Archive for December, 2009

The Year In Review, The Year In Pictures: Monte Bello Style!

December 30, 2009

Greetings all!

Well, with the end of The Oughts now only hours away, I thought I’d take us all on a last look at the decade we’re about to leave behind, as it played out here on the mountain.

First off, January. A time of change, of beginnings. The world was alive with the spirit; Slovakia adopted the euro, Barack Obama’s election was certified by congress, Microsoft released Windows 7 in beta form, Hawaii became the first US state to convert to digital television, and Japan launched the world’s first greenhouse-gas-monitoring satellite. Yes, it was indeed the dawn of the year, and a time to bask in the new. So how’s about a new full moon over Monte Bello, and the first After-Hours Member Event of 2009!

Which takes us to February, when, after but a brief respite, the vineyards once again began to clamor for attention, and accordingly, the hard-working tenders of these most mojo-laden beauties recommenced their holy labors.

March is always very exciting at Monte Bello, because that’s when we traditionally host our first Monte Bello Collector Assemblage Tasting; this year, it was the 2008 vintage of Monte Bello on offer, and the March tasting was the “Component Tasting,” meaning guests were able to separately sample juice from all four of the Bordeaux varietals that we grow here on Monte Bello: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. And they were able to do so in the company of our esteemed winemakers Paul Draper and Eric Baugher!

April. Another time of beginnings, of new life and lives. Iowa’s Supreme Court legalizes gay marriage. Captain Richard Phillips is rescued from Somali pirates. The Pitcairn Islands abolish Prohibition. It was indeed the springtime of our lives. There, everywhere, and here. Yes, in April, a new sense of the new pervaded our mountain as we welcomed Spring to Monte Bello; in this case, it came in the form of our first King Snake sighting of the season, and the onset of new planting in the vineyards!

May can oft be a bittersweet month on the mountain, for Spring already is beginning its transformation into Summer; and while the vines welcome the heat, and the flowers are as lovely as ever, once can’t help but sometimes wonder where the time goes … It seemed like only yesterday that Carol Ann Duffy became the UKs first female Poet Laureate, that Kris Allen won American Idol, that Robin Soderling upset Rafael Nadal in the French Open … indeed, where does the time go?

And then just like that, the mountain throws the pitch you weren’t expecting, and you’re left standing at the plate with your bat in the wrong place, an elbow out of joint, and a comical expression on your face. Because you expected the heat, and instead, you got a change-up outside:

While July was certainly an exciting month for the world-at-large (three different dinosaur species discovered in Australia, the resignation of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Al Franken sworn in as a US senator, the longest solar eclipse of the 21st century taking place) July was really more sort of a personal milestone for me; a tasting experience I’ll never forget. Two wines, side-by-side, tasted blind. When the proverbial veils were lifted, I was stunned to find out I’d just tried, for the very first time, the 1977 Monte Bello! Ah, July ’09, together through the years we’ll always walk …

Which brings us to August, a month of exciting discovery on Monte Bello, as it was across the globe; rare Buddhist treasures in the Gobi Desert, new Mozart works in Vienna, 350 new species of plants and amphibians in the Himalayas, and here on the mountain, one of the coolest spiderwebs I’ve ever seen, and one of the oldest corkscrews I’ve ever seen! The spiderweb hung in the window of our barn, and the corkscrew was unearthed during some site construction on one of the old buildings on our property. Ghost of Days In The Vineyard past? Long-time Ridgers, you know what I’m talkin’ ’bout!

September was a tremendously exciting time on the mountain, as final assembly construction on our new, ten-years-in-the-making grape sorting system began! (Albeit a little close for comfort, with harvest only weeks away!!!)

And then along came harvest! (Sung to the tune of “Along Comes Mary” by The Association, 1966!)

In November, in advance of the Retail Department’s big move to new offices at our Warehouse, The Gang gathered amidst the remnants of Harvest Party decorations for a commemorative photograph, to celebrate our shared past together, and to toast a new era:

And finally, December. The closing of the decade. Momentous to the nth. Controversies abounding. 30,000 new troops to Afghanistan. The Tiger Woods scandal. The Thierry Henry handball incident. The Amanda Knox guilty verdict. Barack Obama accepting the Nobel Peace Prize. The discovery of GJ 1214b. The rise of Rage Against The Machine’s 1992 track “Killing In The Name” to the top of the UK Christmas charts. The attack on Pope Benedict XVI. You’d be forgiven for not knowing which way was up anymore. But here on the mountain, in the secluded environs of Monte Bello, all was peaceful, as our eyes were serenaded by the sweet harmonies of snowfall:

