I was excited by the tasting, since I had not yet been introduced to many wines in the Ridge lineup. My limited but fantastic experience with the wine included 1989 and 1990 Ridge Monte Bello. I was excited by the Monte Bello vertical, as well as the Zins and Syrahs. The wines were accompanied by cheeses from Cowgirl Creamery - a nice addition.
To get things started we first tried their estate Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, grown on the Monte Bello property. I'm not a Chardonnay lover and I tend to prefer white Burgundy over new world Chard, but the Ridge 2009 Estate Chardonnay surprised me. I had never thought I would enjoy so much a California Chardonnay. Ridge's had a mineral, tropical nose and a creamy mouthfeel but also an incredible lightness that I would never expect from an oaked California Chardonnay. The acidity, fruit, minerality and body were so balanced, and it had a smooth, citrusy finish that was almost Champagne-like. Makes sense, since Monte Bello enjoys limestone soil, which is a soil characteristic of Burgundy and Champagne but not so much California. I will go so far as to say this Chardonnay is the best I have ever had! The 2008 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was also very enjoyable. It had a bright nose of blackberry, spice, and lead pencil that carried through to the palate with a medium body and a smooth, comfortable lightness. It seems to me the limestone soil and microclimate at Monte Bello really are the perfect conditions for these wines.
Next we compared the 1999 and 2009 Geyserville Zin blends. Geyserville is located up north in Sonoma County. I hadn't had Ridge Zin before (or any Zin for quite a while) so I was looking forward to this comparison. The 2009 will be released in April. It is 74% Zinfandel, 17% Carignane, and 6% Petite Sirah. It had licorice, spice and some meatiness on the nose. On the palate it had some dark berry and spice flavors that continued to the luscious finish. I thought the body and weight were really balanced, and I enjoyed my re-introduction to Zin with this wine. The 1999 (68% Zin, 16% Carignane, 16% P. Sirah) was a real treat - it had a more vegetal nose that kept evolving as it sat, with some dill, warm baking spice, and dried red fruit coming through. On the palate there was an interesting mix of eucalyptus and mint with that dried fruit and spice. It was a bit more rustic than its younger self but super interesting - I loved it. I could see how Geyserville would be rewarding both younger and older.
Following was the Monte Bello 10-year vertical. This time we started with the oldest. The 1985 was incredible and the oldest Ridge wine I have tasted. The nose was complex, with dried cherry, nutmeg, clove, and a bit of corn chowder coming through. On the palate it still had a surprising acidity and good grip from the tannins, which had smoothed out but were still firm. It still had a lot of fruit and spice coming through and did not taste like a 25-year old wine. The composition was 93% Cab and 7% Merlot, and the alcohol was 13.1%. This is important to note because a lot of California wines have very high alcohols (15%!), and people like this. I prefer a lower alcohol wine, and Monte Bello has always been around 12 - 13%. The 1995 Monte Bello was very interesting, with more brooding, dark flavors. It was richer and had more weight, with dark black fruit, leather, and spice. This one could definitely age another 10 years. The 2005 Monte Bello was very fruit-forward with a pretty vanilla spice character and good grip. I liked the spicy finish. This too will age for 20 years!
The next treat was a comparison of 2 small production Syrahs from the Lytton Springs vineyard in Sonoma. We were lucky enough to have one of the last available bottles of the 2004, so I didn't want to like it too much. It was blended with 10% Viognier and 8% Grenache from 50-100 year old vines. It was beautiful, with blueberry, chocolate, and cinnamon notes. I hoped the 2006 would be just as good - I have been on a Syrah kick lately so I am looking for favorites. The 2006 was the winner - and it is not even out yet so I know there is more where this bottle came from. Warm spice, cocoa, and a touch of that meatiness that I love about Syrah, plus only 14.4% alcohol. I loved the smooth chocolateyness of it and I was happy to like it even more than the 2004. When this is released in April I will definitely be looking for it.
To finish, a fellow blogger had brought 2 mystery wines. I think most people expected them to be Ridge, but I tried to keep an open mind. I had just met these people so I didn't know how they liked to play. The first wine seemed at least 10 years old and had a funky nose of mushroom and sweat. Not attractive, I know. I thought it could be Italian - it seemed very old world. The next one also looked like it could be about 10 years old, but it smelled hugely different, almost fortified, with a confectionary nose of dried fruit and creme brulee. On the palate it had surprisingly grippy tannin and raspberry jam taste. I was stumped - and they both turned out to be Ridge Dry Creek Sangiovese from 1997 and 1998. I was right about their ages, and Sangiovese is a grape of Italian origin so I had that going for me. Ridge no longer makes Sangiovese; the vines had been pulled out.
Check out these other blogs from fellow tasters:
www.givemegrapes.com
www.NorCalWine.com
http://bartonorchard.blogspot.com/
http://batonnage.net/
And Ridge's own blog:
http://blog.ridgewine.com/
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