May 5, 2024 - Herbs & minerals
December 2, 2023 - My first Beta from Vare Vineyard, and I have to say I like this even more than Montecillo. It’s old school Napa that I love. Cherries, raspberries, florals, a little herbal, it’s an elegant wine. Tannins are surprisingly velvety, and the ribeye we had with it elevated the enjoyment of the wine. No rush to drink this, but it is damn good now.
November 14, 2023 - Wow , this is so delicious and aromatic, quite a light expression of Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa. Next to a Lynxh Bages ( albeit 2018 but don’t get me wrong the Bages was excellent in-its own right), this beta cab is more aromatic, less alcoholic and equally savory on the palate. In a good sense the Beta wine did Not have any of that strong licorice note on the nose. Quite a good wine again , thanks Ketan!
Day 3 note : still going strong , tons of violets aromatically and while 12.5% alc it’s fairly long and lingering with a lighter touch almost tart sorta cab finish. Great stuff
June 14, 2022 - This was Bob's treat. What a wine, my highest score of the year. strong nose, floral, Bob mentioned violets. very balanced with good acidity and definately nice fruit. Some posters mentioned that it was light, I did not get that impression, although it is only 12.5% alcohol. I loved it...
June 12, 2022 - Intense scent of violets. Started a bit thin in body but really picked up weight with air. Great balance of fruit acidity and fine tannins. Special wine that is light, but very flavorful with amazingly well integrated acidity. Only 12.5% etoh!
March 11, 2022 - Decanted for 2 hours, into BDX-style glass.
The color is a true ruby with a rim that is shows some lightening. The nose is perplexing. There is a red-purple floral character, and the underlying fruit is definitely Cabernet in character. Nonetheless, it stays light and elegant on its feet. Swirling the glass emphasizes a violet-purple flower tone I have often found in Gamay from Morgon, but also brings some crushed white rock and leather. The palate is decidedly medium body. The fruit elegantly glides in a rather weightless fashion. I get ripe crushed raspberries, fresh blackberries, and maybe even some dark cherries. The tannins can be missed if you don't look for them, but they are there and extremely well integrated. The finish is a continuity of the acid and fruit from the palate, that transitions more into a floral-rocky note.
I want to be clear: this is *not* Napa Cabernet. This is an expression of a single-vineyard in Napa, and an expression of the winemaker's style. To understand this wine and appreciate it at its fullest, I believe you have to know Ketan's story and his ethos. It is elegant, ethereal, haunting, bringing you back for more to try to delineate and define this wine.
Drink now with a 4h decant, or hold for 5-7 years.
March 1, 2022 - Opened this while trying to decide about the 2017 release. I know these are meant to be long agers, but I can’t keep guying wines I haven’t tried. Tough situation!
Glad I opened, really enjoyed and the style is definitely for me even if a bit to young. Four hour decant, intense floral and fruited nose, less intense but still fruit in the palate, but also pepper and some herbs. Very tart cherry on the backend threw me off at first but I began to get used to it and the Finish was nice and long. Even better with food, just a steak salad, nothing fancy, but it really changed the wine and calmed the acid.
I also appreciate the low alcohol on this one.
In summary, I would have preferred not to open now because I think it will get much better in the long term, but delicious and interesting now if you must try.
February 27, 2022 - really enjoyed this. An array of fruits from red to black, warm gravel, and tobacco. This should age phenomenally. Would love to taste this again between 2030 and 2035.
January 12, 2022 - Lovely fruit driven nose with notes of red plums, cassis, cherries, and thyme. It's well balanced although quite light with nice acidity and good structure. Very juicy with lots of fruit and tart berries. Nice finish. Delicious wine that drinks well right now, but also has a very promising future ahead. Distinctively old school, I wish more producers would make Napa wines like this. 93++
November 26, 2021 - 92 today, 93 +with ?a decade?. This was my first Beta and it really surprised me with a unique expression of Napa. Just ripe enough Napa fruit with good sweetness and flavor (purple red) and fresh green herbs, on an elegant frame that recalled being made with an old world bent (but more nebbiolo/burdundy influence than a thick inky Bordeaux) and the herbal complexity being more of a refreshing seam than dominating in shroomy way. Highly structured with an obvious vanilla note today, that will need 5+ years to integrate an another 5+ years to blossom. If trying today, would recommend a quick taste on PNP and then an overnight double decant in the fridge rather than trying to break down that structure with only a couple hours in the decanter. Can debate the QPR at $100 (i.e. its not obvious), but I think it's reasonable for the quality and style of wine versus finding this in other wine regions. Truly looking forward to see what this wine becomes in a decade+.
**Update only 12.5% alcohol! explains the elegance and perhaps that slight twinge of greenness. A level of alcohol I appreciate!**