9/3/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Creamy texture. A bit waxy on the nose. More fruit on the palate with some orange on the finish.

6/1/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Daily cab drinker that I had purchased previously. Upon further review, there is a Margarita Vineyard version that is definitely a step up from this. Basic burger wine, some decent fruit, but no real depth of flavor.

5/25/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Excellent wine, Nice nose of mineral/flint and some yeast with a hint of petrol. On the palate, bright fruit, with pear leading the way. This will only get better and more refined.

5/24/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Solid Rose with decent balance and strawberry and minerality. A nice pairing here is baked haddock with sautéed brussels sprouts. OK QPR at $21.

5/22/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This remains a very solid wine , that is aging gracefully and exhibits good depth of flavor and is a solid wine in a variety of food pairings.

5/16/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

I’m a yearly half case regular of this wine. This version is big flavors of apricot, and fig, and honey, and some late wet stone like ending. This is very flavorful wine that is complex enough to roll with an array of different food choices. Initially to mind, I would do any type of wood fired oysters, a delicate sole, or some oven roasted pork chops. Big wine, big score.

5/13/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Really nice wine with a touch of oak treatment on the nose and palate, mixed with nice citrus and wet stone. Perfectly balanced. This will be a great food wine with any whitefish or a chicken breast. . I'm thinking sole francese or chicken picatta would be a great pairing. 3-5 years of age seems reasonable to me.

5/12/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This is my last bottle. Really deep gold color now, which is a change. The nose is a bit more muted than what I recall, with some pear and almond notes. On the palate, its mellow pear, with more almond, a bit of apple, and more minerality. This has been a decent wine for me. I bought 4 on release and opened one yearly for 4 years. Interesting change of body, color, and flavor over each year. This remains a solid food wine and decent QPR at $22.

5/4/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Red cherries and a bit of cocoa on the nose. A bright and juicy palate with cherries, cranberry, and some strawberry. A nice light pinot with good acidity and balance.

4/27/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This has a monster nose, very complex. It leads with smoke, then dirt, and finally a strawberry jam component hiding in the background. The palate has similar components with the fruit jam being a bit more forward. Nice balance and plenty of acidity at this point. Appropriate to drink now with a 90 min decant. I'd say it has 5-7 solid years of prime drinking window. I'm going with grilled sushi grade tuna as a food pairing on first impression.

4/13/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This wine was very bright and acidic. It had lots of cherry and a bit of meaty back end on the palate. Nose was mostly cherry. Decent drinker, not overly complex, but would be a good salami/cheese/fruit board pairing. Fair QPR at $24.

4/11/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Drank a bottle young, with double run through the Venturi. This has very bright tart cherries on both the nose and palate. Plenty of acid and some tannins, this will be better in a year or so. Decent now and drinkable with a Venturi or an hour plus decant.

4/9/2021 - CCestaro Likes this wine:

This is a delicious rose. Beautiful in color, it has light strawberries and cream on the nose and palate. Beautiful in weight and balance. This is a great food rose, that has the stuff to pair with a wide array of summer dishes.

4/7/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This is very good QPR. I nice summer sipper that seems like it would be food versatile. Nose and palate of melon, wet stone, peach, and some grapefruit. Very nice weight and balanced.

3/31/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Low priced drinker that has decent QPR. Bright red fruit, cherries and raspberry on the nose and palate. Light, but not in a bad way. Decent.

3/23/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Dark fruit, dust, leather, and some oak. A bit of acidity still. Not round in my eyes, with little depth. Solid fruit and solid taste, just not my style. Decent QPR for the price.

3/21/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Nice flavorful table wine. Nothing fancy, but full of tart cherry flavor and drinking fine right out of the bottle. I’d pair this with some Italian hard salami, cheese, and some fresh figs.

3/16/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This bottle deserves food, and alas, Brunello is our weekly virtual wine theme tonight, and this is my selection. I've opened and let the bottle air for about 90 mins. The first pour into the glass was a bit rough. It had dirt like color bricking, and had an off put prune nose. She came around after about 15 mins in the glass. I get a still somewhat funky nose of semi burnt strawberries, with a mushroom and soil smell....not overly attractive. She tastes much better, with a nice soft balance of strawberry and cherry flavors. For my taste, this bottling is a bit past prime drinking window, but that said, it's still pretty good.

