Described as rich and opulent, may be due to the petite sirah - found it to be a "middle-of-the-road" blend for Ridge. Solid pleasant dark fruit but nothing spectacular.
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Intense notes of blackberry, black cherry, and boysenberry dominate the palate, with a subtle hint of dried herbs on the finish. Drinking very well right now. Paired beautifully with a prime ribeye. Alcohol high, acid medium, tannins medium
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I remember when Rockpile wines hit the scene years ago with JC Cellars, Rosenblum and Maurtison they were big and brawny. I anticipated Ridge coming out with one but it took about 12 years for them to do so. I guess they were not offered grapes or they couldn’t find a suitable site for the ATP program. I admit it could be me but I find this more of a finesse zin. Maybe it’s Olney’s style and/or use of American oak too that I can’t get into. Perhaps zins have changed stylistically as well. Whatever the reason this is too light for me, blue fruits, vanilla, a little raspberry? I’d say drink up.
Drank over 2 days.
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Ridge Dinner 29 November - The Young Ones (Hawksmoor Guildhall): Yummers. A real nostalgia trip to the kind of blackberry fruit I used to get from Australian wines, back when I could afford Australian wines. Fruit forward, but super balanced. This clearly can make old bones but it's kinda thrilling now.
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Pop and pour. Tasted with food (grilled pork chop and napa cabbage stiffed with cous cous, beef and veggies, in case you were wondering.) Dark purple. Nose offers dark fruits, blueberries, chocolate and mace. Good rich dark fruits. Sufficient acidity. Tannins nicely integrated. Does not show heavy oak. Good wine.
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We put this up against Lambert Bridge’s Rockpile. Great fun to compare. Ridge was more elegant, almost austere by comparison. But better with the food.
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Opened 1 hour. Color is deepish garnet. On the nose: Red and black berries, plums, vanilla and spice. On the palate: Red and black berries and a bit of plum and spice. Good acidity. Flavor profile is a bit narrow and Finish is a bit short. It ‘s good but I thought maybe it would be a bit less one dimensional.
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This is a very solidly constructed, yummy straight out of the bottle Zinfandel blend from Ridge. We appreciate that Ridge is not afraid of blends and they often strike just the right balance - as they do in this particular wine - of fruit, acid, tannins. As is our wont, we recommend decanting as it really helped this wine mellow and achieve a lovely balance within a couple of hours. This wine will be good for several more years. Excellent QPR for an American west coast red from a designated vineyard.
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Regrettably this Rockpile fell short. Surprisingly thin with not as much fruit as expected, some red licorice but no notable spice on the finish. It's still very young so hoping more time will add some depth.... Bummed and not up to Ridge standards.
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Fuller and more forward than last year's version. It's sounding like 2018 is turning out to be a strong vintage in CA. But this wasn't necessarily great still. Again somewhat narrow in expression. Solid but not complex enough for another level. Probably doesn't need as much time as the 17.
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3/3/2024 - wchrisw wrote:
Just not my thing. Glad I got rid of this. Not bad by any means but I just don’t like the structure of it. Light, vanilla, average if that….
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2/19/2024 - ogres3 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Described as rich and opulent, may be due to the petite sirah - found it to be a "middle-of-the-road" blend for Ridge. Solid pleasant dark fruit but nothing spectacular.
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1/6/2024 - cmmatthews Likes this wine: 90 Points
Nice but can definitely hang longer. Day 1 the fruit is bright, tart. Day 2 more subdued and has a cherry cola on the finish.
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4/29/2023 - Stephen.Somm Likes this wine: 90 Points
Intense notes of blackberry, black cherry, and boysenberry dominate the palate, with a subtle hint of dried herbs on the finish. Drinking very well right now. Paired beautifully with a prime ribeye. Alcohol high, acid medium, tannins medium
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3/17/2023 - wchrisw wrote:
I remember when Rockpile wines hit the scene years ago with JC Cellars, Rosenblum and Maurtison they were big and brawny. I anticipated Ridge coming out with one but it took about 12 years for them to do so. I guess they were not offered grapes or they couldn’t find a suitable site for the ATP program. I admit it could be me but I find this more of a finesse zin. Maybe it’s Olney’s style and/or use of American oak too that I can’t get into. Perhaps zins have changed stylistically as well. Whatever the reason this is too light for me, blue fruits, vanilla, a little raspberry? I’d say drink up.
Drank over 2 days.
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9/13/2022 - rbfleming Likes this wine: 90 Points
Red clarity. Light nose. Raspberries and crisp acidity.
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7/17/2022 - rbfleming Likes this wine: 90 Points
Blackberries. Strong but balanced tannins. Altogether delightful.
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12/4/2021 - MichielV wrote: 89 Points
Pretty good after dinner drink! Good zin with good fruit and spice.
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11/30/2021 - lozatron Likes this wine:
Ridge Dinner 29 November - The Young Ones (Hawksmoor Guildhall): Yummers. A real nostalgia trip to the kind of blackberry fruit I used to get from Australian wines, back when I could afford Australian wines. Fruit forward, but super balanced. This clearly can make old bones but it's kinda thrilling now.
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9/21/2021 - t_moderne wrote: 89 Points
Pop and pour. Tasted with food (grilled pork chop and napa cabbage stiffed with cous cous, beef and veggies, in case you were wondering.)
Dark purple.
Nose offers dark fruits, blueberries, chocolate and mace.
Good rich dark fruits. Sufficient acidity. Tannins nicely integrated. Does not show heavy oak.
Good wine.
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9/6/2021 - brasstab Likes this wine: 92 Points
We put this up against Lambert Bridge’s Rockpile. Great fun to compare. Ridge was more elegant, almost austere by comparison. But better with the food.
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7/13/2021 - gudetama Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted and left for one hour before serving. I thought this was quite elegant and easy to drink. Tannins are moderate. Still plenty of time left.
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2/8/2021 - Brian of Mull Likes this wine: 90 Points
Opened 1 hour. Color is deepish garnet. On the nose: Red and black berries, plums, vanilla and spice. On the palate: Red and black berries and a bit of plum and spice. Good acidity. Flavor profile is a bit narrow and Finish is a bit short. It ‘s good but I thought maybe it would be a bit less one dimensional.
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1/27/2021 - VoVo Likes this wine: 92 Points
This is a very solidly constructed, yummy straight out of the bottle Zinfandel blend from Ridge. We appreciate that Ridge is not afraid of blends and they often strike just the right balance - as they do in this particular wine - of fruit, acid, tannins. As is our wont, we recommend decanting as it really helped this wine mellow and achieve a lovely balance within a couple of hours. This wine will be good for several more years. Excellent QPR for an American west coast red from a designated vineyard.
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11/27/2020 - heidoanddave Likes this wine: 90 Points
Enjoyed with Turkey sitting outside day after Thanksgiving.
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5/28/2020 - psundberg wrote: 88 Points
Regrettably this Rockpile fell short. Surprisingly thin with not as much fruit as expected, some red licorice but no notable spice on the finish. It's still very young so hoping more time will add some depth.... Bummed and not up to Ridge standards.
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5/20/2020 - dougandrea wrote:
yummy. Buy more.
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5/19/2020 - spacewrangler Likes this wine: 93 Points
This may not have a long lived life but it’s in the zone now. Fleshy but w finesse. Tons of fruit but solid complexity.
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4/30/2020 - WetRock wrote:
Fuller and more forward than last year's version. It's sounding like 2018 is turning out to be a strong vintage in CA. But this wasn't necessarily great still. Again somewhat narrow in expression. Solid but not complex enough for another level. Probably doesn't need as much time as the 17.
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