Tag: Cabernet Sauvignon
Ridge Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
Ridge Vineyards is a winery that has fascinated me for much of the time that I’ve been interested in wine. Their wines, methods, and story are all a compelling source of interest for oenophiles.
Ridge’s history dates back to the late 1950s, when the property the winery and some of its vineyards reside on in Santa Cruz was purchased by a group of Stanford researchers. At the time, this didn’t include the Monte Bello vineyard, which was not purchased until a few years later. In the meantime, Dave Bennion and the rest of his partners had begun holding back some of their grapes to make wine themselves (the rest were sold to other wineries) and were becoming increasingly interested in using all of the harvest for their own wines.
In 1969 they hired Paul Draper, and the rest, as they say, is history. Draper became their chief winemaker and has remained at the helm ever since. The 1971 Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon that he led the making of was part of the historic Judgement of Paris in 1976, where it came in 5th. Over time, Ridge became one of the leading proponents of vineyard-designated wines, particularly with the range of single-vineyard Zinfandels the winery began releasing in the 1970s. The winery, led by Draper, also become a strong advocate for making wines with minimal intervention, allowing the grapes and their natural terroir come through.
While their wines are all excellent, it is this commitment to “natural” methods of winemaking that I find the most fascinating about Ridge. In a market favoring big, bold, often highly alcoholic red wines from northern California, Draper has continuously produced wines according to his own specifications. His restrained use of American oak, low yields, natural fermentations, and devotion to letting the unique characteristics of a specific site come through in the finished wine are all reasons that Ridge wines are both so compelling and so unique.
Draper’s note on the back of the label for this 2008 Estate Cabernet sums it up nicely: “The distinctive character of the world’s great wines has always been determined by their site – not by man.”
I really enjoy reading about Ridge Vineyards and the work that Paul Draper has done there. You may as well, so here are links to a few good resources. Most are interviews with or profiles of Draper, but at this point he is nearly synonymous with Ridge itself:
- “History and Philosophy of Winemaking at Ridge Vineyards, 1970s-1990s.” This extensive interview with Paul Draper is one of a series of oral histories that were collected by UC Davis.
- “Letting a Grape Be a Grape.” Very good profile of Draper and Ridge by the always interesting-to-read Eric Asimov of the New York Times.
- “A Non-Action Approach to Winemaking.” Another brief profile by Asimov.
- “Paul Draper.” Profile of Draper by Wine Spectator writer James Laube.
Tasting Notes
This 2008 vintage of the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was produced from 66 tons of grapes harvested from 34 acres of vineyards, resulting in 24 parcels of this wine. The grapes are all from the Monte Bello vineyard in the Santa Cruz Mountains, where the grapes for the famed Monte Bello wine are also grown. This bottling includes 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 3%, Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc.
The wine itself is a deep, black red. The nose has notes of black licorice, raspberry, cherry, oak resin, and an undercurrent of vanilla. The palate’s texture is soft and supple with medium tannins supporting dense flavors of tart black cherry, rich plum, tobacco and a healthy dose of spicy, resinous oak. The lingering finish is rich with tart, dark fruit. All in all, this is a big wine that deftly blends rich fruit flavors with tart ones and has a strong current of oaky flavors running through it.
On the label, Eric Baugher (vice president-winemaking) writes this note about the vintage:
“A severe winter ended In early February, leaving the vines short of water by late August. Moderate summer weather ripened the small crop during the first three weeks of October. Color and tannins extracted rapidly from the small berries. Parcels that make up the Estate Cabernet consistently produce wines that are more accessible and elegantly structured than those dedicated to the Monte Bello. Typically, we reduce pump-overs and press early, balancing tannins to fruit.”
Related Posts:
Justin Vineyards Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2004
Sometimes, especially on a cold winter night such as this one, a wine can take on the role of a warm, comforting fire. It’s cold, your bundled up in sweaters, and are looking for a glass of wine that is easy to drink yet full of flavor; that offers some degree of food for thought without being an intellectual exercise; and which is just nice to sip while you while away the evening watching a movie or reading a book on the couch, wrapped up in blankets.
