Been on the list since 2008 and these are always a great QPR and a pleasure to drink. I see that Antonio Galloni gave ratings from the barrel for the 2015 Lore (92-95) and Panek (91-94) Has anyone else had the pleasure to try any of these out? Tasting notes are always appreciated from fellow Berserkers…
I am usually all in on the Napa Cab and pick and choose 1 or 2 from the single vineyards.
Better or around the same?
To be honest I have not had all of these. But with respect to myriad, quivet and outpost, the $60 entry level cabs are all in line with each other but once you hit the $90 range, the Rivers Marie is the QPR.
Trimming back on mailing lists a little this year but this is one I’ve been looking forward to.
Has anybody tasted these with Will? Not that I’m not buying, but just curious. I’m on the “buy producers not vintages in Napa” train at this point. If I remember, it wasn’t a particularly easy vintage to manage, but that reports were of good quality (and the expected small yields of the drought). Just kind of lost track! Thanks.
For those who haven’t bought, these are a must have.
For my palate, and talking specifically sub-$100 (not just $60-ish), I’d say that the Myriad GIII ($98), Scarlett ($65), and Bevan Ontogeny ($95) are three of the best QPR’s Napa Cab wise. These wines are hands down quality and drink WAY above their price points. The Outpost Cab and Immigrant, as well as the Carter Fortuna are up there as well. Again, for my palate, I find these wines often “better” given the totality of what they display. Of course, it depends on what you’re in the mood for on a given day.
I concede that their profiles are more concentrated and powerful than the RM line. RM Cabs have more restrained fruit and higher acid/frame (BDX hybrid) in comparison to the more forward Myriad, Outpost, etc. I like RM, but they really seem to need some time to unfurl. They are clearly well crafted animals, but sometimes the flavor intensity is on the lesser side and dominated by higher toned fruit and acid…for me personally. I’m still a fan… but there is a “but” there sometimes. It might be that I’m used to some of TRB’s other wines and I see RM as a bit of a departure from that…which is ok, but I love Outpost, Maybach, etc (which are bigger wines in my opinion).
That’s just my silly 2 cents though… 
What wines/producers would you say produce a style similar to RM for comparison purposes?
Yes.
With the same sub-$100 QPR… Cliff Lede Rockblock series ('12 Beautiful Generation; '13 Stardust Heaven - though their most recent vintage I think crept up above $100 for non-club folks), Switchback Ridge Cab (not the Reserve, which is bigger - and more expensive), Pott standard Cab (new for 2014), Rudius (who also pulls fruit from Panek), Arkenstone, Forman (even more BDX in style), The Grade (another TRB - though this was pretty flamboyant in 2014). I would say these are less forward and powerful than Mike Smith’s wines or some of TRB’s other projects.
At a high level I agree with your experience of different flavor profiles for these wines. I struggle, though, with declaring one best among the ones discussed here. I like them all, and enjoy the variety. Happily we can have them all, and pop whatever suits the mood. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
Agreed! All are quality. I think it just comes down to style preference at this point. The craftsmanship of the wines isn’t in question by any means. RM is good, and there are other profiles out there in similar QPRs that are also worthy of attention (depending on what you’re looking for in a Napa Cab).
So I’m new to their cab’s. Can someone explain the different profiles in the ones listed in the coming offer? I plan to get at least a couple of each, but am curious as to how they are different (I understand most haven’t tried these specific vintages yet. But in the past how are they typically different).
The actual offer will include a lot of good info on the individual wines. They seem pretty up front about which wines are closed down/open knit, red fruit/dark fruited, etc.
Hopefully someone with more experience than me can chime in. Corona was my previous favorite 
There is a good write up on each of the past vintages here.
Have purchased the Pinots a number of times from the list but haven’t taken the plunge (yet) on the Cabs. What am I missing? Are they a good value just for Napa Cabernet or for all Cabernet based wines?
Andy, do you have experience with TRB-made Cabernet?
If so, do you like them?
If your answer is “yes,” these are a no-brainer.
Cellar Tracker is a good resource to see what others’ experiences have been with the wines.
I like Rivers Marie Pinot and the Few chards I’ve had. I do not like most of TRB’s over the top jammy high octane wines that people pay him to make. From what I’ve had of RM they are a very different style to what TRB makes for others. I assume his RM cabs are also in the same more restrained style?
Andy - the RM cabs are in a more restrained style and suit my palate well. I stopped buying a few vintages back as the price headed towards $100 for the SVD. I’m probably going to jump back in and grab a few of the Panek.
Thanks
And Michael thanks for the link for them.