Surprisingly true to its variety for this price, a lush, juicy, mouth-filling wine with smooth tannins and pretty flavors of berries and cherries. It's just what you think of in Merlot, an easy-drinking wine that's rich and full-bodied, yet silky and accessible.

Round, with plump peach, tangy citrus, anise and stewed apple tones carrying through the finish. Easy to like, and easy on the budget.

Medium-Full; Dry; Ripe raspberry and smoked-bacon aromas; richly textured flavors, ripe berry notes, full refined tannins.

Medium; Dry; Layered fruit, smoky oak aromas; good texture and length, layers of ripe berry fruit, concentrated, good length.

Complex and bright. Tart, with soft cherry sweet fruit. Notes of plum, bell pepper, cocoa and cedar.

Or try Yangarra Park..., with distinctive balance between crisp acidity and polished texture; it's the first wine from the new Australian venture of California winery Kendall-Jackson.

Has subtlety and elegance. It's on the light side, but is generous with its peach and ripe apple fruit, with hints of spice and citrus on the finish.

Medium Red. Aromas of cherry, raspberry and crystallized blackberry, with hints of spice and menthol. Juicy and firm, with currant and oak spice flavors. Finishes slightly aggressive and warm.

Medium bodied, it's relatively lean for a zinfandel but very flavorful and spicy.

The Edmeades 1999 Zeni Vineyard Zinfandel, which comes from vines just under 100 years old, epitomizes everything that is best about Mendocino Ridge Zin.

When Zin gets this ripe, all you can do is make a strong, heady, sweet wine. Here, 16.9% alcohol and 2.8% residual sugar make for a powerful, warming brew, distinctive in its own right, and one that has many fans.

Full ruby color. Smoky aromas of currant and roasted tobacco. Lush, sweet and rich; a huge wine with a silky utterly mouthfilling texture but also plenty of underlying structure. Finishes with very fine tannins, superb sweetness and lingering notes of black cherry and violet. Built to age but distinctly user-friendsly today.

Full, bright ruby. Aromas of blackcurrant, espresso and spice, lifted by a perfumed violet component. Silky and compellingly sweet; may not be as fat as the '99, but this is extremely stylish and aromatic, thanks to the addition of the cabernet franc. Wonderfully delineated and vibrant in the mouth. Finishes extremely long and subtle, with thoroughly suave tannins. The Verite wines appear destined to become California collectibles.

Saturated ruby to the rim. Aromas of blackberry, minerals, violet, licorice and mint. Dense, thick and silky; a large-scaled wine that somehow remains light on its feet. Finishes with utterly compelling floral perfume and superb spicy length. A wine of great finesse and potential.

Full bright ruby. High-toned, pure aromas of black cherry, licorice, violet and bitter chocolate. Powerful and very intense, with enticingly sweet black cherry and mocha flavors. A rare combination of strength and finesse. This may ultimately be sweeter and suppler than the '99. The tannins are currently covered by extremely persistent fruit. Mt. Veeder and Howell Mountain fruit comprise the core of this blend.

Saturated ruby. Brooding aromas of crystalized blackberry and cassis, licorice, minerals and violet. Very intensely flavored and bright, with terrific underlying structure; already boasts impressive complexity. Finishes firmly tannic and very long. For the first time, this wine is completely from Sonoma County fruit.

Bright medium ruby. Classy aromas of blackcurrant, dark chocolate, coffee, leather and tobacco. Firm, tightly wound and backward, with flavors similar to the aromas. Faint complicating note of game. Solidly structured, elegant wine, finishing with serious but fine tannins, a peppery nuance and excellent persistence. Softened nicely with time in the recorked bottle.

Classy aromas of blackcurrant, dark chocolate, coffee, leather and tobacco. Faint complicating note of game. Solidly structured, elegant wine, finishing with serious but firm tannins, a peppery nuance and excellent persistence.

Full medium ruby. Brooding aromas of cassis, bitter chocolate, coffee, minerals, cedar and tobacco. Lush, chewy, and sweet, with impressive density. Finishes with chewy thoroughly ripe mountian tannins and excellent length. Serious juice.

Full, deep ruby. Slightly musky aromas of cassis, blackberry, black cherry, tobacco and spices. Intensely flavored and pure but very tightly wound; black fruit flavors show a medicinal austerity. A powerful, penetrating wine whose tannins are firm but not hard. This and the Howell Mountain cabernet have delivered on their early promise.

Full deep ruby. Explosive aromas of kirsch, blackcurrant, plum syrup, tobacco, leather, gunflint and roasted herbs. Big, dense, sweet and lush; really snuffed with juicy fruit and framed by bright acidity. Long on personality. Finishes chewy, ripely tannic and long. Winemaker Christopher Carpenter carries out a pre-fermentation cold maceration, which he feels allows him to get more soil tones, then leaves the wine on its skins for a good 15 to 20 days following the end of the fermentation.

Effusively aromatic with succulent smells of ripe apples overlain with lots of sweet and creamy oak, this rich, big-bodied young wine lives up to billing in the mouth with broad, almost pulpy flavors that are long on juicy fruit. Sweet, creamy and colored by a hint of blossoms, the wine shades just slightly to softness in balance and comes up a winner among near-term contenders. A thoroughly enjoyable Chardonnay, it becomes even easier to like when its altogether inviting price is considered.

Good full red. Perfumed aromas of fresh red cherry, raspberry, lead pencil, tar and herbs. Large-scaled, plump and rich, with complex red fruit, earth and herbal flavors lifted by wild spices. Nicely restrained sweetness. An impressively dense, nuanced pinot noir that finishes with very fine tannins.

Full bright ruby. Aromas of black cherry, cassis and mint. Dense but backward, with sappy flavors of black cherry, cassis, minerals and mint. Finishes very long, with building, cheek-coating tannins. But in contrast to the Howell Mountain wine, this appears to have plenty of stuffing to support its tannic structure.