Yup, Sean…DaveBennion, for several yrs, back in the mid-'60’s would buy several btls of Lynch-Bages, btl them up (don’t think they used a Ridge label) and use the btls for RidgeMB.
Tom
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Also a '67 Montrachet, iirc.
I opened a '66 Rocha at one of our Ridge picnics a few years ago. It plays to my preferences, being mature and mellow rather than bold and tannic like so many “great” Ports.
Dave and Fran Bennion brought in members of their (SRI based) tasting group as partners. Getting barrels in that era was the primary purpose, but they chose wines they liked.
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Love Ridge Essence. The 01 Petite Siran version might be my favorite.
A buddy has a pre-Draper era Essence by the way, a 1966 vintage bottling! He won it on auction like 7-8 years ago.
Tom, were you involved in the nuclear industry? I have been an ANS member since 1982.
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Yup, Kelly. Degrees from KansasState in '72. Spent my entire career at LosAlamos in the heart of the Nuclear Weapons program. Still working at a low level coming up on 50 yrs.
After I went behind the fence, didn’t have much ANS involvement after about '78. Worked mostly in Sn neutron transport.
In the FWIW category, Eric Texier, Rhône winemaker, was a NuclearEngineer, at Saclay I believe.
And you work where, Kelly??
Tom
Sorry to interrupt the flow of conversation, but I am prone to forget about random discoveries if I don’t post immediately.
While searching for information about the fate of the old-vine “Angeli Ranch”, I found out that Ridge Vineyards bottled an “Angeli” Zinfandel back in the day:
Ridge 1981 “Angeli” Zinfandel
"Vintage Notes:
“In the Fall of 1981, the old ‘Angeli Vineyard’ on the warm slopes above Alexander Valley ripened very fully before it could be harvested. With two years of bottle age this excellent wine will soften and the richness and intensity of flavors will dominate. It should be in its prime for three or four years thereafter. PD (1/83)”
The website states that this wine was bottled with 0.11% residual sugar by weight, and ABV of 15.6%.
The label image provided for an old offer on WineBid makes it seem that this was a dry late-harvest Zin…?
It’s jammy and boozy, kind of like a Zin Amarone.
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Any thoughts on Ridge’s straight Mataro bottlings from Pato?
I had the 2003 last June, my notes below. I enjoyed the experience, but wouldn’t go out of my way to repeat it. There is a 2016 listed in CellarTracker, but I don’t think that’s accurate. It seems like 2003 is the last Ridge vintage.
This is an interesting exercise in history. Made as ready to drink crowd pleaser, it’s clearly over the hill. It is still drinkable though, provided you decant as short as possible for sediment only. It rewards the treatment with a surprising amount of fruit, and a port-like appearance. If you let it sit in the decanter, the fruit disappears quickly, and gives way to reductive notes. Shoe leather at first, followed by rubber. Drink now.
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According to a January 6, 2022 email from Ridge Vineyards, an “Corralitos” Pinot Noir from the Santa Cruz Mountains is to be available to ATP members in April:
“…This year it’ll also feature wines like our Corralitos Pinot Noir (only the second vintage since 1972!).”
Presumably, 2018 marked the first vintage since the initial bottling, making the 2022 ATP release of the 2019 “Corralitos” Pinot Noir the second vintage since 1972.
Ridge Blog
“Ridge & Pinot Noir: The Story Starts in 1971”
“Ridge made its first and only Pinot Noir in 1971 from an old vineyard above Los Gatos, in the Santa Cruz Mountains…”.
"…Our First Modern-Day Vintage
“We began looking around the Santa Cruz Mountains at unique sites that were ideally suited for Pinot Noir. That led us to the ‘Gali Vineyard’ in the Corralitos region of the appellation. Located in the rolling hills near Corralitos, between the cities of Santa Cruz and Watsonville, the vines are just below the Santa Cruz Mountains appellation limit (400’) on weathered, well-drained, sedimentary soils. The vineyard is owned and meticulously farmed by Janice and Joseph Gali, in close collaboration with Ridge’s Senior VP of Vineyard Operations, David Gates. While we are in the early stages of our return to producing Pinot Noir, we are excited about quality of fruit from the ‘Gali Vineyard’. After producing a small bottling from the 2018 vintage, we look forward to sharing the 2019 vintage with our ATP members.”
\
from Gali Vineyards website: “Our Story”“…The ‘Gali Vineyard’ was planted in 2013 about four and a half miles from the Pacific Ocean. The 46-acres of rolling hills are studded with towering redwoods in the cool Santa Cruz Mountains of California. Eighteen acres of grapes began as bench-grafted two year old bare root plants, thriving in the weathered sandstone soil covered by a topsoil layer of loamy shale that provides a perfect environment. As a south-facing vineyard with marine influence, morning fog, and steady afternoon winds, the vines experience a diurnal temperature variation of up to 35 degrees fahrenheit each day leading to grape berries with thicker skins and more intense color. This unique environment produces wines with unparalleled complexity and depth of flavor…”.
Prince of Pinot website: “Gali Vineyard” profile
"2022 Ridge Vineyards Advance Tasting Program Shipment ScheduleWine / Shipment / Ship Date
- 2019 Boatman Zinfandel / Winter / Week of 2/14
- 2020 Buchignani Carignane / Winter / Week of 2/14
- 2019 Syrah Grenache Mataro / Winter / Week of 2/14
- 2018 Demostene Ranch / Spring / Week of 4/18
- 2021 Valdiguié / Spring / Week of 4/18
- 2019 Corralitos Pinot Noir / Spring / Week of 4/18
- 2017 Buchignani Zinfandel / Spring / Week of 4/18
- 2019 Mazzoni Home Ranch / Fall / Week of 10/17
- 2019 Gonsalves Mataro / Fall / Week of 10/17
- 2020 Benito Dusi Zinfandel / Fall / Week of 10/17
"View the digital shipment inserts for current and past ATP shipments:
· Spring 2021 ATP eBook "
Wine Berserkers
“2018 Ridge Corralitos Pinot Noir”
by Patrick M
April 8, 2021
Ridge Vineyards website:
Gali Vineyards website:
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I remember being offered the Pinot Noir as an add-on to the spring or winter 2021 ATP shipment. I didn’t add it at the time, but we did a tasting at Lytton Springs in May 2021 and we’re able to purchase a bottle from the store there. I loved it.
2001 Ridge Zinfandel California Essence Lytton Estate - not sure if this is still good, especially in a 375ml.
I still have a 375ml as well. I bet it’s fine. Still have the 2001 Petite Sirah Essence as well.
**Ridge Vineyards is replanting a portion of vines in its Monte Bello estate location. “Rousten Ranch” and the “Water Tank” block at “Perrone” appear to be the sites of the projects.
Several posts on Mr David Gates’ Instagram account provide interesting details about this ongoing project.**The winery website includes a comprehensive explanation of some Monte Bello area replantings.
Additionally, 20 acres of Zinfandel vines were uprooted due to red blotch at “Lytton Springs” in 2020.
David Gates Instagram 2019 post:
“A few gems budded at Monte Bello this week.”
#ridgevineyards #budding #beclan #mourtaou #cabernetpfeffer #saintmacaire #pinotnoir #clone131 #oldestpinotvineinca #ithink #vitis #viticulture #grapegrowing #foundationplantservices #fps
“Location Ridge Vineyards”
David Gates Instagram 2019 post:
“Now that pruning is finished it’s time for replants. Cabernet Sauvignon clone 40 on 110R.”
#ridgevineyards #montebello #cabernetsauvignon #grapevines #replant #gophers
“Location Ridge Vineyards”
David Gates Instagram 2020 post:
“Watertank Block trellis installation.”
#ridgevineyards #montebello #merlot #winegrapes #planting2020 #betterlatethannever #santacruzmountains
David Gates Instagram 2020 post:
“They’re ALIVE!!”
#newvines #merlot at #Montebello #ridgevineyards #viticulture #grapegrowing
“Location Monte Bello”
Ridge Vineyards website:
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A friend has a bunch of the various essence wines some much older. No rush on that and they are all awesome
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If you drive past the tasting room complex and keep going towards the Upper Winery and Vidovich Vineyards, you can see many of the new plantings.
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I recently shared David Gates’ social media images on the “Contra Costa Wine Heritage” thread of the 2019 Carignan harvest at Oakley’s “Lucchesi / Emerson / Joaquin José Vineyard”.
Wine Berserkers forum
“Ridge Vyds - ‘Joaquin José Vy’” 2019 Harvest"
March 14, 2022
David Gates’ Instagram 2019 post:
“Finishing CoCoCo with Joaquín Jose carignane curtesy of #3winecompany”
#contracostacounty #carignane #historicvineyardsociety #harvest2019 #sundayfunday☀️ #ridgevineyards
“Location Big Break Regional Trail”
Montebello Ridge in Santa Cruz County has been studied by geologists for some time.
Terry Wright composed several works on vineyard soils, including an examination of Ridge Vineyards’ “Monte Bello Vineyard”.
Terry Wright Geology website
Terroirs: Geology, Soils, Wine Quality
-
"Guidebook to Field Trip: Geology, Soils, and Wine Quality in the Santa Clara Valley & Santa Cruz Mountains"
Geological Society of America Cordilleran Section Meeting, San Jose, 2005 (PDF download)
Map of Lower Parcels: “Monte Bello Vyd”
Guide to ‘Map of Lower Parcels: “Monte Bello Vyd”’
Additional Resources:
National Parks Service
Park History: Geology Publications
Dept of the Interior / USGS
Geological Survey Bulletin 614: Guidebook of the Western United States, Part D: The Shasta Route and Coast Line
by J.S. Diller & others (1916)
Illustration:
“Route Map #6A - Watsonville Junction to San Mateo, Cal.”
Figure:
“Figure 15 - Section from Palo Alto, Cal., to the Summit of the Santa Cruz Range”
Bay Nature
“Peninsula Treasure”
by David Weintraub
October 1, 2003
US Office of Sciences website
Topic Pages
Search Results: “Santa Cruz Soil”
Hathi Trust
Search Results: “Geology California Santa Cruz County”
Internet Archive
A Memorial and Biographical Hstory of the Coast Counties of Central California
by Luther A. Ingersoll
Lewis Publishing Company (1893)
- “Sierra Morena” (p. 190)
California Dept of Conservation
“History of Geologic Maps of California”
“Modified from Charles W. Jennings (1985), ‘California Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin 201’”
Western Regional Climate Center
Data for Central California:
https://wrcc.dri.edu/summary/Climsmcca.html
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Thanks, Drew, for all this research you do for us that are too lazy to DYOR (Do Your Own Research).
Tom
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