External search
Google (images)
Wine Advocate
Wine Spectator
Burghound
Wine-Searcher
Vintages
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
Show more
From this producer
Show all wines
All tasting notes
|
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.2 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 76 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Klugi Wine on 4/11/2024 & rated 94 points: What a wonderful 2nd wine from Ridge.
First the primary notes with sour cherries, cassis and some blood orange hit you.
With time more secondary notes with tobacco leaves and umaminess come through.
The tannins are tame in the beginning but come through with lots of bite after 1-2 hours.
Still quite young, would wait for 3-5 more years for prime drinking window. (3370 views) | | | Tasted by Rasmussenbrent on 2/19/2024 & rated 92 points: Very good, still a little young so give it some time (4652 views) | | | Tasted by Brian of Mull on 1/7/2024 & rated 94 points: Coming back to this. Proper 3 hours of time to open up. On the nose: Plum, dark chocolate, cassis, leather, graphite and espresso. The plum notes are very rich and enticing. On the palate: Plum, cassis, dark chocolate and cinnamon. This is terrific. (6017 views) | | | Tasted by mattyobrien on 12/30/2023 & rated 90 points: Trail creek cabin dinner 2023 (5103 views) | | | Tasted by Vino Loco on 12/7/2023 & rated 89 points: Very bright, almost neon red in the glass. Fruit forward in style. Cherry juice notes, not a lot of structure to it. Struggle with this bottling vs their zins or similarly priced cabs like the Mount Veeder, which for the same vintage had a lot more going on. (6187 views) | | | Tasted by wineotim on 11/1/2023 & rated 91 points: High frequency tightly coiled cherry fruit, acidity quite high. Medium bodied, light on its feet. Didn't change much over three days. I'll pass on the Monte Bello bottling. (6755 views) | | | Tasted by JLCFan on 10/21/2023 & rated 92 points: Iron, oak shavings and red fruit with a hint of plum. Minty too. Super ferric. Lots and lots of fine powdery tannins. Needs time to come together. Long finish dominated by sweet American oak.
Needs some more time for my taste, but a very nice wine. (5825 views) | | | Tasted by Marmie11 on 9/27/2023 & rated 91 points: Decanted for 1 hour. Even at this young age, I found the 2019 Estate Cabernet more alive than the 2012 Monte Bello I recently experienced. Simpler than the Monte Bello, and shy on the nose, the flavours on the palate were howver quite interesting and expressive. Mostly fruit forward, but fascinatingly opened with a burst of sweet citrus before showing its blue and black fruits. Personally, I am finding their Zinfandel blends far more profound than the Cabernets I have tasted, which admittedly is limited. Next one will be the 2014 Monte Bello. (5420 views) | | | Tasted by DevenStephens on 9/10/2023 & rated 92 points: Ridge Blind Tasting; 9/9/2023-9/10/2023: Ridge blind tasting!
So I set up a blind tasting of the 5 main reds from Ridge. The entry level Three Valleys, the Lytton Springs, the Geyserville, the Estate Cab and the legendary Monte Bello! I knew what I brought but I had everyone including me drink the wines blind and in no particular order. The order that ended up coming out was:
1:Geyserville
2:Monte Bello
3:Estate Cab
4:Three Valleys
5:Lytton Springs.
Here are the notes for the Estate Cab: the nose is very light, slight oak, slight fruit, nothing very expressive here. On the palate it is very delicate, again red fruits but not very obvious. Nothing amazing, extreme or crazy with this wine but nothing bad either. Maybe some age would help it out but I'd prefer using the cellar space for the Monte Bello to be honest. This was my 3rd favorite. (5795 views) | | | Tasted by La Cave d'Argent on 9/1/2023 & rated 93 points: Sourced entirely from Ridge's Monte Bello Vineyard, this wine is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, aged for 16 months in American oak barriques (58% new). Opaque crimson in color, it offers a bounty of black and blue fruits that are accented with notes of bittersweet chocolate, licorice, bark, eucalyptus and sage. Full-bodied, freshly acidic and with well-integrated alcohol (13.8%), it delivers flavors in line with the aromas, framed with plentiful fine-grained tannins and a generous aliquot of American wood. Dense on the mid-palate and long on the back end, this is a delicious yet deceivingly structured Cab. If you can resist, give it a couple of years in the cellar so that the oak and tannins can better integrate. This particular bottle was Vinturi-decanted and serially tasted over the ensuing three hours. If you elect to pop the cork at this early stage, give it at least two hours of air. Drink 2025-2044. (5406 views) | | | Tasted by dream on 7/29/2023 & rated 93 points: Ordered this wine off the list at Edson Hill in Stowe, VT and was blown away by the quality. Nothing chocolaty or overdone here; this is just great, fresh, intense Cabernet Sauvignon (mostly) with fabulous dark red and black fruits accompanied by zingy acidity and a lifted floral note. Quite structured at this point but the complexity on the finish is already showing itself with wonderful notes of red spices, mint and graphite. At last, a West Coast cab for under $100 that satisfies me. (5746 views) | | | Tasted by Nicke Andersson on 7/13/2023 & rated 95 points: Lamm, potatissallad (5443 views) | | | Tasted by Brian of Mull on 5/18/2023 & rated 93 points: PnP which probably does a disservice but no time to decant. Color is youthful ruby red. On the nose: Plum, dark chocolate, graphite, cassis and some baking spices. On the palate: plum, sour cassis and graphite. Decent length and nice mouthfeel. Good potential. It’s young and I didn’t give time to open up. I expect it will improve during dinner. (5667 views) | | | Tasted by WineJ2019 on 4/16/2023 & rated 92 points: This was admittedly young and I tend to enjoy Ridge with 5-10+ yrs of aging. Regardless still enjoyable and definitely upside from here as the oak better integrates (5865 views) | | | Tasted by ethanwade on 4/15/2023: So young right now but already gorgeous. Nose is tight but shows lots of cranberry, plum, spearmint and graphite. Even after 2+ hours the palate is still very tight with powerful tannin but shows some blackberry, cola, and spice. Clearly built to last and excited to see where this goes. (5357 views) | | | Tasted by Acove on 4/14/2023 & rated 93 points: From memory. Opened at a capitol grille, decanted for about 30 mins. Has that unique Ridge nose mixed in with vanilla, muddled red and purple fruits. The palate was quite tight with muscular tannins and high acid, great concentration of fruit and complexity at this stage. Has that tension and elegance I have grown to appreciate. Oak is well managed here. Obviously too young to drink now but when i'm not paying who cares. 93+ with 94-95 potential in a few years. Probably great value if you can find this for around $60. (5133 views) | | | Tasted by mark2eye on 3/30/2023 & rated 94 points: Drinking beautifully but feels a bit like infanticide to drink these now.
