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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.5 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 636 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by wirelesswine on 3/5/2024 & rated 93 points: Stunning at almost 15 years of age (678 views) | | | Tasted by ogres3 on 1/22/2024 & rated 93 points: Remains delicious. Should have bought 5 cases. (955 views) | | | Tasted by kronfeld on 11/17/2023: Still delicious but fading. Drink up. (1097 views) | | | Tasted by ogres3 on 8/9/2023 & rated 92 points: Opulent and structured. Very much agree. Drinking well. (1603 views) | | | Tasted by askoje on 7/8/2023 & rated 92 points: Deep red, on the nose I struck with classic LS notes of bramble fruit, wild cherry, mocha and cedar. Beautiful wine, it’s still alive and drinking so well now. Will last a few more years, but would not wait. (1490 views) | | | Tasted by Rich S on 7/4/2023 & rated 93 points: From magnum. This might be at peak. Dark crimson color. Nose of blackberry and black raspberry, touch of bitter chocolate, some old wood, luxardo cherry and just the right amount of sweet toasty oak in the background. Similar flavors on the palate with ripe black fruits balanced with medium acidity and smooth, mostly resolved tannin. Smooth mouthfeel and long finish as well. Just a fantastic bottle of wine that is in a great spot. (1351 views) | | | Tasted by Vascular46 on 7/1/2023 & rated 93 points: Deep ruby color persists with black fruit and licorice on the nose and palate. Some smoke on the finnish. (1178 views) | | | Tasted by spode on 4/23/2023 & rated 94 points: Who else makes Zinfandel blends like Ridge that you can cellar 10-15 years and have it emerge from the bottle with so much fruit, so fresh and so balanced? This was a superb 14 year old bottle that felt like it had years left in it. But why wait? Its drinking beautifully right now and unlikely to improve. (1359 views) | | | Tasted by LightDancer on 3/26/2023 & rated 92 points: Last bottle. Still full bodied and balanced, but a bit less intense than before. Rich, dark red and black fruits. A delight to drink. At a celebratory dinner with D&M. (1252 views) | | | Tasted by VAGenius on 3/23/2023 & rated 93 points: Short decant. Nose of plum, birch beer, and cedar plank. Smooth and polished palate of black raspberry, blueberry pie, vanilla beam, and a nice lift leading into the finish, which delivers a fine line of minerals and dried herbs before a plush finale of raspberry, milk chocolate, blue fruits, and a supple oak finale. Surprisingly fruit at this age and very balanced. Nothing like I recall from the other bottle last fall. (1144 views) | | | Tasted by Vascular46 on 2/9/2023 & rated 93 points: Zinfandel "with friends-Petite Sirah and Carignane." This wine is slightly past it's peak but still a pleasure to drink. Black fruit and licorice on the nose and palate and a hint of smoke on the finish. (1445 views) | | | Tasted by jgh123 on 1/10/2023 & rated 92 points: Remains rich with some complexity. Should hold another 5 years but no reason to wait. (1614 views) | | | Tasted by VAGenius on 11/26/2022: PnP at Jeff's firepit after Michigan victory over Ohio State. No detailed notes but it was quite dry and perhaps a bit tired. Drink up! (915 views) | | | Tasted by mxpbuy on 10/31/2022 & rated 92 points: Slow ox 3 hours. I was always expecting more from this wine, and I think the prodigious amount (23%) 0f petite sirah takes away from the Zin base more than it adds. Nonetheless still a high quality wine. (1681 views) | | | Tasted by Rich S on 9/4/2022 & rated 92 points: End of night pop and pour so I didn't take formal notes but this was rocking. Ripe, dark red fruits with just the right amount of oak. Smooth mouthfeel and finish. (1774 views) | | | Tasted by byzero on 4/12/2022 & rated 94 points: Zinfandel, petite syrah, & carignane
DAY1
Served with the Vinloq System
👀Youthful dark ruby
👃Big sweet fruit. Plum, blackberries, underbrush, anise, cloves, and spice. Fresh and vibrant
