Cabernet Sauvignon is a spontaneous cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, and similar to the latter, the growth is vigorous and the shoots grow vertically, quite unlike Pinot Noir with its shoots that droop. Rattlesnake Canyon on the Berry ranch is an unusual site for Cabernet Sauvignon and produces some interesting wines. The fifty-year-old goblet-trained vines are planted on a rocky hillside; the steepest upper rows are terraced, while vines on the lower slopes are planted on a six-foot-by-six-foot grid. The well-drained, rocky soil controls the vigor and the upright growth on vines without a trellis allows Ed to disc under his vines and eliminate the weeds and grasses that compete for precious water and nutrients. Cabernet Sauvignon vines struggle on the thin soils of Rattlesnake Canyon, so the clusters are loose and the berries are small and round with thick, blue-black skins.

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