Mild-mannered, with toasty oak and mild cherry, blackberry, spice and herb flavors. Tangy acidity lifts the finish.——W.E.(11/1/2003)—— 82

Everything Beringer is making is meeting with huge critical and commercial acclaim, so it is not surprising that their 1993 Zinfandel is another noteworthy effort. The wine exhibits a dark ruby color, a big, sweet, black-cherry, herb, and smoky-scented nose, medium to full-bodied, velvety-textured flavors with fine extraction (mostly jammy cherries), and a long, heady finish. Drink it over the next 4-5 years. A super value!Tel. (707) 963-7115

A soft, easygoing, pleasant wine, this 1990 offering from Beringer lacks stuffing and complexity. Nevertheless, for a commercially correct, pleasant Zinfandel designed to please the masses, it suffices. Drink it over the next 3-4 years.Tel. 707-963-7115.

Tasted But Not Recommended

The medium garnet color with considerable amber at the edge is followed by a spicy nose that offers faded jammy fruit and hot alcohol aromas. In the mouth, some sweet cherry fruit can be detected, but the overall impression is one of a rustic, fading wine where the alcohol and tannins are the dominant characteristics.