Ridge Vineyards, Monte Bello, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Montains, California 2008

98
Tasted by: Jon Bonné
Drinking Window: 2012 - 2030
Ridge has long created a Californian classic; that broke all the rules – a Cabernet based wine grown not in Napa but on greenstone- and limestone-rich soils in the remote corners of the Santa Cruz Mountains, aged not in French oak but American. (Though Paul Draper asserts Bordeaux’s use of French oak is a post-World War I turn.) The Merlot comes from plots on heavier soils. It accounts for 28% of the 2008 which, coming after two drought years, shows great meatiness. Amid the youthful oak toast is black tea, anise, cedar shavings and bright currant, plus an intense mineral energy and beautifully finessed tannins.
Ridge Vineyards, Monte Bello, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Montains, California 2008
Producer
Ridge Vineyards
Brand
Monte Bello
Vintage
2008
Wine Type
Still
Colour
Red
Country
USA
Region
California
Appellation
San Francisco Bay
Alcohol
13.30%