5/1/2024 - La Cave d'Argent wrote:

This straw-colored Chardonnay offers a moderately intense aromatic array of tangerines, white peaches, honeysuckle and crushed rocks. Medium-bodied, fresh and with imperceptible alcohol (listed as 13%), it delivers flavors in line with the aromas and has no detectable wood. Sadly, the mid-palate hollows out and the watery finish is quite terse. This is a disappointing effort from an otherwise quality producer. Popped and poured, it requires minimal aeration in order to fully show itself. Enclosed with a Diam 5 cork. Drink now-2026.

3/25/2024 - Bradley Love wrote:

Placed first in our blind tasting with some similar bottles from Oregon and California. Some funk at first with an hour decant but blew off by hour two. Strong red fruit. Should get better with time.

11/17/2023 - der Schmecker Likes this wine:

There is no reason you should know of this winery. 60 cases a year. Yeah, that’s family, friends and gifts.
The grapes are from a two-acre parcel in Yountville, California: that’s prime, top shelf, best you can get, Napa Cabernet Sauvignon.
Planetary Estate Polaris is a classic Napa Cabernet Sauvignon offering gorgeous fruit and the perfect amount of oak. There is concentration, lift and exquisite balance, and most importantly, this wine makes me grin with pleasure: it’s that satisfying! 14.1% alcohol.
My wife, who doesn’t usually drink red wine, kept on asking me for a sip from my glass.
This tastes like a $100+ bottle. Full disclosure: I stocked up on this and the 2018 Planetary Estate Polaris vintage before writing this tasting note. You should too.
Available at K&L who purchased all of the remaining cases. Thank you K&L!

3/5/2024 - yatchisin Likes this wine:

Probably no better SB Chardonnay for the price--very similar to the 2021. No oak at all so just lots of SB chard fruit (zippy citrus--maybe a bit more grapefruit this vintage?--, a hint of honeydew) and taut acidity. Delicious.

2/18/2024 - tedcholl Likes this wine:

'm in the wine club, originally for their excellent Zin but their Cab Sauv is also excellent. blackberry blueberry raspberry leather chocolate

12/5/2023 - fussyeater wrote:

Second bottle. As soon as cork is removed, once again I can see all kinds of detritus in the neck of the bottle, as if the wine has been eating and disintegrating the cork, which is all the more shocking on such a young wine. I had to decant this again as sediment everywhere, and crystals forming on the cork. I do wonder whether we would see such visible debris if it was instead stoppered with a natural cork or a Diam, although I would welcome the comments of anyone better informed. I do wonder if anyone else has to decant off visible debris?

Aside from that, it was very pure, crystalline, with a lovely texture and very decent (see my earlier CT note for more descriptors).

Not sure why some here have noted that Jim Marresh is trying to replicate Burgundy as Oregon can stand on its own two feet.

10/27/2023 - oldwines Likes this wine:

Another lovely bottle of this from the late Charlie Wagner...13% ABV in contrast to the 21st-century versions made by his son Chuck that usually come in at 15.5%+. Decanted at 5:30 pm and tasted mostly from 8:30-11pm. The mouthfeel on this was so velvety smooth and appealingly dense but fluid with no off-beat or hard edges to be had. Nose had layers of tobacco, cedar, vanilla, pecans, black and red berries, and spices. The palate was similarly complex and layered adding emphasis on different flavors at different times throughout the evening. Perhaps best when the last drops were poured after 5 1/2 hours! Very long on the finish, more than a minute. Perfectly mature, with only very slight bricking on the meniscus though hard to figure this will improve from here. It should continue on the peak plateau for some time, however.

11/8/2023 - ohne_musik wrote:

First go at this wine. Steely, a bit closed on the nose; light sponti. Palate is much more generous, a bit rich, with lime, pastry cream, apricots, smoky reduction, and crushed slate. Acid is pretty good, but may not be enough to make acid-heads happy, especially while there’s a bit of baby fat sticking around. Impression of fairly sweet finish for kabi, not quite balanced yet, but there is a lot of stuffing and I suspect this will improve with time.

Day 2, the acid and mineral are a bit more prominent, but still a bit of fleshiness that reads as baby fat. Hold for a few years before the next bottle.

10/28/2023 - stokeme wrote:

Light Cork & earth, not terroir type notes, more like dirt. No fruit, cork & earth on the palette, somewhat bitter + alcohol thru the finish. Tannic bite, not overly stiff. With air, the nose blows off some of the lesser attributes. In the mouth a suggestion of fruit, but still some cork on the finish. Just mostly dark & damp after an hour. Not much plum, cherry or berry.
I sure hope day 2 is better, &/or bottle 2 is better. 1 of 2

10/3/2023 - rmh66 wrote:

Note taken after a few days. Blackberries, plums, red cherry, earth, smoke (no, not that kind :-), a little graphite, herbs, and flowers (lilies) on the nose. Hmm, actually pretty much the same on the palate, though some spice comes through too. Lots of earth and minerals. Mouthwatering acidity, grippy, slightly chewy tannins, medium finish. Delicious. Drinkable now, though a few years will likely improve it. Fun to think about this wine in the context of the barrels that didn't make the cut in 2020.

