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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.3 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 50 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by S1 on 11/7/2021: Chas Offlineorama VI, Another embarrassment of riches; 11/3/2021-11/7/2021 (Various locations): Hot spice and plum, VERY Merlot, Then bright red cherry emerges with air. Delicious. (2060 views) | | | Tasted by MC2 Wines on 11/7/2021: Charleston VI; 11/3/2021-11/7/2021 (Charleston, SC (various locations)): This wine for some reason reminded me of the holidays. I get cranberry and Christmas spice and logs on a fire. It's a very tasty wine. (1859 views) | | | Tasted by jgh123 on 10/6/2019 & rated 93 points: Last bottle. Opened, decanted and drank immediately. Absolutely delicious. Completely mature with rich, lush fruit and moderate complexity. (2589 views) | | | Tasted by jgh123 on 7/28/2019 & rated 92 points: I had this wine a couple of nights ago. It was for an event and so I had to double decant it. It was then 2-3 hours before the wine was served. It was way over the hill. I had a couple of more bottles and decided to try another tonight. I opened it, decanted it and immediately poured. It was terrific. So if you've got this wine, drink up! (2503 views) | | | Tasted by jgh123 on 7/27/2019: In decline. (2492 views) | | | Tasted by vinolovers on 1/27/2018: Part of our No Wine Under 25 (Yr.) tasting. The first bottle was absolutely undrinkable, with tar / rubber notes. Two weeks later I opened my 2nd bottle and found it to have a medium-dark coloring with some notes of black fruit, smoke, pepper, tobacco and leather. It held together for about 30-45 minutes before quickly falling apart. I would have scored it an 87-88 as it seemed a bit unbalanced throughout.
Summary of the tasting: 9 good bottles, 3 undrinkable bottles and a 2nd that was acceptable. Diamond Creek makes long-lived wines, but surprisingly, so did Duckhorn in the early days. All of the wines were in the 12 to 12-5 alcohol range which I think helped tremendously. (2833 views) | | | Tasted by cadamson on 10/14/2017 & rated 91 points: Evolves quite a bit over an hour in the glass. Great nose once some funk blew off, especially earthy and leather-ish (old library smell, including cigar like notes). Dark fruit profile, though fruit is secondary. Good acidity. Not sure where this is heading, but a nice, decent drink right now, certainly keeps one interested in coming back to the glass again and again. (3156 views) | | | Tasted by jeramirez on 8/27/2017: Its starting to decline (2553 views) | | | Tasted by POBlund on 3/23/2017 & rated 96 points: Tasted at 12 vintage vertical by Michel Jamais.
Elegant perfumed nose of wardrobe and woods with maturity.
Dry elegant body palate of earth, cedar, mushrooms, structure with high fine-grained tannins. (3006 views) | | | Tasted by DoubleD1969 on 1/27/2017 & rated 96 points: On a night with many great wines, the '89 Ridge MB stood out with its elegant style. I've had this many years ago, and the wine probably has gotten even better with age. The color wasn't opaque as the 1991 but was clear and showed a shade similar to a ripe strawberry. The nose was fantastic that was reminiscent of - to borrow someone's descriptor - cottoncandy and pine forest. The palate had a silky texture dominated by sweet red fruit but kept in check with a refreshing acidity. (3179 views) | | | Tasted by retired_and_roving on 1/27/2017: DIY BYO Dinner - Notes from another taster (Amali, NYC): The nose on this reminded me of cotton candy for some reason - some sweet perfumed almost confected aromas. On the palate not sweet at all however with more mature blackberry and black raspberry, wrapped in loamy earth. Very enjoyable to drink but this one didn't capture my one of top spots as it did for many of the other tasters at the dinner. (2786 views) | | | Tasted by MC2 Wines on 1/27/2017: DIY BYO Dinner II (Amali (115 E 60th Street, NY, NY)): Another favorite of the night although this was much more old world in style. Very woodsy, sticks, good acidity. It feels like it's in just the right spot although I suppose the fruit has faded down some (which means CT window that ends in 2009 is way off). Originally a pnp although some was decanted and the extra air seemed to help it a bit more. Very good. (2413 views) | | | Tasted by Burgnick on 1/4/2017 & rated 91 points: Iron, blood, earth, black fruit and forest. Palate is smoth and elegant but it lacks complexity. You would have guessed its a bordeaux if its a blind tasting. Drinking beautifully at its peak and it will probably stay at its peak for another 5 years. Drink now. (1989 views) | | | Tasted by Kraussja on 11/27/2016 & rated 92 points: Blackberry jam, mint, and violets on the nose. Fully resolved rabbis, but still nice structure. Very fresh fruit on the palate - I would've guessed this wine was more in the 10-15 year range if not for the color and a hint of compost on the finish. (1736 views) | | | Tasted by RayOB on 10/21/2016 & rated 90 points: Drank at 67
