Winery Ridge California

Then, as now, friends and family join with winery workers to celebrate the completion of harvest at the 19th Century Monte Bello Winery.
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Profile of Ridge Profile...
Monte Bello Vineyard and Wine Monte Bello...
Lytton Springs Winery, Vineyard and Wine Lytton Springs...
Geyserville Vineyard and Wine Geyserville...
Conversations with Ridge Winegrowers Winegrowers...


VINEYARDS
The 1959 vintage at Monte Bello, from vines on the "middle" vineyard purchased that year, convinced the founding partners that here was an exceptional match of climate, soil, and varietal. In the wine-producing world, these ideal sites represent only a small percent of the land planted to vineyard. Once a producer has identified a great site, it is essential to gain long-term control of it in order to maintain quality and consistency. In 1967 Ridge leased, and in 1988 purchased, the "upper" vineyard; in 1995 we obtained a twenty-seven-year lease on the "lower" vineyard (1300'-1990'), where cabernet was first planted in the 1880s. These vineyards, with their cool location and well-drained limestone sub-soils, produce some of the most distinctive, complex cabernet, merlot, and petit verdot in California, as well as small quantities of chardonnay. In Sonoma, our experience at Lytton Springs over the last three decades attests to yet another stunning combination of location and varietals. The major vineyards on lands owned by "Captain" William Litton in the 1870s were purchased by Ridge in the early 1990s. Over thirty-six consecutive vintages from Geyserville's old-vine zinfandel, carignane, and petite sirah have long since persuaded us that it, too, is one of these great sites. Pagani Ranch in Sonoma Valley, Dusi Ranch in Paso Robles, and York Creek on Spring Mountain in Napa are others that meet our stringent criteria.



HISTORY

The history of Ridge Vineyards begins in 1885, when Osea Perrone, a doctor who became a prominent member of San Francisco's Italian community, bought 180 acres near the top of Monte Bello Ridge. He terraced the slopes and planted vineyards; using native limestone, he constructed the Monte Bello Winery, producing the first vintage under that name in 1892. This unique cellar, built into the mountainside on three levels, is Ridge's production facility. At 2600', it is surrounded by the "upper vineyard." In the 1940s, William Short, a theologian, bought the abandoned winery and vineyard just below the Perrone property; he replanted several parcels to cabernet sauvignon in the late 1940s. From these vines—now the "middle vineyard"—new owners Dave Bennion and his three partners, all Stanford Research Institute engineers, made a quarter-barrel of "estate" cabernet. That Monte Bello Cabernet was among California's finest wines of the era. Its quality and distinctive character, and the wines produced from these same vines in 1960 and '61, convinced the partners to re-bond the winery in time for the 1962 vintage. The first zinfandel was made in 1964, from a small nineteenth-century vineyard farther down the ridge. This was followed in 1966 by the first Geyserville zinfandel. The founding families reclaimed the Monte Bello terraces, increasing vineyard size from fifteen to forty-five acres. Working on weekends, they made wines of regional character and unprecedented intensity. By 1968, production had increased to just under three thousand cases per year, and in 1969, Paul Draper joined the partnership. A Stanford graduate in philosophy—recently returned from setting up a winery in Chile's coast range—he was a practical winemaker, not an enologist. His knowledge of fine wines and traditional methods complemented the straightforward "hands off" approach pioneered at Ridge. Under his guidance the old Perrone winery (acquired the previous year) was restored, the finest vineyard lands leased or purchased, the consistent quality and international reputation of the wines established. Cabernet and zinfandel account for most of the production; syrah, grenache, carignane, and petite sirah constitute a small percentage. Known primarily for its red wines, Ridge has also made limited amounts of chardonnay since 1962.