👅Plums & blackberries with tar and anise. Spicy & chalky. All in a silky package
Tannins are soft and minimally exposed. Oak is fully integrated. Long dark fruited finish. So well crafted
Great now and should be for some time as Ridge wines have a track record of excellent longevity. Could this improve? Not sure 🤔 It’s great now 👍
Bottle stored in fridge with Vinloq Preservation
DAY5
Shared with a friend. Same as DAY1
DAY21
The spice and cloves remained but softer & more restrained than DAY1 & 5. I preferred the intensity on those days
Full note available on Instagram @ "Vinloq.notes" (2643 views) | | | Tasted by jpkelleher1 on 4/6/2022 & rated 93 points: Fantastic long finish (2380 views) | | | Tasted by markcic on 3/2/2022 & rated 92 points: I have not tried a bottle of this wine in over 5 years and it is still really good. Opened two hours before dinner and then recorked and brought along with us to one of the numerous BYOB's that are available in northern New Jersey. The nose is all fruit, the palate was dark berries, plums, green pepper, wood and spice. A nice long finish. (2569 views) | | | Tasted by Lord Marc on 2/14/2022 & rated 91 points: This is getting better with age. If you have some try it now...so good. (2492 views) | | | Tasted by markydecker on 12/4/2021 & rated 94 points: Last magnum from the cellar and it’s perfect. Slight bricking around the rim, nose of damp earth and plums. The Bordeaux nuances are here (earth, leather, cigar box, garrigue). This is totally in the zone in large format, and will hold for many years. QPR on large bottles of Lytton and Geyserville is off the charts. Lovely foil to our delicious Thanksgiving lunch. (2534 views) | | | Tasted by Purple Tooth on 12/3/2021 & rated 91 points: Raisin laden nose, reminiscent of an older CdP bar the funk. The bouquet is definitely over the hill, but the wine appearance is vibrant and the flavors underneath are vibrant with spice, red candy, and vanilla. A very long, dry finish. This is not my thing, but its clearly in the zone for the zin gang. Drink (2671 views) | | | Tasted by thalver on 11/29/2021: very well balanced, and drinking well. The nose could stand to be more expressive....subtle fruit and earth flavors on the palate, medium finish. It may well go longer, I don't know if it will improve. (2015 views) | | | Tasted by forceberry on 11/27/2021 & rated 92 points: A blend of Zinfandel (71%), Petite Sirah (23%) and Carignan (6%) from the Lytton Springs vineyard in Dry Creek Valley. The harvest started on 11th of September and ended on 4th of October. Fermented spontaneously, macerated with the skins for 8 days. The wine was blended using 23 separate fermentation lots, selected from a total of 34 different ferments. Aged in American oak (18% new, 57% second, third or fourth use, 20% fifth or sixth use) for 14 months. 14,5% alcohol. Tasted in a mini-vertical of Lytton Springs 2015, 2014 and 2009.
Somewhat translucent yet rather deep and dark black cherry-red color. The nose feels a bit restrained for a Lytton Springs, but also showing good sense of harmony and integration, exhibiting lovely aromas of ripe raspberries and blackberries, some bilberry tones, a little bit of juicy cherry, light oaky notes of cloves and woody spice, a hint of dark plum and a sweeter, evolved touch of dried dark fruits. The overall impression is somewhat sweet-toned but also enjoyably fine-tuned and showing less oak than the younger vintages. The wine feels silky, ripe and somewhat sweetly-fruited on the palate with a full body and vibrant flavors of boysenberry jam and stewed dark plums, some bilberry tones, a little bit of mocha oak, light evolved notes of meaty umami, a hint of toasty wood spice and a faint floral touch of elderflower. The wine is enjoyably high in acidity with a moderately firm tannic backbone. The finish is ripe yet somewhat savory with moderate tannic grip and quite lengthy flavors of ripe bilberries and blackberries, some plummy tones, a little bit of evolved meaty character, light boysenberry tones, a floral hint of elderflower and a faint oaky touch of vanilla and cloves.