Yes indeed, it’s been quite a year, for us, and for the world. On behalf of all of us here at Ridge, we sincerely hope each of you can look back on the preceding twelve months with a peaceful heart, a rested mind, and a tranquil soul. And we most definitely hope you can look forward as well, with hope in your hands, dreams in your days, and passion in your progress. The Oughts were an adventure we experienced both apart and together, and the new decade awaiting will bring us more of the same; the private journeys of our inner lives, and the public expressions of our shared challenges and grandeurs. And while wine, and all that its world encompasses, is but a tiny component in the vast architecture of your complex existences, we hope that the offerings Ridge makes to your world vintage after vintage after vintage in some way serve to lighten your burdens, invigorate your spirits, and perhaps most of all, to operate as an awareness ritual of sorts, causing you to slow for a moment, to pause, to reflect, to remember pleasure, and peace, and unity of spirit and soul. If by our labors we can, but for a moment, bring a smile to your faces, a warmth to your bellies, a quiet to the caverns of your mind’s busy orchestras, then we too can look back on a decade and feel satisfied.

To you all, we say “Alla Famiglia!” Farewell to The Oughts, and hello to The Tens!

Posted in Viticultural Salmagundi, Wine Tales, History, Monte Bello, Events & Photographs | 3 Comments »

End Of Year Matters -or- What Mattered Most Online In Wine At The End Of The Oughts!

December 22, 2009

So, what with the end of the Oughts nearly upon us, I’ve been of course thinking of a way to wrap 2009 things up on the blog, and I have to thank Steve Heimoff of Wine Enthusiast for providing a rather excellent mechanism by which to do so; in the December 31 issue of Wine Enthusiast, Steve writes a column entitled “Wine Online in 2009,” in which he lays out his candidates for the Top 10 Issues that most captivated the wine blogosphere this year.

Given that Ridge and myself are proud participants in said blogosphere, I wanted to make sure I offered at least two cents worth of perspective on each of these ten items. So here goes!

The Recession

The Big R. Of course it’s been a topic of conversation, and we’ve all been analyzing the effects and repercussions from all angles.  Conventional wisdom in the world of wine seems to be that, while people are certainly having to tighten their belts, the recession isn’t keeping them from drinking wine per se, but rather, it’s forcing them to purchase wines at a lower price point, and do so “directly,” as opposed to in restaurants.

While Ridge wines aren’t what myself or anyone else would probably consider to be entry-level priced, I do think that judged on a price-break-to-quality ratio, we consistently offer a tremendous caliber of wine for the money. But that doesn’t change the reality that our prices may be above the level below which wine purchasers are currently looking for offerings. And while we accordingly have certainly seen some challenges on the wholesale and export side of the equation, our direct-to-consumer sales have actually been notably solid.

Which brings me to the issue of buying “directly.” I think that, while the recession has certainly been a factor, there is something else at work here as well, the ever-increasing confidence, sophistication, and knowledge of the American Wine Drinker. Combining personal experience with unprecedented technological access (are you too seeing more and more diners in restaurants using IPhones and the like to look up wine ratings as they peruse the wine lists?), the American Wine Drinker seems to be feeling progressively more and more able to make informed wine choices themselves, without relying on wine lists, sommeliers, or shelf talkers in retail shops. So why not come directly to the source?

And this returns us to the recession. What better way to engage in a “staycation” then to spend a day picnicking and wine tasting? I think what he have on our hands is potentially a new model for wine consumption in our country. It’s less expensive, yet more involved; more engaged, yet less confusing; and it’s more educational, yet more fun. It begins with some time spent perusing some favorite wine blogs (no subscription costs!), then heading off to a favorite tasting room or two (an excellent opportunity to taste before you purchase, and learn before you taste!), stopping only to pick up supplies for a picnic (cheaper than a restaurant!), and ending on the grounds of a favorite producer’s vineyards, with a lovely bottle of wine (no restaurant mark-up!), great food, and great company.

If that’s somewhat transparent, so be it! Of course I’m describing an afternoon spent at our Lytton Springs and/or Monte Bello Tasting Rooms, but in all honesty, I think the experiences we can offer are a perfect antidote to the recession, and I hope we’ll be able to welcome every single one of you at some point in the not-too-distant future!

The 100-Point System

I have to say, this hasn’t been of much concern to us here at RIDGE. While we’ve of course been fortunate to receive some lovely scores from many reputable wine critics and commentators over the years, RIDGE is a producer that has always favored philosophy over facts, and in the end, while the point system may function as a handy sort of shorthand, my feeling is that the best reviews are potentially the longest, and certainly the most insightful, and most expressive. Writing about wine is potentially just as much an art as is creating it, in that, like all art forms, one is essentially trying to express the internally inexpressible in some external fashion, and while it’s by definition never wholly possible, the wine writer who is able to inspire us by their words to experience anew the artisanal gift of a fine bottle of wine has done an artist’s job, point system or no.

