Welcome, Summer

To celebrate the Labor Day weekend and the true start of summer weather in San Francisco, I toasted at Ridge Monte Bello in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Ridge prides itself on vineyard specific wines made in pre-industrial methods, including no irrigation. With careful vineyard selection and steep hillside plantings, the vines have to work for their nutrients and water, resulting in complex wines with good acidity and balanced structures. I've been a big fan of Ridge since moving to California, and it was nice to get back up to Monte Bello.

Ridge Chardonnay is always a welcome way to start, since theirs is quite Burgundian in style, with freshness balanced by creaminess. This one came from the Jimsomare property further down the mountain. Minimal new oak makes this a very approachable and refreshing wine, not your typical heavy California chard.

While traditionally focused on blends, a couple years ago Ridge decided to do a series of Monte Bello components - single varietal wines from the grapes that make up their famous Bordeaux style Monte Bello wine, a varying blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. These wines also showcase the vineyards from which they came. The Perrone Merlot comes from the Perrone property on the mountain and uses the grapes from the upper tier specifically, which is attached to a natural spring for a water source. The 2010 Perrone Merlot has a beautiful nose of black tea and red fruit, approachable on the palate now but with enough tannin to age several more years. We contrasted this wine with the 2011 Estate Merlot, which includes fruit from the Torre property as well, which contributes dry, dusty tannins and herbaceous flavors.

Ridge Estate Cabernet Sauvignon has tricked me before, and I'm always surprised how much I love this wine. While I find most young California Cabs to be too big, too jammy, too tannic, Ridge hits the mark exactly right, with an approachable, delicious wine with acidity and balance. The 2011 Estate Cab has a finer tannin structure that makes this wine very smooth, and the brambly, chocolate flavors cannot be beat. Even my sister, a Cab-hater, enjoyed this wine and bought a bottle.

Next we tried the Ridge 2011 Monte Bello, which did not have any Petit Verdot this vintage. The butterscotch nose and brambly fruit were delicious, and I can tell this will be a really enjoyable wine in several years once the tannins have had a chance to mellow.

On the Zin side of things, which mostly come from vineyards in Sonoma County, we enjoyed fruity Geyserville and East Bench and spicy Lytton Springs, plus their Paso Robles bottling from one of the oldest vineyards in that region, with beautiful strawberry characteristics and nice acidity.

Thanks to Aaron for a wonderful tasting during the busy Labor Day weekend!

The view over Silicon Valley

To filter or not to filter

One of the last steps in winemaking is usually filtering. When I worked at Wiemer, we used either the superfine cross flow filter or a pad filter for the wines made in smaller quantities. In winemaking you have to make some small sacrifices throughout the process. Each time you move the wine you risk exposing it to air, and inevitably each time you move it you risk losing a bit of its character, whether it be aroma, color, or flavor. Filtering is one of those steps that some winemakers would consider optional. The reason for filtering is to rid the wine of any bacteria or yeast that might remain in the wine and to ensure a “clean” wine before bottling. At Wiemer, where we made wines that often had some residual sugar left in them, filtering was necessary to ensure the yeast was completely removed from the wine. If any yeast remained, it could feed off the sugar and start another fermentation in the bottle, which at the very least might make the wine sparkle a bit, but at the worst it might cause the bottle to burst from the excess carbon dioxide and pressure.

Newton Vineyard in Napa was founded on the principle of unfiltered wines. Dr. Su Hua Newton, the first Asian female winemaker, began making unfiltered Chardonnay in the late 70s and then added the red Bordeaux varietals – Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Her husband, Peter Newton, had been the first to plant Merlot in Napa when he worked for Sterling Vineyards, and the Newtons were one of the first to plant Petit Verdot in Napa. Dr. Newton built a state of the art winery between 1977 and 1979, with gravity flow and 30 feet of underground tunnels in the hills of Spring Mountain. The Newton vineyards are the only ones on the southern side of Spring Mountain, whose steep slopes and volcanic soil contribute to small concentrated berries and softened tannins. The winemaking process involves hand picking only the ripe fruit, which means they skip over the unripe fruit and go back to it later, making multiple passes through the vineyard until all the fruit is picked. The various pickings are kept separate, vinified in oak barrels in separate, temperature-controlled rooms. Then, the wines undergo aggressive “battonage” every day for 6 months – this means that after the fermentation has been complete (after a couple weeks), a long baton is inserted into the barrel to agitate the lees (dead yeast cells) that have fallen to the bottom. This action contributes a certain flavor to the wine and is “naturally antibacterial,” helping to “clean” the wine so the impurities settle out to the bottom. It’s similar to the process of riddling for sparkling wine, where the lees from the second fermentation in the bottle are forced to the neck of the bottle by a partial turn each day for 3 weeks, acting like a squeegee along the inside of the bottle until they are eventually disgorged. After the 6-month battonage, the clean wine – 85% of the barrel - is pumped out (this part is not done by gravity) and the remaining 15% of wine and solids is discarded. That amounts to about 4 cases of wine lost from this process - a significant loss but one preferred to the potential loss of color and aroma from machine filtering. The wine is then bottled and labeled “unfiltered.”

