2022 Martin Ray Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma County 750 ml

Around the office, we play a game: What winery would you buy season tickets to? You’d have to buy a six-pack of every new wine they put out—out of your own pocket—without tasting it first. 

And the winery that always comes up is Martin Ray.

No one in the North Coast delivers their combination of captivating power and precision of flavor for the prices they charge—and their first ever Sonoma County Cabernet cements their status as the kings of value.

Made by 100-point consulting winemaker Keith Emerson and his elite team, and sourced from top terroirs in Alexander Valley, Dry Creek, and historic Sonoma Valley, this absolutely blew us away. It’s packed with dark fruit, yet silky smooth and rich.

Not every winemaker who excels in the $250 zone at places like Vineyard 29 can deliver such high quality in a value wine, but with this bottling, Emerson shows a range that may be wider than anyone else’s in the game. He and winemaker Leslie Mead Renaud use the same approach that typically merits sky-high prices, but deliver a weeknight treat. 

Labor intensive, small-lot winegrowing and harvesting techniques in some of the best Sonoma terroirs— Alexander Valley, Dry Creek, and Sonoma Valley all go into this bottling—make for superb grapes, which underwent two weeks of punchdowns in open-top fermenters before spending a full 16 months in 40% new French oak barrels. 

It’s a luxe touch, and it makes for a wine that’s rich and round, superb with food or on its own. Silky, decadent, delicious from the first sip and built to enjoy now, this bottle achieves a standard that few affordable wines from the region ever reach.