"97+ Points - Antonio Galoni, Vinous.com
The 2012 is a racy, voluptuous Monte Bello built on a core of sweet red fruit, with striking perfume, silky tannins and fabulous overall balance. The 2012 is of course an infant, and the new oak is still evident. As Vinous readers know, Monte Bello is a wine that really should not be touched until its tenth birthday, and even that requires an optimistic view. The 2012 has been a consistently brilliant wine. Today, it is once again stellar.Drinking Window 2024 - 2052 - Reviewed Oct 2015
95 Points - Stephen Brook, Decanter.com
There's a trace of evolution on the nose, which is still reserved, but has hints of smoke and tobacco as well as brooding black fruits. The attack is suave, with integrated tannins but somewhat raucous acidity that keeps it youthful. There's excellent balance and potential here, as well as ample energy that delivers a very long, zesty finish.Drinking Window: 2022 - 2042 (Tasted London, 25 Oct 2022)"
Ridge was founded in 1959 but has a history dating back to the late 19th century when an Italian immigrant bought the 180 acres near Monte Bello Ridge. Cabernet has been vinified there since the 1940’s and Zinfandel saw its first vintage in 1964. CEO Paul Draper, took the reins in 1969 and pioneered a ‘hands off’, non intrusive approach to wine making. Sustainable farming is practiced at Ridge and their winery has won numerous environmental awards over the years. The vineyards are all dry-grown with only new vines receiving drip irrigation until they are established.
The red wines are fermented in small-capacity fermenters to assure full extraction and intensity. The juice is drawn off, gently aerated, and pumped over a floating cap of grape skins. Once pressed, all wines go through a natural malolactic fermentation. Monte Bello, the flagship wine of the estate, is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon and spends roughly 17 months in new American oak.
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com
If the United States had a formal classification of estates, Ridge would be the equivalent of a First Growth. Since the late 1960s, Ridge has produced world-class wines that can compete with the best from anywhere. Longtime winemaker Paul Draper recently announced his retirement from Ridge after a storied career during which he has become one of the most eloquent ambassadors of American wine this country has ever seen. Readers who want to learn more about Draper's history at Ridge may want to revisit my article Ridge Monte Bello: Past, Present and Future published last year.
I tasted a number of the wines in this article with Draper and his team, including winemaker Eric Baugher, vineyard manager David Gates and newly-appointed CEO Mark Vernon last fall in New York during what felt very much like a farewell tour for Draper, although it was not announced as such. Ridge’s long-term organizational stability and the transition to the new team, which I have been able to watch unfold over many years, stands in stark contrast to the norm in California, where winemakers, vineyard managers and executives change jobs every few years. Of course, since 1986 Ridge has been owned by Otsuka Pharmaceutical of Japan, where business plans often span a hundred years or more. I also had a chance to taste a few older vintages during two visits to the property earlier this year. The 1970 and 1974 were both from my cellar.
