2009 Ridge Three Valleys

Community Tasting Notes (83) Avg Score: 88.8 points

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  6/2/2018 - Ryan.Vento Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Hitting way above its pay grade. 70% Zinfandel, 15% Carignane, 10% Petite Sirah, 3% Grenache, and 2% Mataro. Loads of clove, menthol, turned earth, new leather, dried garden herbs, ripe plums, and blackberries.

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  4/20/2018 - oakville72 wrote: 86 Points

  Perhaps the bottle I had spent too long in a retail shop, stored poorly. I did select it from a display that had the wine on its side, but when pulling the cork I noticed it was brittle, and in fact it broke in half. That said:
  
  I used to be a Ridge Zin fan 40 years ago. At that time the winery was still a great experiment. And I have stories of visiting it then, which (thankfully) I won't repeat here. Today it is a commercial enterprise owned by a Japanese gentleman who apparently enjoys the profits while the Ridge workers soldier on.
  
  While the Ridge Montebello wines (I assume) still deserve their accolades and prices, I'm not so sure about the winery's other products. Indeed, the Zins and other wines from their Sonoma County estates 50 years ago probably went into Italian Swiss Colony jug wines at $3 per gallon. My, how times have changed.
  
  What is the problem here? Primarily structure. This wine suffers from too much alcohol and too little acid. It's fat and flabby and, at 8 years of age, exudes a bit of wet cardboard character. So maybe this is cork taint, but given that this characteristic is showing up in so many low acid, high alcohol wines, perhaps it's something else.
  
  Anyway, I was looking forward to a fun experience pouring this bottle for friends, but I'm glad I sampled it "solo" myself first.

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  5/10/2015 - Bam_Man Likes this wine: 91 Points

  Had this on Mother's Day, alongside a 2007 Don Melchor. Believe it or not, most of the guests preferred this. Has a very pretty and expressive Sonoma nose of crushed red berries, earth, bramble and spice. Full-bodied, but not at all heavy or jammy. Probably drank this one right at its peak. Bursting with delicious raspberry, cherry and boysenberry fruit. Slightly sweet on the long finish, but not cloying. There's not a rough edge to be found anywhere on this. Very elegant in style for a Sonoma Zinfandel blend. The tannins are perfectly integrated, making this smooth as silk. Wonderfully balanced and a real crowd-pleaser. Wish I had more than just this one bottle.
  50+5+12+17+7=91

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  10/12/2014 - windinthewillows1 wrote: 90 Points

  excellent with grass-fed rib eye and new york strip steaks

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  9/14/2014 - Martnmac wrote: 90 Points

  Very good indeed. Tobacco and spice and all things nice. Deep ruby with a peppery finish Decanted for three hours. Paired lovely with a stuffed pork loin and root vegetables
  Triple yum. Really solid

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