Blind Tasting vs. Open

While it would certainly be easy to agree with the vast majority of people who favor blind tasting, I think I’m going to take the rather more controversial road here, and offer a vote in favor of open tasting. Why? Because blind tasting removes something from the tasting experience that I believe to be vital in assessing the character and quality of a wine; the INTENTIONS of the winemaker!

For example, let’s say you taste a wine blind, and you note it to be reasonably light-bodied, not overtly complex, pleasantly fruit-forward without being notably opulent, and not overtly structure-forward, featuring fairly soft acidity and only mildly chalky tannins. Your summary? Maybe you’d classify it as a spring-summer sipper, to be enjoyed in its youth. You judge it to be very pleasant, and give it a good, if not great, rating. Ok, fine. But what if the winemaker’s intention was to craft a wine with substantive cellarability virtually written into the wine’s DNA? With all the attendant complexity and sophistication such a wine must exhibit? Wouldn’t you have to consider the wine a bit of a disappointment, if not an out and out failure, if this was the case? But you wouldn’t be able to do this, because you wouldn’t know anything about the winemaker!

Speaking from the Ridge side of things, and as noted above, we’ve always been about philosophy as much as facts; art as much as science; agrarian traditions as much as technological ones, etc., and accordingly, intention is a big part of what we do. I’m not sure one can truly and properly assess a Ridge wine without some degree of understanding about WHY it tastes the way it does; WHY it was made the way it was made. The problem with blind tasting is that it assumes tasting is only that, tasting. But taste isn’t all that makes a wine unique.

Making Wine More Accessible To A New Generation

I’m actually going to run with a thread Mr. Heimoff himself touches upon in his article, and ask the following: does anyone else out there find it somewhat condescending the extent to which people seem to think that reaching a younger generation of potential wine consumers has to mean simplifying things? While I of course can recognize that some of the review and discourse models out there are crafted in the spirit of puncturing the oft preponderant pomposities that have historically surrounded the wine industry, many of the new wine blogs, wine shows, wine articles, etc. out there that have touched on this issue seems to be obsessed with the idea of, as Mr. Heimoff writes, “making wine simple,” of “taking the mystery out of wine.” Why? Are younger wine consumers incapable of grasping complexities? Are younger wine consumers incapable of appreciating, pursuing, and unraveling mystery? I am going to essentially agree with Mr. Heimoff on this one, and argue that a new generation deserves the same respect as any preceding generation, and accordingly, all of us who work with, and write about, fine wines should give younger people interested in wine the benefit of doubt, and assume sophistication on their parts. The words may be different, the slang different, the colloquialisms different, the methods of information transference different, but that’s no reason to assume the content is any less complex.

Credibility

The issue here, in terms of it being a hot-button topic, seems to be the question of who has the right to speak on wine, and who should be listened to. Conventional wisdom would seem to suggest that it’s a battle between the old guard (print media, Robert Parker, etc.) vs. the new guard (wine blogs, Gary Veynerchuk, etc.), with the old guard maintaining that their experience, skill, knowledge, and seriousness of purpose equates to a solid rationale for their continued dominance in the oenologist’s marketplace of ideas,  and with the new guard maintaining that it’s a new world out there, a digital democracy, and the dinosaurs are dead and need to realize it.

In the end, I think the whole debate is pretty silly. Credibility, to my way of thinking, comes with accountability, which comes with scales of exposure. For example, if you write a wine blog, and no one reads it, then there is no one to check your facts. You could write alot of really inane things, and pass it off as gospel. Accordingly, it’s not likely your blog should be recommended to those looking to expand their wine knowledge. Alternatively, if you write a wine blog, and hundreds of thousands of people read it, chances are you’re going to get caught out if you don’t know what you’re talking about. Accordingly, it’s probably a pretty safe recommendation to send a viticultural mendicant looking for salvation your blog’s way. Credibility comes from accountability. The greater your scale of exposure, the harder you have to work to make sure you’ve got your s$%t together. Remember, Robert Parker started out with a direct-mail newsletter that no one had ever heard of …

Deconstruction

Not entirely sure why Mr. Heimoff made this a separate category, as the issues are essentially the same as the “younger generation” topic, that is, what’s essentially at issue is the question of whether wine needs to be “simplified” in order to generate interest. So I’ll skip repeating what I’ve written above, and instead offer a tangential defense of complexity over simplification; take classical music. To the uninitiated or uninterested, it can all just sound like a bunch of stringed instruments screeching along to no apparent purpose. But as you start to learn about it, you start to be able to, for example, identify different instruments (oboe, flute, viola), or different sections (allegro, scherzo, rondo), different composers (Beethoven, Dvorak, Ives), even different performances (Mahler’s 5th, with the San Francisco Symphony, conducted my Michael Tilson Thomas); in short, your understanding deepens, and your appreciation grows. Put another way, with knowledge comes pleasure. Wine is no different. Deconstruction in the service of understanding? Certainly. Deconstruction is the service of simplification? Why?

