Tasting in Russian River is much like your first time in a toy store, which aisle to choose? Video games or squirt guns? I naturally went with squirt guns, besides the older kids had a safe lock on the Sega and I am not one to wait in lines. Thus, we made Ridge our last stop by way of Simi (not impressive).
Five o’ clock..We beat the limos and the busses and hoards of tourists who help stimulate the wine region this time of year…no obnoxious “aficionados” in plaid shorts and sperry topsiders…just tasting room folk , wine, and us…
Ridge is situated on top of a beautiful vista with mountains reminiscent of Italy or southern France. Many of the Ridge sites are located north of Healdsburg and are known for making up the vineyards of their singles designation wines.
A Ridge flight goes down fast and easy…but one bottle in particular embodied smoothness. The 07 East Bench Zin is like drinking velvet sprinkled with dirt and topped with blueberry. Nicely layered, not too complex, medium-large tannins. American oak provides subtle flavor that is characteristically California. The alcohol rings in at a surprising 15.4% considering the soft nose and how bloody easily this goes down. Ridge uses natural yeast on all their wines which is impressive and adds to the earthiness…Some Zins can taste rather chemically-and yeast has a hand in the matter.
For $25, The 07 East Bench is an appropriate buy. It has characteristics of Turley without the complexity, is layered nicely with generous flavor and alcohol. A good daily drinker, if you are looking for more than a quick fling, try the 06 Lytton Springs, the older vines add complexity and will command your taste buds’ attention.
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