We decided to open a bottle of wine tonight and made the good choice of opening this bottle of cabernet sauvignon from Justin Vineyards. This is, in a sense, a typical California cabernet: velvety texture with plush fruit augmented by a noticeable oakiness. Not the type of wine that we typically delve into, but one that is the product of a wine fascination that briefly grasped hold of me about 2 years ago. As is a common refrain, I read an article, got hooked, and went out and grabbed a few bottles of the wines mentioned in the article.
In this case it was an article in The Art Of Eating entitled, “Hunting For California Terroir: Western Paso Robles”. The article was actually quite good and explored an idea that is definitely of interest to me: how much of a role does, or perhaps can, terroir play in California wines? The predominant view of Californian wines is that they are the product of the winemaker, and not the place the grapes are grown or the wine is made. This is a perception that is well-deserved, given the general ubiquity of wines such as cabernet sauvignon made from nearly anywhere in California (see Eric Asimov’s recent article in the NY Times for a discussion of some wineries bucking this perception). This stands in stark contrast to European views, France and Italy in particular, which stress the notion of terroir and its predominant role in shaping a wine. Perhaps much of the view of California wine can be attributed to the sheer lack of history and experience in growing grapes and making wine, relative to Europeans, that has led California winemakers to strive to make a specific wine, as opposed to a wine specific to the place. Californians haven’t had centuries to figure out which grapes grow best on which plots of land, and to have this idea become deeply entrenched in the winemaking culture. Instead, California is essentially a viticultural tabula rasa where winemakers, and grape growers, have pursued all sorts of ideas as to grapes, wines, and winemaking methods during the course of the past century or two.
So to consider the idea that there could be an area with a distinct terroir that was expressed in the wines made there is pretty interesting. Certainly, there must be some element of terroir unique to many areas in California. But the question is ultimately whether this terroir is allowed, or enabled, to be expressed in the wine by the winemaker, or whether the winemaking techniques obscure terroir in favor of achieving a specific finished product. There isn’t necessarily a correct answer to this question, but there does exist a certain homogeneity in all-too-many California wines, and so I wonder if there is a grain of truth to the idea.
As for this article, the author generally came away with no clear sense of whether there was a unique terroir in western Paso Robles as expressed in the wines. That is, except for the wines produced from grapes grown in one specific vineyard: the Glenrose Vineyard. This is a highly unique vineyard featuring very chalky soil that is nearly bare with rocks, and is exceedingly steeply sloped and terraced. The grapes, stressed in the extreme, produce a telltale element that the author found in the small handful of wines that he tried that used grapes from the vineyard. There is only one bottle out there that I’ve seen from this vineyard, a wine produced by Tablas Creek, the Las Tablas Estates Glenrose Vineyard 2002. The author himself comments favorably on this wine, and it’s become a sort of dream wine of mine, one that I’d love to try sometime to experience the apparently unique product of this vineyard. One winemaker, speaking of the grapes grown here, was quoted as saying, “You want to stress grapes, but those you almost feel sorry for.” Given that Tablas Creek is a winery known for trying to let the grapes’ natural character come through in the finished wine, I can only imagine that this wine is really quite delicious and unique.
Anyhow, I haven’t touched on this wine yet! Basically, Justin Vineyards was mentioned in this article, and so a couple of years ago we took a shot at 2 bottles of their Cabernet Sauvignon. The bottle itself is sort of a winegeek’s dream, with the following vital stats listed on the label:
- 100% barrel aged 18 months
- 26% new oak
- 24% America, 2% French
- 100% hand harvested
- 100% unfiltered/unfined
- Racked quarterly
- 3-week extended maceration
- 100% cabernet sauvignon
The wine itself is a deep, dark purple, lightening slightly at the edges. The nose has strong notes of raspberry syrup, smoke, and tobacco. The palate has flavors of cherries, tobacco, and anise with an undercurrent of oak and vanilla. The tannins are noticeable, but not overpowering. The finish is medium-length. Actually, the only disappointing aspect of the wine was the finish. Given the presence in the nose and the palate, I was expecting a somewhat more distinct and lengthy finish.