3/14/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This is solid stuff for the price. Apples, pear, with just the right amount of bubbles. A great seafood paring...try grilled oysters Rockefeller and thank me later.

3/11/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Solid annual favorite of mine. Honey and apricots are the nose and palate. Better with a slight chill, as the flavor profile expanded as it warmed a bit. Medium age potential. Decent value.

3/9/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Delicious wine, rounding into peak drinking window.

3/2/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Great nose with a bit of barnyard, some forest, and some earth. Nice dark fruit, nicely balanced, with a soft texture. This is subtle and still very good.

2/26/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This is a day two score. Upon opening, I thought this wine was pretty non descript. It’s nose wasn’t expressive, and the mid palate and finish was blah. Today, it’s much better, with nose and palate of pear, and apple, and some honey. It’s much rounder and more food diverse on day two. Rating is day two, and I’ll grab three more of these and age them a couple years to release this wines potential and get it close to the WE 93 score.

2/12/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

Definitely dry and crisp, but it had a strong anise nose and taste on the palate that I thought clashed a bit with Japanese dumplings, shrimp shumai, and some salmon sashimi. It is much better with my palate post food tonight.

1/26/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

First of a half case purchased 10 years ago. I decanted this for three hours prior to my first sip. It has a nice nose, with some funky bramble that's noticeable along with strong strawberry. The taste is also pronounced strawberry, with an earthy component, that someone below called "forest undertones", which I guess fits it. Very well balanced, with nice acidity and definite tannins still evident. This screams for Italian pasta dishes with some meat sauce....As I sip, I'm thinking pappardelle Bolognese. Many years left.

1/21/2021 - CCestaro wrote:

This got a venturi into the decanter and a two hour pause before tasting. It's well rounded and flavorful, with cherry and plum fruits and a bit of soft leather and earth notes. I find it drinkable now with the above added, but I can see it being less involved as a PNP. Decent QPR.

12/31/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This is my last of three...and five years since my last bottle. This is the least appealing of the three from memory. I find it past prime, but still serviceable with a filet mignon dinner. Not totally muted, but tannins are gone, and depth of secondary flavors are gone. Dark fruit...still balanced, and acceptable with dinner...but the wow factor is definitely gone. Drink up.

12/31/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Finally tried one. Very solid. Fully mature with nice depth of flavor and balance. Good food wine that should hold well for 3+ years.

12/24/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Very solid tonight for Christmas dinner with a herb and garlic encrusted rib roast. It was matched with an 03 Heitz Martha which stole the show, but my boys wives, who like a bit more upfront fruit nuances liked the Caymus better. It’s drinking fine...as most 07-10 Caymus do after ten years of cellaring. Zero deterioration...this has many years of solid delivery going forward.

12/24/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Tremendous depth of flavor and nose. Still a powerhouse wine that from my last bottle, has five years of further aging easy. A great compliment to our Christmas garlic and herb encrusted rib roast, and was widely enjoyed by everyone.

11/30/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Nice crisp Chardonnay. Nose of mineral, lime, and a hint of bread. More lime and a bit of apricot. Nice food wine for shellfish, like oysters or lobster. I enjoy it.

11/26/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Final bottle...just a beautiful wine. Some bricking and a deeper color, but it was full throttle. Great blend of deep dark cherries, and some herbs and earth being more pronounced. I was worried that this was past it’s drinking window, but alas it is not. Great wine at thanksgiving with lobster ravioli, lobster cream sauce, and turkey with the fixings.

11/25/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Really nice wine with good depth to hold up to heavier Italian dishes like a fettuccini alfredo. Nice mineral nose and flavors of citrus and apricot. A bit light on the finish, but overall, a nice tasty wine.

