As a follow-up to yesterday’s blockbuster announcement, some tasting notes on the new 2011 Ridge Vineyards Lytton Estate Rosé (debuting this weekend, only at our Lytton Springs Estate):
I tasted this today with winemaker John Olney (VP of winemaking at Lytton Springs), and Gerald Stone (Director of Quality Control/Chemist at Lytton Springs):
And for those who can’t, for whatever reason, see the pic of my Remington Noiseless notes:
2011 Ridge Vineyards Lytton Estate Rose
Lovely aromatics, as they should be for a wine of this style; generous tangerine, sprightly ruby grapefruit, and most appealing of all, fine layers of subtle watermelon and mouth-watering watermelon rind. Don’t look for overtly cloying strawberry notes or oodles of sweet fruit though; this is clear, crisp, just a tad leafy, and a lot refreshing. Palate-weight is appropriately light and playful, and the finish is surprisingly long for a wine of this style. Good acidity, though not as citrus-driven as some iterations of type; more languid than biting, more structural than citric. Overall, an exceedingly pleasant and refreshing wine that will be sheer bliss on a warm summer day.
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And from the back label, some details from John:
Categories: Lytton Springs, Special Offerings, Tasting Notes
Tags: 2011 Lytton Estate Rosé, Gerald Stone, John Olney, Lytton Springs, Remington Noiseless, Tasting Notes
Wow, I wish I had a chance to try this. What other Rose’s has Ridge Made? I was not aware of the ’89 Carignan but do remember some early ’80′s White Zins.
Sean, that would be early 70s white zin
It was a very different animal than this rosé, which is a playful, dry, complex, light summer delight.
Roland, the Early 70′s WZ was before my time, but I do remember reading about it & that it came out shortly after David Bruce did a WZ. I was in retail while going to college and remember at least 1 (83, 84?), I think 2 vintages of WZ. WZ was so hot then even Sutter Home was allocated at the time for a while!
History of Ridge Rosé: http://www.drvino.com/2010/09/21/ridge-white-zinfandel-70s-80s/
That history isn’t complete, as there were some experiments done in the 60s, including a cab rosé.
How nice of you to plan the location of our Mothers’ Day picnic. The wine is delightful; the tasting notes quite accurate. It is playful and light, but not simple. It is also a quite pretty color.
Chris, being here in the UK has its benefits. One, right nowm, is that I cannot simply drive up to Lytton and avail myself of just one bottle. Heck, I cannot even get one shipped to me in my annual box!
Drat and double drat.
I have only ever tasted one Ridge rosé; a 1989 Carignan, and yes, it occupies pride of place in my collection.
Meanwhile, you lucky folks who can get there, enjoy!