TECHNIQUES

In Bordeaux, in Burgundy, or in California, most fine producers use the same techniques as others in their region. Ridge is an exception, differing fundamentally from most California makers. These differences go back to Prohibition, which severed California's connection with its winemaking past. The post-Prohibition generation turned to the agricultural universities to learn how to make wine. Chemists re-invented winemaking technologically, independent of traditional techniques developed over centuries in Europe—and later pre-Prohibition California—which were based on empirically acquired knowledge. Though born in the sixties to this new world of California winemaking, Ridge turned to the natural rather than the technological. The approach is straightforward: find the most intense and flavorful grapes, guide the natural process, draw all the fruit's richness into the wine. Ridge wines are fermented using wine yeasts naturally present in the vineyard. Red wines are fermented in small-capacity fermentors 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 complete a natural secondary (malolactic) fermentation. Chardonnay is whole-cluster pressed, barrel fermented, and held on its lees for an average of eleven months. In November, as malolactics move toward completion, we assemble each zinfandel from small lots kept separate according to varietal and vineyard parcel, choosing those that best accentuate the distinctive character of each site. The wines are then racked, unfiltered, to air-dried american oak. Almost all the thirty-some small, separate lots of Monte Bello go to new, air-dried oak barrels (approximately 95% american, 5% french) for malolactic. In early February they are blind-tasted, and a first selection is made. Assemblage is usually complete by May. Decisions on when to pick, when to press, when to rack, what varietals and what parcels to include and—finally—when to bottle, are based on taste. To retain the nuances that increase complexity, we handle the grapes and wine as gently as possible. As with raising a child, there are no recipes, only attention and sensitivity.



Monte Bello Winery
Ridge history begins in 1886 when Osea Perrone, a doctor from northern Italy, bought 180 acres near the top of Monte Bello Ridge, on the San Francisco peninsula. He planted grapes on top of the ridge, and on its steep southern slopes, at the same time constructing his Monte Bello winery. Limestone cellars built into the hillside on two levels became the foundation of a large redwood building, where Perrone produced the first Monte Bello wines in 1892. Today, Ridge uses the historic winery for production and aging. Almost half of the surrounding acreage, abandoned during Prohibition, has been replanted; this is our "upper" vineyard.

In the 1940s, a retired theologian who loved farming as much as he loved fine wine, bought the adjoining Torre winery and its former vineyard. William Short replanted eight of the forty-eight acres to cabernet sauvignon and a small amount of chardonnay. In 1959, this 2300' "middle" vineyard was purchased by the Ridge founders as a weekend retreat for their families. One of the group, Dave Bennion, appropriated a small amount of that year's fruit, and produced the first "Ridge" Monte Bello cabernet. The exceptional quality of that wine inspired the founding families; they reopened the Torre winery as Ridge Vineyards in time for the 1962 vintage. By 1968, they had purchased the Perrone property. Paul Draper joined the group as winemaker in 1969; in 1971, he moved production to the old Monte Bello winery.

During the seventies, Ridge worked with the Schwabacher family to replant the nineteenth-century cabernet vineyards on their land further down the mountain, and in 1978 these young plantings produced the first Jimsomare Cabernet. In 1996, Ridge took over the Jimsomare vines, integrating them with Monte Bello as the "lower" vineyard. We select grapes from the more than thirty separate parcels on the lower, middle, and upper to make our Monte Bello, Santa Cruz Mountains, and Home Ranch wines.

These vines have now produced over forty vintages of Ridge Monte Bello, whose ability to develop complexity with age is unmatched in California, and recognized worldwide.

To visit the Monte Bello winery, click here for details.



Lytton Springs Winery
When Ridge Vineyards purchased Lytton Springs Winery in 1991, it was not the winery, but the old vines surrounding it that interested us. The thirty-five-acre vineyard, planted between 1900 and 1905, is a traditional field blend of about seventy percent zinfandel, twenty percent petite sirah, and ten percent grenache and carignane. Paul Draper saw the vineyard and, based on its age, first took the grapes in 1972. Within three years it was clear from the consistency of character and quality that — like the Geyserville vineyard — this was one of those distinctive sites where soil, climate, and varietal are perfectly matched. He named the wine after a "Captain" Litton who, during the last half of the nineteenth century, owned this vineyard and adjoining lands to the west. Litton (the spelling evolved to "Lytton" in the early 1900s), developed the springs, and built a hotel just east of the vineyard for San Franciscans who arrived by train to "take the waters."

During the 1970s and 1980s, Ridge purchased grapes from numerous old-vine, low-yield vineyards throughout California. In the 1990s, we focused on the very best of these — most located in northern Sonoma County. Today, two-thirds of Ridge zinfandel is grown in Sonoma. It therefore made sense to put the Lytton Springs facility to greater use, but the existing building was in a state of deterioration, and a new winery had to be built.