Oak, Extraction, and the International Style

Well, I’m very proud to say that I think Ridge is an American producer that falls on the right side of this equation. While there are certainly those out there who may not be fans of our wines, I think it’s pretty rare that we’re accused of over-oaking or over-extracting, and our wines have consistently remained at alcohol levels far below the current averages. Accordingly, I think my personal stance is pretty clear; I’m here at Ridge because I believe in Ridge; what Ridge does, and how Ridge does it.

I will add one more thought though, somewhat in keeping with my perspectives above as regards a sea change in the character of the American Wine Drinker. If for no other reason than perhaps the incessant proliferation of food shows on television, I think we as a country are starting to finally get our heads around food and wine pairing, and accordingly, fruit and alcohol are slowly retreating to the back seat, while things like acidity, spice, and herbality are edging closer and closer to the driver’s seat. Traditionally, and probably as recently as 10 years ago, wine in this country was unqualifiedly an alcoholic beverage; nothing more and nothing less. I look forward to the coming day, growing ever closer all the time, when we, like much of the “international” world, come to understand wine as but one component of the meal. A vital component, certainly, but a food item all the same. As the perfectly made sauce makes the entree, so the perfect wine completes the meal.

Video

Mr. Heimoff notes in his article that more and more wine bloggers are experimenting with video. Well, all I can say is that my video on this blog of how to use an Ah So Cork Puller is one of the most regularly visited posts yet offered on 4488: A Ridge Blog. So there. Whatever that means.

And that’s it for ’09, and that’s it for The Oughts!

All the best of the holiday season to  you and yours, and may the new year bring happiness and safety to us all! Cheers!

p.s. a special thank you to Steve Heimoff and Wine Enthusiast, for providing the architecture upon which to hang this little house of words …

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Posted in Viticultural Salmagundi | 3 Comments »

Bloomberg.com Top 10 Wines Of The Year! (Hint: There’s Monte Bello In Them Thar Hills!)

December 21, 2009

Wonderful news! Elin McCoy, wine writer for Bloomberg.com, has just released a Top 10 Wines of 2009 List, and guess what’s on it? The 1989 Monte Bello!

“Filled with lush cassis and earth flavors, this has an elegant balance (13.5 percent alcohol) that’s all too rare in top California cabs.”

To see the full list, you can click here, and for more information about the 1989 Monte Bello, please click here.

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Posted in Monte Bello, Press Reviews | Leave a Comment »

Winter Wine Series: The Finale!

December 18, 2009

This Saturday will be the final edition of Winter Wine Series in the Ridge Vineyards Tasting Rooms (Lytton Springs & Monte Bello), and we’re closing out the run with a lovely selection of wines to sample. As we always do with Winter Wine Series, we’ll be featuring wines from some our specially assembled Holiday Gift Packs, and for this final Saturday, we’ll be presenting wines from our “Buchignani” Holiday Pack, and our “ATP” Holiday Pack. Which means guests will not only have the opportunity to taste some of our most limited-production, winery-only offerings, but they will also be afforded the chance to sample wines crafted from some of the oldest plantings in our portfolio.

Let’s take a look at the Buchigani pack first. This is a two-bottle offering consisting of wines from the Buchignani Ranch, a beautiful old-vine vineyard located on the Northwestern edge of the Alexander Valley appellation, in the hills bordering the upper Dry Creek Valley appellation. Specifically, Stan Buchignani’s ranch is located on Dutcher Creek Road.

The wines on offer are the 2005 Buchignani Ranch Zinfandel, and the 2007 Buchignani Ranch Carigane. The carignane in particular is quite a singular wine; a rare case of carignane being offered in solo-varietal capacity.

The majority of the vineyard’s carignane was planted in the 1940s. Stan’s grandfather, Dominico Cerruti, planted the first block in 1927; his father, Dino, planted the last in the early 1950s. The vineyard’s climate bears a strong resemblance to that of upper Dry Creek Valley three miles to the south, where days are warm. Fog, which tends to hang low in the valley, burns off sooner in the hills. Carignane from Buchignani is complex, its fine structure much like that of a field-blend zinfandel. The zinfandel from this property is equally notable; the zinfandel block, approximately five acres in size, was planted in the 1940s and ’50s on a rocky knoll overlooking the family home, where Stan Buchignani, grandson of the ranch’s founder, Dominico Cerruti, lives today. Together, these wines reflect a truly remarkable property in all its rustic glory.

And now, on to the “ATP” pack. For those of you who might not be familiar, ATP stands for Advance Tasting Program, and it is one of our three member programs here at Ridge.  Launched in 1978, the Advance Tasting Program (ATP) provides members the opportunity to receive very limited, single-vineyard wines. Though past releases have included several other varietals, zinfandel and Rhone blends remain the primary focus.