11/18/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Very tasty with a 2 hour decent. I nice mix of blueberry and dark fruit, with some pepper and spice notes. It smelled a bit heavy on the oak when first poured in the decanter, but it blow off with time. This is a decent QPR wine and the entry of the Ridge lineup. Nice Turkey option.

11/10/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Delicious last bottle of this vintage. Brown on the rim, and looking aged, but it delivers a solid depth of flavor with deep dark cherry, and still some violet flowery notes. Surprised at how fresh and delicious it tasted.

11/6/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This is a very strong QPR candidate. Parker gave this a 91 and I'm on board. I gave this a 3 hour decant. Very nice nose with raspberry, tar, and some tobacco. Bright fruits and more tobacco on the palate. This has good acidity and nice structure for a $10 wine. Very impressive.

11/3/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This was a delicious wine. Three hour decant, and it was smooth, velvety, and very flavorful. Dark fruits, with a hint of tobacco, and earth....just a real nice wine.

10/20/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This wine was the best of a 4 wine blind Barbaresco virtual tasting with my wine group. It was opened five hours before our tasting. Tremendous nose of black fruit mixed with strawberry, and some earthy notes. The tannins are mellowed, creating a very smooth mouthfeel. Delicious wine,

10/8/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This wine has seemed to have lost its vibrancy. Not significant signs of aging in color, but the nose is not expressive at all. The palate has some real alcohol muting the bit of red fruit, combined by a bit of puniness that I’m not a big fan of. The finish is short. This wine was cellared well for 12 years from purchase. I think it’s well on its way south.

10/6/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Nice wine aged a few years. Nice deep color showing some honey like look. Nose and palate of peach, apricot, and some nice minerality. Paired well with some grilled game hens. I’d say three to five more years of good stuff with this.

10/1/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Drinking great with a simple butter and herbed haddock dish. A stone and lemon and apple crispness that pairs great with a non textured white fish. Kick up your meal with this nice Chablis that offers the non oaked finesse that works here. Lovely wine.

9/25/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Delicious. Crisp, with some flinty notes, and lots of good fruit. Drinking great right now.

9/22/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This wine is an excellent QPR. Deep dark color, with a nose of plum, cocoa, and graphite. Beautifully rich and balanced, with more plum, and black fruit, and deeper cocoa. Medium finish. I really enjoy this wine, and for a $19 bottle, it drinks like a $40.

8/20/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Delicious wine with great mouthfeel, balance, and smoothness. Red fruits and a bit of chocolate on the nose, with bright strawberry, a bit of oak, and some light earth on the palate. Minimal tanin. Very good....I’ve had two bad corks in a row, btw, as my last bottle note from 2018 was also a crumbled cork....but, the wine itself is first rate right now.

8/11/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

I decanted this for 5 hours before drinking it with some prosciutto with melon appetizer and then tortellini with pesto and Parmesan cheese. I took about a 3 ounce pour when I first opened it....very dark fruits, with a definite clove and earth component on both the nose and palate. Five hours later, the fruit was much brighter and flavorful with good balance. These bottles are still fairly young in the 04 and 05 vintages, which make up a lot of my PDB single vineyard inventory.

8/1/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Great depth on both the nose and palate. Highly concentrated for a Pinot. 18 months in oak and 12 in the bottle. This is a high finesse Oregon bottling that will age nicely for 5-8 years.

7/26/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This is a solid QPR wine. Nice nose with cranberry and oak leading the way. The weight of the wine makes for easy drinking. Flavorful with a touch of sweetness, and fresh red fruits. Probably a short term ager, but it’s good for twenty bucks.

7/3/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

This is the best white wine/ at its price point of the year so far for me. Gorgeous coppery color. Peach and apricot on both nose and palate. Great balance, and just delicious. The finish is long and adds some funky spiciness.

6/22/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Just a comment, not a rating. Why is this wine, similar to the 2013, with a similar discussion thread, have a different label pictured than my bottling. Same with the 2013...

6/20/2020 - CCestaro wrote:

Decanted for 2 hours. Dark brooding purple color. Deep nose of dark fruit, spice, and some leather. Still has good tannins and is well balanced. Great dark fruit and an overall great wine in a perfect stage.