Rancho Del Oso is a longer-term prospect. It reveals lots of wet gravel, graphite, black currant and black raspberry notes intermixed with a steely, herbal, mountain laurel character, and medium to full-bodied, gritty tannins in the finish. Cellar it for 2-3 more years and consume it over the following 15. Ed Sbragia, who had his so-called glory years as the chief winemaker behind many of the great wines that were produced at Beringer, continues to operate from his family holdings in the Dry Creek area of Sonoma, where he turns out excellent wines at realistic prices. Tel. (707) 473-2992

True to its mountain appellation, this is a big, dark, young tannic wine. It is dramatically lush in black currant and chocolate fruit, seasoned with 100% new French oak. The tannins have been wrestled into soft, lush compliance. This is a fabulous Cabernet, drinkable now but with the structure to age for many years. ——S.H.(2/1/2006)—— 95