2018 Martin Ray Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain District Napa Valley 750 ml

Martin Ray wines consistently deliver impressive value—but their 95-point 2018 Diamond Mountain Cabernet takes things to another level. 

High up in the Mayacamas Range, the Diamond Mountain District is the most rugged and sparsely planted appellation in all of Napa Valley, producing wines that have a unique power that reflects their rocky upbringing. Diamond Mountain releases from names like Hall, Davies, and Wallis Family all sport triple-digit price tags, with Lokoya fetching $400 a pop!

The wine comes from just one Diamond Mountain site: the Andrew Geoffrey Vineyard, a tiny 13-acre parcel perched 1800 feet up in the mountains. This vineyard supplies Lokoya’s Diamond Mountain Cabernet, and has a few other high-end clients: Cardinale, Haber Family...and Martin Ray, whose bottle brings everything we crave in a mountain-grown Cabernet—without the high-altitude price tag. 

A modern pioneer in producing some of the best Napa Cabs—and making them available at value prices rarely matched by his Valley brethren—Martin Ray was one of the original legends of California viticulture. 

Current owner Courtney Benham brought  on 100-point winemaker Keith Emerson—a huge move, especially when it comes to concocting super-premium Cabernet Sauvignon. Emerson’s experience as winemaker at Vineyard 29 and Robert Craig make him a Cab expert par excellence, and when he got a shot at a holy grail of Diamond Mountain vineyards—well, the result speaks for itself. 

The 2018 Martin Ray Cabernet Sauvignon proudly displays the bold signature of the appellation, showing massive concentration, powerful structure, and mineral-laced blackberry, cassis, and black-plum flavors.

It’s a pure expression of a top terroir, a seamless jewel with impeccable balance—and it’s one of the great Cabernet bargains of 2021.