7/2/2023 - stokeme wrote:

I’ve made a few trips the last several years down to So Central Coast … Lompoc, Solvang & Los Olivos, Los Alamos & Foxen Canyon, Santa Rita Hills, Bien Nacido & Solomon Hills. Stylistically, not really in that benchmark, not quite what I thought it would be. To me, fruit is a bit flat, not getting the racy vibrancy. Don’t think the MLF was a plus. 1 of 2

6/8/2023 - RichEB1 wrote:

Ughhh. This is a tough one. The nose is great and everything that you'd expect from a Bedrock/Monte Rosso.....but it falls really short on the palate. It starts off fine with some muddled raspberry but a very thin mouthfeel combined with a tannic bite on the short (fairly hot) finish makes for a very strange drinking experience. Not a horrible wine but certainly disappointing and not at all what you're looking for when you open one of these. Not sure what went wrong here??

4/27/2023 - tomlee wrote:

Crimson in color. 14.6% ABV. Savory nose of red fruits, citrus and plums. Medium body with medium acidity. Rustic, Claret style field blend. Cherry, blood orange, smoke and pepper on the palate. Nice length on the finish. So clearly from the Bedrock block at Papera where Zinfandel takes a back seat to the other varieties. Somewhat underwhelming given the hype for this particular wine. Best over the next 2-3 years.

12/31/2022 - stokeme Likes this wine:

Red plum, fresh cranberries, combined with lively acidity, add a piquant note to this engaging Lodi Zin. It is so refreshing to experience a different side to such a multifaceted varietal. Old vines with their own roots, coupled with a judicious approach, yield a noteworthy wine. This rendition paints a unique comparison to North Coast Zin. Euro style (for Lodi) with a long, lithe finish that developed further on Day 2. Ultralight tannins support every sip.
P.S … It’s funny the Victor vineyard area produced my whole bone-in Holiday Ham every Xmas until the plant shut down years ago. Victor (Fine Foods) Goehring Brand was a favorite, old school cured & smoked, from local hogs.

8/6/2022 - prism wrote:

Were this bottle not slightly oxidized, I think it would have been delicious and complex. As it was, it was drinkable, but with pleasure marred by the flaw. Stored well, purchased direct from vintner. First of four.

6/11/2022 - tomlee wrote:

Purple in color. 14.8% ABV. Awesome nose of black fruits, licorice and pepper. Medium to full bodied with mouth watering acidity. Black cherry, black raspberry, earth and pepper on the palate. Tremendous length on the finish with subtle, dusty tannins. About as good as Zinfandel gets from the Dry Creek Valley. Best over the next 4-6 years.

4/16/2022 - tomlee wrote:

Gold in color. 14.2% ABV. Gorgeous nose of tropical fruits, Meyer Lemon and vanilla bean. Full bodied with perfect acidity. Super lush and rich. Pear, pineapple, hazelnuts and lemon oil on the palate. Nice length on the finish. Absolutely delicious Chardonnay that I could drink all Spring and Summer. This will age well. Best over the next 2-4 years.

4/11/2022 - BeachMtnWineGuy wrote:

Hallmark cherry was there, but overall lack of fruit. Mineral taste, esp on finish. Better second day. Perhaps wait a bit.

4/7/2022 - Rodenbach99 Likes this wine:

Une belle robe violette qui trahit sa jeunesse. Le nez est encore passablement fermé avec des notes de fruits rouges et un bois bien présent mais pas désagréable. Il a passé 16 mois en fûts français et américains à 40% neuf. La bouche est puissante les tanins encore secs. Il est bien équilibré et pourra offrir du plaisir pour plusieurs années encore. À défaut d’être capable de se payer des vins cultes Martini nous offre la chance de boire un vrai Cabernet de Napa à un prix raisonnable, tout étant relatif.

12/24/2021 - Paul from the Oblong Table Likes this wine:

A wonderful bottle to help celebrate a milestone in my convalescence. A great doctors report this week has allowed me to both drive, and drink responsibly.

11/15/2021 - B Paul wrote:

Outstanding over two nights. Wide open at present. Apple, pear and florals. This is somewhat exotic and absolutely bursting with flavor, but at the same time remains elegant and relatively light. Will age well, but no regrets taking an early look as this is just flat out delicious.

6/4/2021 - Mark1npt wrote:

Trying hard to like this one, this vintage but it just isn't working. This remains thin in the mouth, light red in color, almost pinot-ish. Only a hint of fruit, no acidity, no flavor......very disappointing. Feels ike I got the bottom of the barrel with these two bottles and there's still one to go.....I think I'll gift it.

4/26/2021 - richshoes Likes this wine:

This bottle has generally disappointed me with just being too mellow with regard to flavor and structure, a little two dimensional...this one was awesome though--soft pencil lead and graphite, mellow tannins, medium bodied and refined/plush...feminine. Maybe it's just hitting it's peak lol?

7/25/2020 - stokeme wrote:

2 of 3 ... Initial impression w/o airing ... Smokey, slightly tarry, notes evident which blow off after several minutes. My barrel guess would be MT+ oak. The overall red fruit character is not as fresh but has broadened a bit. Cheery but lacking depth as it finishes. Still nice, especially with food, but does not approach the high bar set from the first half of the decade.

7/24/2020 - Paul from the Oblong Table Likes this wine:

It's not what goes with this, or that food--it's the quality of the wine itself. Tonight we went to a very plain low-cost dinner (sandwich and salad), but as a TREAT I brought this bottle. When following all of the rules of the Covid, what's one to do to work away from the doldrums? Drink good wine. There are many that would say that I'm crazy, but being an octogenarian, I'm not leaving it for my kids--and they wouldn't want me to.