This is a nice, deeply flavored wine. It’s not necessarily one that I would buy again, but that’s mostly because this is not my preferred style of wine. It very nicely fits the bill for this evening, but we wouldn’t drink this too often. I get the impression though that Justin Vineyards makes very solid wines, if a bit oaky for my taste, and I’d be open to trying some of their other offerings in the future. The next time Paso Robles becomes my obsession of the moment…
Related Posts:
Joseph Carr Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
I enjoy reading Eric Asimov’s weekly wine column in the NY Times. I think his writing is quite good, and the subjects that he chooses are generally of interest to me. I especially like that he fluidly moves between endorsing traditional methods of wine-making and acknowledging the benefits brought about by newer methods. While clearly favoring more classic styles of wine, he also has a just as clear appreciation of newer styled great wines.
This past summer he wrote an article about “old-school cabernets” that really caught my attention. Cabernet sauvignon’s from California (and most anywhere else, to be honest) are wines that I’ve generally ignored throughout my wine travails. Too trendy. Not interesting enough. Too plain. Etc. I’ve always just found the notion of drinking or pursuing them to be uninspiring. What got me excited about his article was his depiction of an older style of cabernet sauvignon that wasn’t a big, rich, fruit-bomb of a wine. Instead, he described wines that sought a balance between the inherent richness of cabernet sauvignon (in particular grown in California) and the herbal flavors and acidity that it is also capable of imparting to a wine. These were cabernet sauvignons that I’d never heard of, and was interested in trying.
Of course, his article looked at wines produced in Napa Valley, which means that they all came with a significant price tag. Most were $40 on up. One stood out as being a potentially great value – the Joseph Carr 2005, at only $20. The one on the list that really got me excited was the Frog’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon, but that came in at almost $50, too rich for my blood. And truly, most of my excitement came from having visited that winery a couple of years ago and having been given a great tour.
So anyhow, I was intrigued, but still not pushed to actually go out and try one of these wines. But last night we opened a bottle of Peju Province Winery 2003 Napa Valley Zinfandel which was a distinct departure from the kinds of wine that we typically drink. This was a plush, rich wine with significant depth, enhanced by lots of oak. It was very enjoyable to drink, and opened my eyes to the possible pleasures of richer wines. So when I ran across a bottle of the Joseph Carr today on sale for only $15, I couldn’t resist.
Joseph Carr is actually a negociant, whose wines are made at the Larson Family Vineyards in Carneros. They make five wines for him there, all the typical California varietlas (merlot, chardonnay, pinot noir, sauvignon blanc, and cabernet sauvignon). They’ve gotten some good reviews as accessible, good value wines that pair well with food.
So how does this wine stack up to Eric Asimov’s article? It is definitely not a fruit-bomb, and is indeed a nicely balanced wine that is easy to drink, with and without food. The color is deep velvet purple, slightly lightening at the edges. The nose is rich with jam, blackberries, and ripe strawberries. It took a while for the palate to open up, but after it did so it gave hints of herbs and smoke alongside plum, currant, and dark cherries. The tannins are noticeable and slightly drying, but do not detract too much from the overall impression. The finish is mildly astringent and quite tart, with the blackberries returning from the nose, accompanied by tart raspberries.
This is a nice wine. I don’t think that I’ll run back to buy any more bottles, although it would be a good wine to pull out for a winter meal with guests, or even for when you’d want a comforting glass of red on a cold winter evening. I remain intrigued at the flavor profile that this cabernet sauvignon brought to the table, and am interested in someday trying some of the other wines that Eric Asimov listed in his review. But, given their price tags, this may be a day well down the road. For now, I’ll have to turn my attention back to sampling some of the more price-accessible wine themes running through my head.
Related Posts: