This is a great thread, and I have to say I have been lucky enough to go to some extraordinary events. It brought back a lot of great memories particularly the one I did for a major birthday.
We flew out from New York, and stayed in Santa Cruz. I had arranged a lunch at Ridge with a dozen of my closest friends to be presided over by Paul Draper. We had a tour of the vineyards and winery with him. The conversation got interesting, and we ended up an hour late for lunch. I did not take notes, but a friend did. From 2016
“Ridge is—and always has been—the stuff of magic. With roots in the 1880s, Ridge has produced wine from the fabled Monte Bello Vineyard for more than a half-century; with the iconic Paul Draper still at the helm after forty-seven years—there is nothing else quite like it.
As we near the 40th anniversary of the Judgment of Paris Tasting this May, one thing is certain: the Ridge Monte Bello 1971 will continue to outperform every other wine, as it has — consistently. This is hardly an uncommon phenomenon: Ridge tends to hold its own among the best of Napa a few decades on. (As an aside, Soutirage senior wine advisor, Chris Hoel, recently prepared a private client tasting which highlighted the ’09 and ’90 vintages from some of the most celebrated producers in California, France and Italy. Considering some of the hallowed wines on the table, attendees were astonished to see Ridge steal the show.)
Collecting wine has the same effect on the owner as collecting art. At some point, the experience moves from having, to knowing; and from knowing, to sharing. As the private collections sourcing specialist at Soutirage, I have the personal honor and the pleasure of working day-to-day with collectors who have reached the peak of their life in wine, for whom the purpose of life, the universe and their cellar has become to share their joy and knowledge with kindred spirits. One of our collector friends decided to spend his 60th birthday party doing just that: bringing the jewels in his collection of Ridge wines back to their birthplace and maker. Paul Draper and Eric Baugher hosted a birthday lunch for our friend at the winery, in the renovated barn where the first vintages were made back in the ‘60s; our friend brought the wines. Paul’s presence was the center of the day, at 79, his passionate expertise and fluent reminiscences riveting everyone in the group for the duration of our visit.
Paul led us first in a barrel tasting of the 2014 and ‘15 Monte Bello. The 2014 Monte Bello is an expressive, impressive baby, full of vibrant fruit and energy. The 2015 is tighter, still a little miffed at its transformation into wine, showing density and structure that is promising in quality far beyond what is assured in quantity (the crop on Monte Bello in 2015 was down by 30%.) As we tasted in the pristine barrel room (the above photo is from the original limestone cellar, not the barrel room), Paul took a detour into his research and conclusions on barrels. He loves to read old winemaking histories, in French, and shared that in the 1800s, the Bordeaux First Growths went through élevage in Baltic oak barrels, which had proven to be the best match for Bordeaux in extended trials at that time. Paul took great delight in sharing that American oak came second in those trials, and French oak, last. Ridge has famously only used American oak barrels.
Lunch began with the ’73, ’97, and ’04 Ridge Chardonnays. The ’73 misled everyone with its soft profile initially, and then later deepened into a rich, golden treat. The ’97 is drinking beautifully, a long, elegant mouthful of stone fruit with an edge of orange peel, balanced and expansive on the finish. No rush to open bottles for those lucky enough to have them, but it would be a shame to miss this wine now. The ’04 is still a baby by comparison with its older siblings, quiet and unformed, this wine needs another 5-10 years. The next wines were ’73 Occidental Zinfandel, ’73 Geyserville, ’78 & ’90 York Creek Cabernet Sauvignon. The ’73 Geyserville has “Late Picked” on the label, but for Ridge that is a literal description of the harvest in this case, it does not mean the wine is sweet. This was a meaty, rich, juniper berry accented wine, showing no signs of slowing down. The two York Creek Cabernets were typically stern, smoky and earthy–the ’78 needing air to open its blackcurrant fruit, and the lean, appetizing ’90 clearly not in a hurry to soften its youthful stance anytime soon.
The centerpiece of the day was the lineup of Monte Bello vintages: ’97, ’91, ’85, ’84, ’78, ’76, and ’71, along with the ’71 Eisele. Monte Bello stands among the finest wines of California, and this tasting brought that historic stature to life. The ’78 is simply glorious—this was perhaps the wine of the day, with a perfect balance of sweetness and length, a smoky mineral character adding complexity to the charm of perfectly resolved tannins and fruit, with a seamless finish. Everyone smiled as they tasted. This vintage included 6% Merlot. Paul joked that he was sure he had ruined this wine. As the bottles were readied for market it was discovered that the wine had not completed malolactic fermentation and it was spritzy in the bottle. So Paul emptied all the bottles back into tank, completed malo, and then put the wine back in the bottles. Unfazed by that rough handling, the ’78 is one of Paul’s triumphs.
The two ’71s are legendary bottles, a unique comparison of Napa and Santa Cruz Mountains nature, nurtured by the same hands. Paul told us that the Ridge team headed up to Napa with a clear sense of mission in ’71. They were going to show Napa how it was done. They picked the Eisele grapes before they picked Monte Bello that year, and the fermentation with a submerged cap took a full forty days and nights. The ’71 Ridge Eisele is at 13.9% alcohol, and while the ripe, almost glacé fruit is clearly from a warmer climate than the Monte Bello, and there is more spice than minerals on a broader frame, the wine has the same plumb line backbone of ripe, resolved tannins as the ’78 Monte Bello, leading to a smooth, sweet finish. Lovely now. The ’71 Monte Bello is at 12.2% alcohol, and blind would be taken as a much younger wine. Firm, with dark, dusty fruit and depths still to be plumbed, this wine needed more time in the glass to open and can be left comfortably resting in the cellar for another 5-10 years.
Of the other vintages, the ’84 is a soft, inviting wine today (delicious with the cheese course); the silky ’85 more complex with a signature Monte Bello iodine note and in no hurry; the ’91 was the most Bordelaise of the lineup, all pencil lead and cassis and also in no rush to maturity; the ’97 is not talking to anyone right now, sullen and sulky but with great structure and promise.
Paul Draper turns 80 on March 10th, and his contribution to winemaking in California is already established and celebrated. His gentle, Zen-like way belies the uncompromising discipline and dedication required to maintain such a high level of achievement, over five decades. It was a privilege to taste in his company and hear him speak, but his wines also speak for him, and will do so for decades to come.”
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