For this particular Holiday Pack, we have selected a trio of zinfandels from three very unique properties; the 2004 Oltranti, the 2006 Old School, and the 2006 Dusi Ranch. The Oltranti and the Old School vineyards are both located in Alexander Valley, and the Dusi Ranch down in Paso Robles. This affords tasters an excellent opportunity to assess the degree to which micro-climatic singularities (terroir, if you will) can deeply affect the character of a wine. Plus, we have different vintages on offer here, 2004 for the Oltranti, and 2006 for both the Old School and the Dusi; an equally instructive opportunity, allowing for a look at how bottle age and maturation will develop the aesthetic profile of a wine. And lastly, we have some great family history here as well; with both the Oltranti and the Dusi Ranch, guests will be sampling the wares of dedicated family producers. Niccolo and Flora Oltranti purchased the old Mazzoni Home Ranch in 1987 (where the Oltranti planting is located). They set about restoring this historic property, working on the buildings and tending the surviving nineteenth-century vines. Once the old vines recovered, Nic and son Paul turned to the abandoned hillside vineyards above. Replanted to an old zinfandel field selection, these young vines (the Oltranti planting) have begun to produce the quality that seems inherent to this exceptional zinfandel site. And as to the Dusi Ranch property, Ridge and the Dusis go way back. The zinfandel on this Paso Robles ranch was first planted in 1923. It was purchased soon after by Sylvester and Catarina Dusi, who raised three sons there—Guido, Dante, and Benito. When Guido and Dante went to war in 1944, vineyard cultivation was left to Sylvester and young Benito—eleven at the time. Beni, as his many friends call him, maintained the vines from then on. Ridge’s long relationship with Beni and the Dusi vineyard began when Dave Bennion—scouting the area in 1967—knocked on the Dusi’s door and asked to buy five tons of grapes.

And that’s the scoop on this weekend’s offering! If you will be in the area of either Lytton Springs or Monte Bello, I heartily encourage you to stop in and sample these fine offerings. Looking forward to seeing you! And don’t forget, net proceeds from all the tasting fees for Winter Wine Series are being donated to local food banks!

Second Harvest (at Monte Bello)
Redwood Empire Food Bank  (at Lytton Springs)

For more information about Winter Wine Series please click here, to see the weekend tasting flights for Lytton Springs please click here, and to see the weekend tasting flights for Monte Bello please click here.

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Posted in Carignane, Events & Photographs, History, Lytton, Monte Bello, Special Offerings, Tasting Flights, Tasting Rooms, Varietals & Blends, Vineyards and Oenology, Viticultural Salmagundi, Zinfandel | Leave a Comment »

Late-Picked: The Dusi Tales

December 17, 2009

With the recent release of our Ridge 2007 California Zinfandel Dusi Ranch Late Harvest,  

  

I find that I am on the receiving end of a lot of interested and engaged questions; both about this wine specifically, and about Late Harvest wines in general. So, I thought I’d try to make available some explanatory details, courtesy of our own Paul Draper and Eric Baugher.  

Paul has put together a brief document that roughly outlines the definitions we utilize in categorizing Essence wines, Late-Picked wines, and Late-Harvest wines, and explains some of the winemaking techniques associated with these categories. The text is below:  

ESSENCE vs LATE HARVEST vs LATE PICKED  

What classifies a wine as an ESSENCE?  

  • The wine was vinified from grapes that were intentionally left to hang on the vine for an extended period of time.  During this added length of time, the grapes concentrate the flavor and sugar by on-the-vine dehydration.  Typically the sugar, when picked, exceeds 35oBrix. (Although this is impossible to measure due to the soak out effect of the dehydrated berries.)
  • The fermentation typically stops naturally at an alcohol content between 10.5 – 13% v/v with substantial residual sugar remaining (generally 6-10+% w/v).  The combination of high alcohol and residual sugar content creates an intolerable living condition for saccharomyces cerevisiae (and most other microbes, including acetobacter) due to osmotic pressure within their cell walls. This allows the wine natural stability from future spoilage while aging. 
  • Generally this natural stability allows for bottling without filtration, and therefore occasionally one may find sediment in such bottlings.
  • The typical attributes for essences are: unctuous ripeness, jam, plum, raisin, candied fruit.  The palate tends to be amazingly thick, heavy, viscous-syrup, dense exotic fruit definition, and spicy.
  • Sugar is a natural preservative to allow for extended bottle aging.  An essence, 30 year old, will still have amazing depth of flavors, color, and richness.  The complexity increases as the essence takes on caramel- like flavors as the primary sugar combine into more complex polysaccharides.  

   

What classifies a Late Harvest & Late Picked?  