Ridge has always approached winemaking with a respect for nature, trusting the earth to express the character of the site, so it seemed logical to construct a winery consistent with that philosophy. Originally, we discussed excavating caves — to take advantage of the earth's natural cooling properties. At our winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains, caves that were dug in the late 1800s still allow us to cellar wine with minimal need for conventional air conditioning. At Lytton Springs, however, a high winter water table eliminated that approach. While visiting the Shenoa Retreat Center in Mendocino County, Paul had noticed a residence recently erected on the property. It was made of compacted rice straw bales; the floor was of rammed earth, and the bales were covered with earthen plaster. The beauty of the building, and its sustainable, natural materials, intrigued him. Especially considering the high insulation value (as high as R60) of straw, this construction method seemed well suited to our goal — a winery with low environmental impact, made from self-sustaining materials. Essentially, an above-ground cave.

In 2000, we began building a new barrel room and tasting room around the existing winery. The tasting room windows look out on the old vines to the south, and into the new barrel room to the east. In keeping with the natural theme, the walls covering the bales are made from a simple mixture of clay from the vineyard, sand, and straw. This thick adobe was trowel-finished to produce a very smooth texture, and given a final coat of linseed oil. The color is subtle and lovely, and the building blends wonderfully into the land that surrounds it.

To maintain cellar temperatures, louvers near ground level open automatically to let in the cool night air. Simultaneously, louvers high in the walls open to let in the warmer air. The tightly-packed straw insulates against any significant temperature swings.

This first phase of construction required just over three thousand straw bales, each individually inspected, then stacked by hand to a height of seventeen feet. The final phase — a new tank-fermentation and bottling room, will require six hundred more.

These straw bales resemble the rectangular hay bales one sees throughout the country; each measures about 46" x 23" x 16". Unlike other bales, however, they are made exclusively of rice straw. Rice contains such a high proportion of silica that it is difficult to break down, unlike straw from other plants, which can be composted or tilled into the soil. Insects cannot easily digest silica, so rice straw — properly protected — can last a century or more. For the bale builder, these properties make it an ideal material; the major threat to bale buildings is decay caused by moisture and residual organic matter trapped in the straw, not fire, as one might imagine. For the rice farmer, rice straw construction means being paid for a waste product — one that, previously, could be disposed of only by burning. For all of us, it means cleaner air.

To visit the Lytton Springs winery, click here for details.

Find out more about our eco-sustainable tasting room, click here.



Vineyard Video
View a video description of the Monte Bello Vineyard. Requires Quicktime and at least a 56K connection. ( Japanese | German



Vineyard Overview

First RIDGE Monte Bello: 1962
Location: Monte Bello Ridge, in northern California's Santa Cruz Mountains, overlooking the San Francisco peninsula.
Elevation: 1300' - 2660'
Soils: Decomposing Franciscan rock mixed with clay, laid over fractured limestone.
Vines: 10- to 52-year-old cabernet sauvignon, 66.4 acres. 6- to 33-year-old merlot, 12.8 acres. 10- to 13-year-old petit verdot, 2.2 acres. 31-year-old cabernet franc, 1.3 acres.
Training: Head-trained. Cane pruned (on trellis).
Irrigation: Non-irrigated. (Exception: new vines receive drip irrigation until established.)
Climate: Cool, mountainous — between the Mediterranean and Maritime Zones.
Exposure: Principally south/southeast

History
The Monte Bello estate vineyard was planted, and the winery constructed, in 1886. A first vintage from the young vines followed in 1892. During Prohibition (1920-1933), the vineyard was not fully maintained; by the 1940s it was effectively abandoned. Eight acres of cabernet sauvignon were replanted in 1949. These were the source of the first Ridge Monte Bello (1962). Since then, the original vineyards have gradually been replanted.



