Shortly after Prohibition ended in 1933, the Reserve designation was given special meaning by Beaulieu Vineyard through its Private Reserve Napa Valley Cabernets. Other Napa Valley pioneers made special lots bottled under different designations. Inglenook used Limited Cask; Martini had its Special Selection; and Charles Krug went with Vintage Select. It's a testimony to Beaulieu's success that Reserve eventually stood out and came to be used, rightly or wrongly, by others.

To Beaulieu, its Private Reserve Cabernet represented the very best and the most distinctive wines in the cellar - a small fraction of the production that was set aside and given special treatment. Part of the assumption laid down and maintained for decades by the Beaulieu model was that a Reserve was qualitatively better. That is, it was distinctive and possessed a longer aging potential than the producer's other wines.

Because it was never regulated, however, the Reserve designation was vulnerable to abuse. By the early 1980s, the term was beginning to be sullied; by mid-decade it was taking a real beating, led by Glen Ellen, which had latched onto the marketing possibilities of offering a Proprietor's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon at down-and-dirty prices. The abuse continued as other producers followed suit. Beginning on a small scale, Kendall-Jackson Winery has charged ahead with its Vintner's Reserve Chardonnay, a product which is edging two million cases per year.

Picking up on the ploy, a growing number of Chilean wineries are now sending us alleged Reserve wines in large quantities.

Napa Valley's Beaulieu Vineyard and Beringer Vineyards, each with tremendously successful Reserve programs, are, like a number of other established names, in it for the long haul.

When it comes to defining a Reserve wine by example, Beringer and its Winemaker Ed Sbragia are hard to beat. Beringer defines Reserve as "the best wine Ed Sbragia can make from a vintage of a given varietal." Since 1977, its Private Reserve Cabernets have been made from different blends of different vineyards with the goal being to make "multilayered flavor profile Cabernets."

Other producers are trying their best to maintain some semblance of integrity by starting or revamping their Reserve programs.

The word coming from the Robert Mondavi Winery, however, is just the opposite. Fearing the Reserve term has lost its cachet, Mondavi, according to Patrick Mahaney, vice president of global wine quality, plans to gradually phase out the word Reserve for its top-of-the-line Cabernet, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Over the next few years, each of the present-day Reserve wines will carry a vineyard identity. For instance, the Cabernet Reserve will evolve into the To-Kalon Vineyard Cabernet, which is no major change since that vineyard has represented 50 to 90 percent of Mondavi's Reserve Cabernets over the last two decades.

In Sonoma County, Dry Creek Vineyard also has been an exemplary and longtime proponent of the Reserve concept. Dry Creek's Reserve Merlot may be the most underrated of all California wines, followed by Dry Creek's Reserve Zinfandel. "A Reserve wine must be better, more distinctive than the regular wine," says Winemaker Larry Levine, "and, if you are making a Reserve every year, then you are just kidding yourself." At Dry Creek, he adds, "we keep all vineyard lots separate, which gives us more than 100. If one or two stand out as better, and if their loss doesn't harm the regular wine, we consider making a Reserve."

"Winemaker's Reserve" is the term preferred by Chateau Souverain. Though pigeonholed as a "good-value winery," Souverain has been working on a Reserve line which, for Cabernet, began to develop into something special with the 1990 vintage. As Winemaker Ed Killian explains it, Souverain's Reserve Cabernets have a regional focus. "After each crush, we pull Reserve candidates from vineyard lots, and we look for lots that are classic examples of Alexander Valley specifically, and of the Cabernet varietal, in general." Both his '93 and '94 Winemaker's Reserve Cabernet are outstanding.

Back in Napa, veteran Winemaker Jill Davis has been defining a new Reserve program for William Hill Winery. Davis arrived there in 1994, and her impact on the Reserves begins to be felt with the 1995 reds and the '96 Chardonnay. "We use the Reserve designation sparingly," she explains. "Our Reserves are the best from the harvest, and they must exhibit beautifully balanced varietal character and excellent aging potential." Her '95 Reserve Cabernet, with its lush fruit and polished oak is a reflection of her commitment to the Reserve designation.

Having supervised the replanting of Chimney Rock's estate vineyard, Doug Fletcher has been able to redefine the winery's Reserve Cabernet. He selects "the best barrels of wine from the best vineyard blocks. The selected wine is aged in 100 percent new oak. On average, our Reserve Cabernet represents about three percent of what was available." The winery is also committed to a Meritage program led by its outstanding Élevage bottling.

From my vantage point, the image of Bordeaux-inspired blends, whether part of the Meritage group or not, has really gained credibility and momentum.

Encouraged by the rave reviews garnered by Phelp's Insignia, some winemakers are positioning their Cab blends into the top-of-the-line slot once held by wines labeled Reserve. Perhaps they are preparing for the time when the big-volume producers run the Reserve name into the ground.

Contributing Editor Norm Roby has reported on the West Coast wine scene for two decades. He publishes the Guide to Winery Direct Wines, a multimedia wine consumer journal that can be found at www.robywine.com.