Beta Wines was built around a vineyard-first idea: seek out distinctive sites in Napa and Sonoma and give each one room to speak. Cabernet Sauvignon is the project’s center of gravity, which makes the Placida Vineyard Chardonnay particularly intriguing. It is a rare white wine from Ketan Mody, approached with the same interest in site, structure and restraint that defines Beta’s far better-known mountain Cabernets. Placida Vineyard is farmed by longtime Sonoma grower Chuy Ordaz near Sebastopol, in the cool southern reaches of the Russian River Valley. The vineyard was planted in 2003 and named for Ordaz’s grandmother and youngest daughter; in 2019, a portion of the site was converted to Chardonnay. Its Goldridge soils and cool position near the Russian River give Chardonnay the conditions to retain freshness while developing slowly, precisely the kind of vineyard personality Beta was created to explore. The 2021 captures that idea in an unusually restrained form. At just 12.7% alcohol, it stands well apart from the broader, riper style often associated with California Chardonnay, with the vintage delivering the acidity and tension Mody prizes. Beta held the wine for release until 2024, giving it time to settle before leaving the cellar. For a producer known almost entirely for Cabernet Sauvignon, Placida offers a fascinating look at the same philosophy through a completely different grape.