A wonderful, harmonious and enjoyably structured vintage of Lytton Springs that is slowly gliding into its optimum drinking window. Ridge often states that Lytton Springs will evolve for 10-15 years, but at 12 years of age this wine feels like it is only starting to hit its stride; it is exhibiting only its first evolved characteristics, the structure hasn't gone anywhere and there is still some oak that could integrate further with the fruit department - although I'm very happy how for the most part the oak has seemed to disappear into the background, when tasting this back-to-back with the 2014 and 2015 vintages. Although this wine is drinking mighty well right now, I'd say it will continue to improve for a good number of years more and probably will drink just fine for another 12-15 years, if not longer. While not as impressive as promising as the 2014 vintage, this doesn't really fall much behind. Smashing stuff, expect the score to slowly inch up as the wine ages. (2347 views) | | | Tasted by lozatron on 11/23/2021: Ridge Dinner 22 November (Hawksmoor Guildhall): A little bit muted? Maybe it was the comparison, maybe it's a dumb phase, or maybe there's just something a little off with this bottle. Perfectly decent drink - but I wonder if this middle aged phase makes it hard for these wines to shine? (1986 views) | | | Tasted by Mortgage92 on 11/20/2021 & rated 94 points: Wow, dark, dark color (dark ruby), dark fruit (currant), dark aroma (tobacco)....but what a flavor, moderate acidity, smooth body, lasting finish (slight smoke and pepper). This Zin blend is one of the best I have had. Paired this with a bowl of chili - good match! Drinking perfect now, so why what. I personally will not risk holding this wine longer and will finish all my bottles in the next 6- 8 months...why mess with perfection (1679 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, Santa Cruz Mountains – The 2015s and 2014s (Aug 2017) (8/1/2017)
(Ridge Vineyards Lytton Springs Sonoma Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Sara d'Amato
WineAlign (5/25/2012)
(Ridge Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County red) Subscribe to see review text. | By David Lawrason
WineAlign (5/24/2012)
(Ridge Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County red) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Szabo, MS
WineAlign (5/16/2012)
(Ridge Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jeb Dunnuck
JebDunnuck.com, Issue #10 (12/4/2011)
(Ridge Lytton Springs) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Josh Raynolds
Vinous, November/December 2011, IWC Issue #159
(Ridge Vineyards Zinfandel Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley) Subscribe to see review text. | By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, Exploring California's Central Coast (Aug 2011)
(Ridge Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley) Subscribe to see review text. | By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (5/19/2012)
(Ridge Lytton Springs) Dark red violet color; light raspberry, ripe currant, black currant nose; tasty, youthful, tart black currant, loam palate with medium acidity; needs 4-plus years; medium-plus finish (71% Zinfandel, 23% Petite Sirah, 6% Carignane; 14.5% alcohol) 90 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and WineAlign and JebDunnuck.com and RJonWine.com. (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.2009 Ridge Lytton SpringsFrom the wine bottle: 71% Zinfandel, 23% Petite Sirah, 6$ Carignane. 14.5% alcohol by volume. Bottled 2/11. The proportion of new oak was reduced slightly, to allow full expression of the wine's fruit and inherent elegance. Enjoyable upon release, this opulent -- though structured -- Lytton Springs will evolve over the next 10-15 yers. (11/10)Ridge Lytton SpringsHistory
In 1972, Ridge made its first Lytton Springs from vines planted on the eastern half of the vineyard at the turn of the century, and purchased both the eastern and western portions of the vineyard in the early 1990s, (In the 1870s, under "Captain" William Litton's ownership, the two were part of one property; spelling evolved into "Lytton" by 1903.) The vineyard is planted to zinfandel and its principal complementary varietals.
Vineyard
First Ridge Lytton Springs®: 1972
Location: The bench and hills separating Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys, just north of Healdsburg, Sonoma County.
Elevation: 80' - 160'
Soils: Varied, with a predominance of gravelly clay; gravelly clay loam on hillsides.
Age of Vines: Lytton East: zinfandel, petite sirah, grenache and carignane planted 1901 (32 acres) and 1910 (11 acres); zinfandel and petite sirah, planted 1997-1998 (5 acres), Lytton West: zinfandel, petite sirah, carignane, grenache re-planted 1953-1968 (26 acres); zinfandel and petite sirah, planted 1980's (2.5 acres); zinfandel and petite sirah planted in 1990's (42.8 acres); zinfandel, limited petite sirah, limited carignane, in 2000's (60 acres).
Training: Head trained (no trellis), spur pruned.
Climate: Fog in a.m., warm sunny afternoons, breezes in late p.m.
Exposure: Southeasterly
Yields: 1.5 to 3.0 tons per acre
©Ridge Vineyards
In the heart of Dry Creek Valley, home to 100 year old Zinfandel vines, co-planted (as was the norm) with small amounts of Petite Sirah, Carignane, Grenache and Mourvedre, Lytton Springs is Ridge’s Sonoma HQ. This is ideal Zinfandel country and produces wines that are spectacular both young and with age.Lytton SpringsThe bench and hills separating Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys, just north of Healdsburg, Sonoma County.USAAmerican 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 Sonoma CountyMendocino CountyDry Creek Valley Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley | Dry Creek Valley Association | Appellation America | San Francisco Chronicle Article |
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