  • Both late harvest and late picked wines are vinified from grapes from a particular parcel that could not be picked soon enough.  Zinfandel, with its soft skin and clusters exposed to the sun, tend to be sensitive to dehydration effect from heat.  If there is a heat spell during the Zinfandel harvest, the sugar content can rise 1/2o Brix per day. If all the Zinfandel blocks are simultaneously experiencing this rapid sugar increase, some blocks inherently will experience a greater sugar increase as they wait to be picked. (there is only so much that can be picked in a day and brought into both wineries to be fermented)
  • The distinguishing factors between a Late Picked and Late Harvest are linked to flavor ripeness, richness, and character of the structure.  Our general definition for a late picked is the completion of primary fermentation with alcohol reaching 15+% v/v with a trace amount of residual sugar (typically less than 0.5% w/v.)  The flavors are pure in zinfandel fruit definition (i.e. raspberry, cherry, boysenberry etc), there generally is not a port-like element nor raisin quality. A late picked wine will lack the sugar coating effect over tannin, thus allowing the wine’s structure to show.
  • However, a Late Harvest, reached a higher initial sugar, and as the yeast finished the primary fermentation, the resultant wine retained residual sugar in the range of 1-4% w/v while reaching alcohol levels in the 15+% range.  A Late Harvest wine will have a very rich and ripe jam quality with light port-like elements (raisin-prune.)  The palate is substantially more coated by viscous sugar covering most of the tannins. Like and essence, a Late Harvest has longevity of aging potential.
  • Generally, both wine types will not have the natural wine stability to protect from microbes.  Both styles will undergo the same type of cellar treatment as regular wines for protection of the wine as it goes to bottle.

   

For some specific information about this wine in particular, courtesy of Eric Baugher, please read on!   

The zinfandel on this Paso Robles ranch was planted in 1923. It was purchased soon after by Sylvester and Catarina Dusi, who raised three sons there—Guido, Dante, and Benito. When Guido and Dante went to war in 1944, vineyard cultivation was left to their father and young Benito—eleven years old at the time. Beni, as his many friends call him, maintained the vines from then on. Ridge’s long relationship with Beni and the Dusi vineyard began when Dave Bennion—scouting the area in 1967—knocked on the Dusis’ door and asked to buy five tons of grapes.

First Ridge Dusi Ranch

1967

Location

Between the Santa Lucia Range and the Chalone Hills. One quarter mile east of Highway 101.

Soils

Well-drained, composed of river rock and light sandy loam.

Vines

Zinfandel, planted 1923.

Training

Head trained (no trellis), spur pruned.

Yield

Three tons per acre

Rainfall

10 inches (below average)

Bloom

Early June

Weather

Warm spring, dry, hot summer and fall

Harvest dates

5 September

Grapes

Average brix 25.8°

Fermentation

Natural primary and secondary. Pressed at seven days. 100% submerged cap fermentation;

Aging

Air-dried american oak, 16% new, 21% two years old, and 63% three to five years old.

Time in barrel

Nine months

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Posted in Paul Draper, Tasting Notes, Varietals & Blends, Vineyards and Oenology, Viticultural Salmagundi, Winemaking, Zinfandel | 5 Comments »

Impeccably Excellent Monte Bello Vertical: Tasting Notes By John Tilson

December 17, 2009

Are you familiar with The Underground Wine Letter? If not, I heartily recommend it to anyone with an interest in fine wine. It’s written by John Tilson, who is a much revered (and rightly so!) collector of, and commentator upon, fine wines. From his bio:

John was founder and managing editor of The Underground Wine Journal  and co-editor of Rarities. He has been collecting and tasting wine for over 35 years and is recognized as one of the first unbiased wine authorities published in the United States.  As a prominent investment manager, wine was always a true passion, rather than vocation, consequently, Tilson has had neither hidden agendas nor obligations to fulfill.  In his  tastings and trips to global winegrowing regions, he tastes thousands of wines every year. While John is very knowledgeable in California and multiple European wine regions, he is renowned for his Burgundy expertise and palate, having collected, tasted and written about the region and its wines for more than three decades.

Did you ever happen to read The Underground Wine Journal when it was being printed in hard copy? Quite old school it was, and very excellent …

 

Anyhow, to get to the point, John Tilson hosted an extraordinary dinner back in April of this year, billed as a “Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Retrospective Dinner,” and from it we now have a brilliant tasting note record of what was sampled that fine night. It’s one of the more comprehensive looks at contemporary Monte Bello vintages I’ve seen in some time, and for those of you out there who are either sitting on back-vintage Monte Bellos wondering how they’re progressing, or are considering investing in some Monte Bello in the near feature and are wondering which vintages to be considering, I heartily recommend reviewing Mr. Tilson’s notes, as they offer a genuinely engaged, intelligent, and passionate critical overview of Monte Bello from 1984 through to the 2008 as-of-yet-unreleased vintage (minus a couple vintages along the way …).

The descriptions of the dinner itself are excellent as well, as is the brief but very insightful “history” of Monte Bello that Tilson provides. The dinner menu alone is essentially a clinic in wine and food pairing; dig the offerings!