Quite a funky nose with a very mature claret palate. Nice but fading. (1439 views) | | | Tasted by Rupert on 9/1/2016: At 67PM: dense, softly textured, mellow, lovely wine, though simpler than the last couple of times. (1690 views) | | | Tasted by Rupert on 7/25/2016: At 67PM: as brilliant as it was last month, tobacco, smoke, a hint of funk, but broad fragrance, sweet fruit - multilayered, mellow and delicious (1831 views) | | | Tasted by Rupert on 6/24/2016: At 67PM: some browning, funky claret nose, quite advanced, hints of oxidation, spicy and mouthfilling and very claret-like - lovely (1905 views) | | | Tasted by jeramirez on 5/19/2016 & rated 95 points: Great Monte Bello. (1905 views) | | | Tasted by Doc90 on 3/20/2016 & rated 95 points: Classic old Cali nose with notes of oregano, tea, old boathouse, and strawberry rhubarb pie. Mouthcoating and mature. This is evocative of soul and happiness. Incredibly expressive. Spicy. I love this kind of stuff. (1921 views) | | | Tasted by Bklyndude on 10/31/2015 & rated 89 points: Compared in vertical tasting to the 1988 vintage at Wooden Angel, courtesy of RFP and owner Alex Sebastian. Still trying to blot out memories of an ICU visit with our brother J earlier today, though thankfully he's doing a bit better. This vintage (1989) had few of the great qualities of the 1981 we had last night; it was shut down, marred even 26 years later by too much new oak -- a compromise that may have added to its appeal on release but that has stunted its ability to mature and mellow with age. Where this was monolithic and flatfooted, this 1988 was subtle, feminine, graceful and complex. A powerful argument for terroir over the international style, for subtlety over jammy fruitiness, and for patience over immediate gratification. The 1988 equaled most great Bordeaux I've tasted; the '89 but was sadly pedestrian (but still a privilege to taste -- no complaints here!). (2297 views) | | | Tasted by ledocq on 9/26/2015 & rated 94 points: One of the best California Bordeaux blends I've ever had. Resolved tannins, but it drinks like it will keep going a while. (2667 views) | | | Tasted by facchair on 4/15/2015 & rated 89 points: Drink now, near the end (2679 views) | | | Tasted by gmat5497 on 11/7/2014 & rated 95 points: Holy cow, almost perfect. Everything belonged.
Earthy yet full of fruit. (2998 views) | | | Tasted by andtheodor on 6/9/2014 & rated 94 points: Capsicum, asparagus, campfire, currant, mineral, acidic verve, wow! A real stunner with one foot firmly planted in old school Bordeaux. A nice surprise. (3637 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (11/30/2019)
(Ridge, Monte Bello Santa Cruz Mountains Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, September/October 2000, IWC Issue #92
(Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Red Blend) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JancisRobinson.com and Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Ridge Producer website | Wikipedia
Ridge Vineyards is a California winery specializing in premium Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and Chardonnay wines. Ridge produces wine at two winery locations in northern California. The original winery facilities are located at an elevation of 2,300 feet (700 m) on Monte Bello Ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA near Cupertino, California. The other Ridge winery facilities are at Lytton Springs in the Dry Creek Valley AVA of Sonoma County.Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.Monte Bello On weinlagen-infoUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Santa Cruz Mountains Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association | Wikipedia
Once referred to by wine writers as the Chaine d'Or -- or "golden chain" -- the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA sits above Silicon Valley, running along the craggy range next to the Pacific on some of the prettiest parts of Northern California. The area supports more than 75 wineries, despite being limited by geography and high land prices.
In 1981 the Santa Cruz Mountains Viticultural Appellation became federally recognized, one of the first American viticultural areas to be defined by geophysical and climatic factors. The appellation encompasses the Santa Cruz Mountain range, from Half Moon Bay in the north, to Mount Madonna in the south. The east and west boundaries are defined by elevation, extending down to 800 feet in the east and 400 feet in the west. |
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