Ridge Geyserville vs. Lytton Springs, 2013 edition

While they are in different appellations, Alexander Valley and Dry Creek Valley, these old vineyards are only about 2 miles away from each other. The compositions of the wines are similar too: in this vintage ~3/4 zinfandel, with the 2nd and 3rd varieties switching: Carignan in Geezer, Petite Sirah in Lytton. The wines were quite different, and were true to their canonical profiles: Lytton more muscular, Geezer more elegant. Can't think of a better demonstration of terroir, at least in California.

• 2013 Ridge Lytton Springs 91 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

  Side by side with the Geyserville from the same vintage. My prior impressions of the differences between the two bottlings were validated: both excellent and distinct, with this Lytton Springs seeming more robust, dense, and linear than the Geezer. I've read that the difference can be attributed to the flipped ratios of the secondary varieties: they have effectively identical Zinfandel content, 73% vs 74%, while in LS Petite Sirah and Carignane are at 16 and 8% and in Geezer they are 9 and 17%. But such small differences couldn't explain everything: to me this is terroir writ large.
  So what does it taste like? First, the color is still a youthful purple-red. It has the Draper perfume - American oak - but really just a hint. Juicy raspberry and anise, some chocolate too, silky but substantial tannins, plenty of midpalate weight. Very slight earthiness. Even at 12 years it's a burly zin blend that can go for many more years. Compared to the spectacular Geyserville it seems more straightforward, but the balance is impeccable. Very good, but in 2nd place today.

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• 2013 Ridge Geyserville 94 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County

  Side by side with the Lytton Springs from the same vintage. My note for LS describes the slightly different compositions of the two wines. Here I'll add that these vineyards are only ~ 2 miles away from each other. Despite being so similar on paper, the wines taste very distinct, and I've always found that to be true from vintage to vintage.
  Today, the Geezer wins for me. The color is bright cherry red and somewhat translucent. It smells subtly of the famous Draper perfume, imparted by American oak. This is elegant, truly superb, and in comparison the Lytton Springs seemed blocky, although that's only in relative terms. It's very good too. Black cherry is the primary fruit flavor. There is terrific tart acidity that reminds me of something from Italy. Enough structure to age for longer, but at 12 years old this really dances on the palate. Very fine dusty tannins give a subliminal sense of the earth the vines grow in. While the flavors are different, the texture is almost Burgundian.

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At least on this day, Geezer wins. It's pretty spectacular. My wife agrees. Happy to have one more left of each of these. Will try to run the same experiment a few years down the road.