Notes of Graphite, blueberries, pepper, high acid and tannin. (5225 views) | | | Tasted by JLCFan on 3/18/2023 & rated 94 points: Absolutely beautiful - though embryonic, one can taste its future.
Ridge perfume - sweet American oak - dominates the nose. Undercurrents of red fruit underneath. Extremely primary.
Full body with powerful, grippy tannins and equally powerful acidity. Intense but balanced. Gorgeous red fruit character. Already, there is complexity: earth, menthol and savory aspects. The oak is easily moderated by the depth of aroma.
Long, long finish with notes of red fruit and oak perfume.
This has many years to go. (4892 views) | | | Tasted by Karlj940 on 2/17/2023 & rated 91 points: #1 or #2? notes seem spot-on to me. We ordered this last weekend at dinner and right out of bottle it wasn't what exactly what we were looking for paired with filet. Corked the half bottle remaining. Revisited a week later (stored at cellar temperature) and standing alone it was a nice expression of those flavors. If you know what to expect it's a pleasant departure from overly extracted fruit and quite a bit more interesting. Medium to light body (for a cabernet blend). (5458 views) | | | Tasted by #1 or #2? on 2/12/2023 & rated 93 points: needs a little air to unfurl. eventually, a very delicate but defined black currant bouquet up front, with subtle attractive floral and herbal notes in support. palate is on the lighter side, med body, v nice balance, w/acidity and tannin (surprisingly so given how young this is!), some good tart black berry fruit and a welcome green pepper note mid-palate, as well as attractive minerality through the finish. definitely earlier than i prefer to drink a quality red but this is v good. (5522 views) | | | Tasted by Waedi on 1/24/2023 & rated 91 points: 91+ (6063 views) | | | Tasted by Andrew Vaughan on 1/2/2023 & rated 89 points: Had a second bottle. Oddly, was markedly not as pleasing as the last one. Seemed way too young, acid balance off, needed a very long decant to tame. (6303 views) | | | Tasted by Carib on 1/1/2023 & rated 87 points: Thin, a bit forgettable. Fine with a meal. I'm a big fan of the vineyard. This will probably be an entirely different wine in 5 to 10 years. Hold. (5369 views) | | | Tasted by Winowhyno on 12/30/2022 & rated 89 points: Not bad...not great....a little on the thin side...weak finish. Taste more like Ridge Zins. Would not buy again at $53+. many other alternatives as good or better for less $$$$ (4611 views) | | | Tasted by pinoteer on 12/25/2022 & rated 93 points: Had to try one of my 9 bottles. Decanted for 4 hours. While I didn't try it initially upon decanting, I smelled it and think that it would have tasted delicious from the PnP. Had it with oven-grilled veggies and BBQ-grilled flank steak at the 5-hour mark. Great with food or by itself. I love this style of Brdx blend (with a notable PV components), as it reminds me of Leeuwin Estate Art Series. Next bottle in 5 years. Being conservative with my score right now, as this could easily add a point or two with a couple more cellar years. (4686 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By James Suckling
JamesSuckling.com (10/5/2022)
(Ridge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Cruz Mountains Estate, Red, United States) Subscribe to see review text. | By Karen MacNeil
Decanter, 60 years of Ridge Vineyards (9/22/2022)
(Ridge Vineyards, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA, Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Karen MacNeil
Decanter, 60 years of Ridge Vineyards (9/22/2022)
(Ridge Vineyards, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA, Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By James Suckling
JamesSuckling.com (9/19/2022)
(Ridge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Cruz Mountains Estate, Red, United States) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Santa Barbara County - Looking at the 2019s and 2020s (8/29/2022)
(Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Estate) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Richard Hemming MW
JancisRobinson.com (5/13/2022)
(Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Cruz Mountains Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, Santa Cruz Mountains: The Compelling 2018s & 2019s (May 2022) (5/1/2022)
(Ridge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Central Coast Red) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of JamesSuckling.com and Decanter and JebDunnuck.com and 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.Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonEstateIn the United States, "Wines with “estate bottled” designations must: a) also designate an appellation of origin or an AVA, and both the vineyards and the winery must be located there; b) the grapes must come from vineyards owned or controlled by the winery; and c) the wine must have been produced, from crush to bottle, in a continuous process without leaving the winery’s premises."
- WINE LABEL FAQS: A QUICK SUMMARY OF LABEL DESIGNATION RULES" by David E. StollUSAAmerican 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. |
|
