RIDGE 2010 GEYSERVILLE®
Varietal Information
64% Zinfandel
20% Carignane
12% Petite Sirah
2% Alicante Bouschet
2% Mataro (Mourvedre)
14.3% alcohol by volume

History
Ridge has made the Geyserville as a single-site zinfandel in every year since 1966. The grapes are grown in three adjoining vineyards on a defined stretch of gravelly soil approximately one-and-a-quarter miles long and a half-mile wide.

Vintage
Harvest Dates: 18 September - 14 October
Grapes: Average brix 25.1 degrees
Fermentation: Natural primary and secondary; limited use of submerged cap, limited pump-overs; pressed at eight days.
Barrels: 100% air-dried american oak barrels (10% new, 12% one and two years old, 78% three and four years old.)
Aging: Thirteen months in barrel

Growing Season
Rainfall: 42 inches (above average)
Bloom: Late May
Weather: Cool, late spring; cold summer; two very hot days in August (24 and 25) damaged fruit, reducing yields by 50%.

Winemaking
All estate-grown grapes, hand harvested. Destemmed and crushed. Fermented on the native yeasts, followed by full malolactic on the naturally-occurring bacteria. 0.26g/liter (17,067 grams total) calcium carbonate to thirteen small fermentors to moderate unusually firm acidity; 2.4 percent rehydration (added to five particularly ripe young vine parcels); minimum effective sulfur (35 ppm at crush; 75 ppm over the course of aging), and seven fresh egg white fining added per barrel to moderate tannins. Pad filtered at bottling. In keeping with our philosophy of minimal intervention, this is the sum of our actions.

Winemaker Tasting Notes
Intense ruby color. Ripe cherry and plum, peppermint, clove barrel spice, gravel/earth. Well-defined stone fruits on entry, medium- to full-bodied, coated tannins; a long finish with refreshing acidity. -Eric Baugher (2/12)

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