Views from Newton Vineyard

So does unfiltered wine taste better? Can you tell the difference? Newton wine still looks clear and clean. I tasted 4 wines paired with small bites from the Domaine Chandon gardens in Napa and their onsite restaurant, Etoile (Newton Vineyard is now owned by LVMH, the parent company of Moet & Chandon).  The 2009 Unfiltered Chardonnay was creamy with butterscotch and crème brulee notes. It wasn’t overpowered by oak and it went deliciously well with a spoonful of English pea soup accompanied by dungeness crab and meyer lemon. The 2008 Unfiltered Merlot had bright red fruit, black pepper and other spices, nice acidity, and grippy tannins that would soften with a bit more age. It went fabulously with a bite of tea smoked duck. The 2009 Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon had great black fruit that almost tasted sweet and again nice acidity and tannin that would lend well to further aging. The last wine was their Bordeaux blend that they call “The Puzzle” because of the shape of the vineyard blocks that it is sourced from. The 2008 Puzzle is made of 42% Merlot, 36% Cab Sauv, 14% Cab Franc, 6% Petit Verdot, and 2% Malbec. It was silky, smooth and complex and went great with the heirloom beet salad.

The last bonus wine was a 2002 Unfiltered Merlot from a Magnum bottle, which holds the equivalent of 2 regular bottles and is a better format for aging wine because of the reduced exposure to oxygen. This wine was musky and floral with additional characteristics of beets and lead pencil. It had great balance and structure and was very smooth. After recently enjoying the Newton 1991 Unfiltered Merlot and now trying the current releases, it was awesome to taste a wine right in the middle.

Now back to the question, to filter or not to filter? I can’t say I would be able to tell the difference unless I had the same wine in filtered and unfiltered form side by side. Winemaking is a combination of art and science, and I tend to gravitate toward wines made with the least manipulation. And as a former winemaker, knowing how the wine is made makes me appreciate and enjoy it more.

Corkscrew trees and the garden atop the wine caves

Ridge Bloggers Tasting

 My first week in San Francisco I was invited to a bloggers tasting at my favorite California winery, Ridge - I couldn't have been happier! On Friday I headed south to the Santa Cruz Mountains region. Once I got to Monte Bello Road in Cupertino the only place to go was up - 4.5 miles up the mountain where Ridge's Monte Bello tasting room sits along with the Monte Bello vineyard, ranging in elevation from 1300-2700 feet above sea level. Ridge is most known for it's Monte Bello blend, a Cabernet Sauvignon focused Bordeaux blend with varying amounts of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, and for its Zinfandel blends, which also feature Carignane and Petite Sirah. Ridge focuses on wines with a sense of place, so all their wines are single-vineyard wines. The vineyard locations are appropriate for the grapes grown, and they practice sustainable viticulture. Yields are low, natural yeasts are employed, and the wines undergo natural malolactic fermentation in American oak, for the most part.

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.

A very interesting conclusion to a fantastic lineup of Ridge wines. I feel very lucky that I was able to participate in this tasting and meet so many other Ridge enthusiasts. I am looking forward to my next Ridge experience!

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/

Entiendo español de vino!

I had a great experience at Viña von Siebenthal in the Aconcagua Valley. I met the assistant winemaker, Darwin, and he confessed that he did not speak English. My guide, Lisette, offered to translate. My Spanish is so-so, but I said to her, let me see what I can understand and I'll let you know if I need an explanation. Happily, I understood almost everything Darwin said! So maybe my Spanish isn't so great but I can understand wine-Spanish, and that is good.

Viña von Siebenthal produces about 10,000 cases, a little bit smaller than Wiemer. They pick all the grapes by hand and sort twice, in the vineyard and in the winery. They only produce reds, which are stainless steel fermented and barrel aged. In the barrel the wines undergo spontaneous malolactic fermentation, which turns harsh natural acids into softer ones. They do not filter their wines. I tried their 2008 Carmenere and 2006 Parcel 7, a blend of Cab Sauv, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Petit Verdot - a very Bordelais blend. Both wines were delicious.

Before we left we tried a large yellow fruit off a tree on the vineyard property. It looked like a lumpy yellow grapefruit but had a very thick skin and tasted sour like a lemon at first with a slightly sweet finish. It was called a lima. When I was eating it I thought it would be great in a vodka martini...