The dinner commenced with House-Smoked Copper River Salmon and Carpaccio of Jicama and Golden Beets, a delicious backdrop for the 1999 Ridge Monte Bello Chardonnay.

The second course, Wild Mushroom Lasagna and Braised Fennel & Sunchoke Coulis, was beautifully matched with Monte Bello Cabernets from the vintages of 2004, 2003, 2001 and 2000.

Four Monte Bello wines from 1999, 1998, 1997 and 1996 were perfect complements for a Crisp Sous Vide Pork Belly and Farmers Market Baby Beets & Beetroot Coulis.

A fourth course presented Roast Squab with Foie Gras Stuffing and Apple, St. Andre Brulee Crostini & Huckleberry Essence, accompanied by Monte Bello wines from 1993, 1992, 1990 and 1989.

Four vintages of Monte Bello, 1987, 1986, 1985 and 1984 were an exceptional match for Roast Venison Loin, Sun Drenched Cherry Crust, Chanterelle & Fingerling Potato Galette, Stuffed Zucchini Blossom & Fava Beans.

A wonderful finale, Raspberry Semifreddo & Poached Pear Canola with Assorted Chocolates, was complemented by Alain Renardat Vin du Bugey “Cerdon” Sparkling Rose.

You can find all the tasting notes and commentary here. And I’ll leave you with the concluding paragraph from Mr. Tilson’s write-up, just to wet your proverbial whistle, as it were:

American wines have no classification as they do in Bordeaux, because they do not have the history.  Except at Ridge. Ridge has the longest history of producing the best Cabernets of any California winery existing today.  If any wine ever earned the right to be a first growth, it has to be Ridge Monte Bello.  Others may follow, but for now there is only one!   If there is a wine that one could feel very confident in buying every year, it is Ridge Monte Bello.

Hear hear! And cheers! And thank you John Tilson for the extraordinary record of an extraordinary event sampling extraordinary wines and food!

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Posted in Viticultural Salmagundi, Varietals & Blends, Wine Tales, Food & Wine Pairing, Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux varietals, History, Monte Bello, Tasting Notes, Press Reviews, Vineyards and Oenology, Wine Blogs, Winemaking, Paul Draper | Leave a Comment »

Three Vintage Vertical of Geyserville: Tasting Notes

December 10, 2009

So, I guess I’ve just got Geyserville on the brain, or maybe Geyserville has me on its mind? Whatever, one way or another, me and Geyserville seem to be dancing in the same ballroom these days. Coming on the heels of the good news from the San Francisco Chronicle (see previous post) comes a lovely afternoon spent at the Upper Winery tasting three vintages of Geyserville! Oh, and a sneak preview of the 2008 Geyserville! Oh, oh, and a sneak peak component tasting of the 2009! Geyservilles and Verticals and Components, oh my!

Anyhow, needless to say, it was a glorious tasting. We first blind tasted the 2005, 2006, and 2007 vintages, with the 2008 thrown in for good measure. And then the 2009 components followed. And throughout, there was cheese! (See below). In this case, Humboldt Fog  and Teleme , two of our favorite cheeses to pair with Ridge wines …

Below please find some tasting notes on what we tasted; the notes are an assemblage of sorts consisting of my notes, plus those of Paul Draper and Eric Baugher. Enjoy!

Oh, wait! Before we get into the notes, I have very, very, very, very good news! As yet another example of Geyserville synchronicity, one more instance in which the Geyserville and I are motorcycling down the same stretch of Route 66, one more night of Geyserville and I playing Thelonious Monk tunes in the same combo, I’m very happy to tell you that, for the second edition of Winter Wine Series  (coming this Saturday!), we’ll be pouring, in addition to the Lytton Duo Holiday Pack, the Geyserville Vertical Holiday Pack! (This consists of the 2003, 2004, and 2005 vintages, and they’re all delicious!)

Ok, on to the tasting notes. First, the 05, 06, and 07 vertical:

2005 Geyserville

Darkish magenta belly with a lovely raspberry-toned limn. Medium-viscosity. Strong plummy notes in the bouquet, richly spiced, with strains of blackberry and jam. Deeply interwoven threads of bramble, mint, and gravel, with penetrating fruit concentration. Showing classic second-stage Geyserville characteristics; very sensuous, fully resolved, and exhibiting great finesse and elegance.

2006 Geyserville

Aromatics laden with rich berry notes and concentrated spice. Very structure forward on the palate, with a dark herbality, firm tannins, intense acidity, and an overall sense of great depth. Lots of earth and gravel character, hints of oak, and a bright vivacity to the acid/tannin balance. Still developing the full spectrum of expression, but very exciting for its muscularity.

