2003 Ridge Chardonnay Monte Bello

Community Tasting Notes (14) Avg Score: 93.5 points

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  3/8/2021 - leebmx Likes this wine: 95 Points

  What an incredible wine. At first glance we were a bit worried, the cork broke, and the wine, when poured through a filter was a deep golden colour looking unpleasantly like a dehydrated sample....However from first nose it was evident that this was a wine of great development and robust flavours but still in perfect condition for its age. A big ripe nose of peach, nectarine, toffee, macadamia nuts, a real feel of a sweet wine/botrytis although I don't expect there could have been any.
  The palate was equally rich matching the nose but there was still a good core of acidity which kept the wonderful tropical, dried fruit, nut and burnt vanilla flavours in balance. What a riot! Drunk with a shrimp risotto and was a perfect combo with the intense flavours of the dish.
  It was very hard to tell whether the acidity is going to drop off markedly over the next few years, so I would advise drinking soon if you are lucky enough to have a bottle.

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  4/1/2019 - Keith Cooper Likes this wine: 95 Points

  Tasted at The Wine Society's dinner, Berkshire, UK, with Ridge winemaker Eric Baugher introducing the wines. This was served alongside the 2015 vintage to accompany salmon blini starter. It had been flown in from the winery especially for the dinner. It was a fantastic opportunity to taste a Ridge chardonnay at 16 years after the vintage. The colour obviously showed age, being light gold/rusty. The first surprise was that the nose had sweetness, almost a feel of botrytis, with peaches and mandarins. However, the palate was bone dry! I'm not sure I've previously experienced something like that in an old chardonnay. The palate showed less fruit, but there was orange blossom and it was very complex. It was Eric's view that all of his chardonnays keep well for this length of time, regardless of the vintage. For me, this was an incredibly interesting wine to taste. Certainly the most interesting of the whites we tasted.

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  2/24/2019 - UpfromtheCellar wrote: 90 Points

  One of my highest scoring chardonnays ever, (and a strong candidate for my chardonnay of the year back in 2012) this wine still has a lazer like intensity, even after 16 years. Hints of vanilla and brioche on the nose, lazer focused fruit and acids on the palate, nice long finish. What its lacking at this point in its development are the broad rounder notes of hazelnut and tropicals that were so mouth filling 8-10 years ago. Still a great chardonnay, just past prime and time to drink up those last cherished bottles.

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  7/28/2017 - andtheodor wrote: 93 Points

  Loved this; warm and sunny with judicious oak approaching banana ester plus a beam of acidity. Mature, but not getting much nuttiness and the apple character is green and crunchy, not bruised. There's alcohol lurking but still has the richness to cover it up. This really hit the spot.

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  7/27/2017 - blanquito wrote: 93 Points

  This was really delicious. Showed elements of both Californian and Burgundian Chardonnay, with richness married to elegance and brightness. I haven't always loved Ridge's Chardonnay, but this was fabulous and right in the zone.

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View all 14 Community Tasting Notes

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