CWD: What did you drink last night (or whenever)?
- Thread starter Jayson Cohen
- Start date
Jim Hanlon
Jim Hanlon
Have you ever had a Ceritas Chardonnay that had softened? I haven't, although my sample size is still probably in the single digits for bottles with 5+ years. I feel like there should be another gear, but haven't experienced it yet.
Heintz and P-B from 2011 and 2012 and some assorted others I think it will happen, I've had a lovely 2014 Trout Gulch in the not too distant past, but who can say for sure?
FWIW, I think the Heintz is the most likely of all of them. Such a crazy profile. I wonder if there is some Chardonnay Musqué in there somewhere.
Peter Creasey
Peter Creasey
Ridge Geyserville '16 -- Dark red, generous bouquet, big dark fruits, some wood, exotic on palate, lots of grip and density along with a lightness of fruit and spice, good complexity, plenty of structure for the long haul. [E]
Sublime pairing with barbecue beef ribs, spicy green beans, and fresh heirloom tomatoes...then butterfingers.
I saw some negative notes about Ridge Zins (somewhere here?). Not to be contrary, but this was one of the better showings of Geyserville I can recall...perhaps I was just in the mood.
. . . . . . . Pete
Sublime pairing with barbecue beef ribs, spicy green beans, and fresh heirloom tomatoes...then butterfingers.
I saw some negative notes about Ridge Zins (somewhere here?). Not to be contrary, but this was one of the better showings of Geyserville I can recall...perhaps I was just in the mood.
. . . . . . . Pete
originally posted by Larry Stein:
A friend hosted a Ridge party on Saturday. Since it's no longer possible to do a full-day picnic up there like our group did for the Monte Bello Component events (pre-pandemic), he decided to do one at his house. There were 3+ dozen Ridge wines opened.
As we know, unicorn is a somewhat overused term. Not in this case. Ridge's first Zin. Grapes came from Picchetti Ranch on Montebello Ridge. It was really terrific, one of the WOTN.
OK, holy shit, I know the wine and all is cool...but those graphics...in 1964? Wow. Just wow. So modern, for the time. Mind blown. Keep that label!
Ian Fitzsimmons
Ian Fitzsimmons
The Gorges was from Martin Luneau?
robert ames
robert ames
more likely it shows a non-disorderly embracing of wood.
Jonathan Loesberg
Jonathan Loesberg
Yeah, I had the 18 Geyserville and it will be the last Ridge Zin I drink, I expect. I don't know if the wood treatment was enhanced or my oak averseness has increased, but, whereas I used to tolerate the Draper perfume on the basis, that that was part of what their Zin was. Now, I'd rather find other Zins that are unoaked.
I think Geyserville was less oaky once upon a time, but like you, I have become more and more oak adverse. I have been lucky enough to taste and drink many Ridge wines and enjoyed engaging conversations with Paul Draper at the winery. Zinfandel from Picchetti was one of my favorites, though often - even then - too high in acidity for most people. SFJoe used to kid me about how much I loved it. Unlike you, I would simply rather not find zinfandels, a grape I have grown weary of, and would rather drink low-alcohol old-world reds. À Chacun and all that.
Peter Creasey
Peter Creasey
Zins are widely thought to go well with each of these four items...
Inquiring mind -- what wine(s) (not beer) might you guys prefer to go with this dinner? Maybe Petite Sirah?
. . . . . Pete
Inquiring mind -- what wine(s) (not beer) might you guys prefer to go with this dinner? Maybe Petite Sirah?
. . . . . Pete
Jonathan Loesberg
Jonathan Loesberg
Zins are like John Wayne. In the right hands--John Ford, Howard Hawkes--he is a surprisingly good actor, whose physical grace, even beneath a growing gut and lumbering gait, becomes visible again. Left to himself, he is a risible self parody.
Jayson Cohen
Jayson Cohen
Demisec Vouvray or Riesling Spatlese or Auslese.
robert ames
robert ames
more to the point, why here?
Claude Kolm
Claude Kolm
Re Ridge and oak: it's been somewhat problematic in recent years for me, too. But note that John Olney (Richard Olney's nephew) took over as head winemaker -- announced in March 2021, but not clear to me when that actually took place. At any rate, I perceived a change in style in the 2020 wines released this spring -- whether that's due to the change in head winemaker or another factor such as vintage conditions, I don't know -- we'll have to get more vintages in to see.
Larry Stein
Larry Stein
Claude, Eric Baugher was still with Ridge through the 2019 vintage. Leaving out the more obscure varietal wines, he handled all the MB wines and Geyserville. 2020 was a joint effort with John as Eric left after crush. However, Eric wasn't part of the tasting panel. 2021 is all John at both MB and Lytton Springs.
Tres Goetting was hired as MB winemaker in February so he'll be running the show at MB for 2022. Shauna Rosenblum was just hired as Lytton Springs winemaker.
2019 Monte Bello is a great vintage for MB. I was able to take half of an open 750 home and try it over 3 days. The jury is still out on 2020. I wasn't quite sure about it when I tasted it out of the barrel, but that was just a snapshot. I'm sure it's being checked frequently for smoke taint. I and others feel that 2019 Estate Cab is overoaked.
Tres Goetting was hired as MB winemaker in February so he'll be running the show at MB for 2022. Shauna Rosenblum was just hired as Lytton Springs winemaker.
2019 Monte Bello is a great vintage for MB. I was able to take half of an open 750 home and try it over 3 days. The jury is still out on 2020. I wasn't quite sure about it when I tasted it out of the barrel, but that was just a snapshot. I'm sure it's being checked frequently for smoke taint. I and others feel that 2019 Estate Cab is overoaked.