2007 Geyserville

Dark plum-toned belly with a pale raspberry limn, and showing medium-light viscosity. A restrained elegance to the bouquet, but with deep saturation of berry and cherry notes. Wonderfully complex aromatics. The mouthfeel is resolving nicely, and while the tannins are comparatively restrained, they exhibit a nice chalkiness. Overall, very silkly, utterly seamless, and again, very elegant. Very fresh fruit notes balanced against a hint of caramel sweetness, carpeting a layer of earth and gravel.

Regarding the 2008 vintage, everyone at the table positively marveled at the lushness, the concentration, the density, the opulence of this offering. And as regards the 2009 components, we tasted Carignane, Petite Sirah, and some wonderful interplanted parcels from New Patch, Old Patch, and Whitten Ranch. While all are obviously still in development, the potential on offer as regards both pre- and post-assemblage bespeaks a tremendously complex Geyserville for 2009, and the 2008 is clearly en route to becoming a fantastically substantive contribution to the rich Geyserville canon.

And that’s the rundown for now! Please make sure, if you’re anywhere near either Monte Bello or Lytton Springs this weekend, to come out and sample both the Lytton Duo and Geyserville Holiday Packs; this is a great opportunity to sample a delicious spectrum of our flagship zinfandels!

Cheers!

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Posted in Viticultural Salmagundi, Varietals & Blends, Wine Tales, Food & Wine Pairing, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Tasting Notes, Events & Photographs, Carignane, Tasting Flights, Winemaking, Paul Draper | Leave a Comment »

Geyserville is #1!

December 8, 2009

Well, it’s official, the San Francisco Chronicle has selected their Top 100 Wines of the Year, and guess what came out on top? Our very own Ridge Vineyards 2007 Geyserville!

“The best Geyserville in years, and a reminder of Ridge’s quintessential restrained style.”

You can read the excellent introduction by Jon Bonné here, and you can see the full list here.

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Posted in Press Reviews, Tasting Notes, Varietals & Blends, Viticultural Salmagundi, Zinfandel | 1 Comment »

Monte Bello Snow!

December 7, 2009

As the hearty ones amongst us on the
mountain embrace the
singularly serene
psychic isolationism that
always seems to come with first
snow, the sun and
clouds wrestle gently for
dominance in the
chill December skies, above the
huddled mountain creatures seeking
shelter from the turning of the
season. As the
heart contemplates the poetry of
snowfall in the soul’s internal
mind, the eye begets its
own new contemplations;
capturable and magic through the
ages.

Posted in Wine & Poetry, Events & Photographs | 2 Comments »

Winter Wine Series Is Here!

December 5, 2009

Absolutely one of my favorite events of the year, for any number of reasons. But first, before I wax personal, the official party description:

Winter Wine Series

The First Three Saturdays in December

Please join Ridge Vineyards in celebrating the Holiday Season with our annual Winter Wine Series. Each of the first three Saturdays in December we’ll be showcasing special offerings from our Holiday Gift Packs in the Tasting Rooms. Net proceeds from the tasting fees are donated to Second Harvest Food Bank, and a Ridge logo glass is included with each tasting. Return with your glassware to a subsequent Winter Wine Series Saturday, and you’ll receive a complimentary tasting! This event is a wonderful way to celebrate the holidays, enjoy spectacular tastings of rarely poured wines, and give something to the community in the spirit of the season. This event is complimentary to members of our wine programs, and $10 for the general public. We look very forward to celebrating with you!
 
December 5, 2009 — We’ll be featuring wines from our “From the Mountain” and “Rhone” gift packs, these wines invite you to explore the terroir of the Santa Cruz Mountains and Sonoma County.

December 12, 2009 — On showcase will be the “Lytton Duo” and “Geyserville Vertical” gift packs, making for a wonderful opportunity to taste a full spectrum of our two flagship zinfandel designations.
 
December 19, 2009 — For the final episode of our Winter Wine Series we’ll be pouring wines from our “Buchignani” and “ATP” gift packs, which between them comprise some our finest examples of old-vine offerings, including the 2007 Buchignani Ranch carignane and the 2006 Dusi Ranch zinfandel.

All of our holiday packs can be found here.

Now, on to my personal perspective, which is (for once) pretty simple; basically, this is just a great chance to try some really, really, really interesting tasting flights. Plus, net proceeds from the tasting fees are being donated to local food banks (Second Harvest up here at Monte Bello,  Redwood Empire Food Bank up at Lytton Springs) so it’s also a great opportunity to be charitable in the spirit of the season.

And that’s the scoop! Please join us, and all the best of the season to you and yours.

Lastly, for your reference, some important links:

Winter Wine Series–Current Tasting Flights: Monte Bello & Lytton Springs
2009 Holiday Pack Offerings
Winter Wine Series–Event Details
Second Harvest
Redwood Empire Food Bank

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Posted in Viticultural Salmagundi, Wine Tales, Monte Bello, Events & Photographs, Tasting Flights | Leave a Comment »

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