Video
View a video description of the Lytton Springs Vineyard. Requires Quicktime and at least a 56K connection. ( Japanese | German )

First RIDGE Lytton Springs: 1972
Location: The bench and hills separating Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys, just north of Healdsburg in Sonoma County.
Elevation: 80' - 160'
Soils: Varied, with a predominance of gravelly clay; gravelly clay loam on hillsides.
Age of vines: Lytton East: 111-year-old zinfandel, petite sirah, grenache, carignane (42 acres).
Lytton West: 48-year-old zinfandel, grenache, carignane (33 acres), 5 to 12-year-old zinfandel, petite sirah, grenache, mataro (27 acres).
Training: Head trained (no trellis), spur pruned.
Yields: 1.5 – 3.0 tons/acre
Climate: Fog in a.m., warm sunny afternoons, breezes in late p.m.
Exposure: Southeasterly
Owner: Ridge Vineyards

History
Ridge made its first Lytton Springs from the 80- year- old vines here in 1972, and purchased both the eastern and western portions of the vineyard in the early 1990s. (In the 1870s, under "Captain" William Litton's ownership, the two were part of one property; spelling evolved into "Lytton" by 1903.) The vineyard is planted to zinfandel and its principal complementary varietals: petite sirah, carignane, a small amount of mataro (mourvèdre), and grenache.



Vineyard
Video
View a video description of the Geyserville Vineyard. Requires Quicktime and at least a 56K connection. ( Japanese | German )

First RIDGE Geyserville: 1966
Location: Western edge of Alexander Valley, Sonoma County.
Elevation: 200'
Soils: Gravelly loam
Age of vines: 40-year-old zinfandel, 12 acres.
11-year-old zinfandel, 15 acres.
121-year-old mixed blacks, 5 acres.
21-year-old petite sirah, 5 acres.
11-year-old petite sirah, 3.5 acres.
111-year-old carignane, 7 acres.
Training: Head trained (no trellis), spur pruned.
Yields: 1-3 tons/acre
Climate: Occasional morning fog, warm days with frequent evening breezes.
Exposure: Southern
Owner: Leo and Evelyn Trentadue

History
Ridge has made a Geyserville from the Trentadue family ranch for thirty-six consecutive years. The majority of grapes are grown on the old Whitten Ranch portion of the property. We obtained a long-term lease on Whitten Ranch in 1990, guaranteeing access to this exceptional fruit — mostly zinfandel plus complementary varietals carignane and petite sirah — for three decades



Vineyard
First RIDGE Zinfandel Pagani Ranch: 1991
Location: Northern Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County.
Elevation: 100' - 150'
Soils: Gravelly clay loam.
Vines: Zinfandel, interplanted with petite sirah, 30 acres. Minor amounts of alicante and mataro (mourvèdre). A majority of vines are 100 years old.
Training: Head trained, cane pruned.
Yields: 1.5 - 2.5 tons per acre
Climate: Cool, foggy mornings; warm days.
Exposure: Rolling, east-facing slopes.
Owner: Pagani family

History
Since 1991, Ridge has made zinfandel from the old Pagani vineyard on the east-facing side of Sonoma Valley. Almost all the vines here were planted more than a hundred years ago. Pagani Ranch is a fine example of what we look for in a vineyard: low-yielding old vines, carefully tended by a quality-conscious family who, in this case, have worked the land for four generations. The vineyard's long survival is proof of its merit. An average site would have been abandoned during the thirteen years of Prohibition, or during the Depression.



Vineyard
First RIDGE Zinfandel Paso Robles: 1967
Location: 3 miles south of Paso Robles, east of 101.
Elevation: 760'
Soils: Rocky and gravelly with some areas of light soil
Age of vines: 84-year-old zinfandel (40 acres).
Training: Head trained (no trellis), spur pruned. Dry farmed.
Yields: 1.5 – 2.0 tons/acre
Climate: Hot days, cool nights.
Exposure: Full exposure in all directions
Owner: Benito Dusi

History
Dusi Ranch is the only Ridge vineyard south of the San Francisco Bay area. It is planted entirely to zinfandel, unusual in a vineyard more than eighty years old. Purchased by Sylvester and Catarina Dusi in 1924, the property has been farmed for many years by their son Benito, the present owner.



Vineyard
First RIDGE Petite Sirah York Creek: 1971
First RIDGE Zinfandel York Creek: 1975
Location: Spring Mountain, western edge of Napa County.
Elevation: 1600' - 1800'
Soils: Well-drained Boomer gravelly loam, Felton loam.
Vines: 25- to 34-year-old zinfandel, 27 acres 8- to 72-year-old petite sirah, 9 acres
Training: Head trained, spur pruned.
Yields: 2.5 tons per acre
Climate: Cool, mountainous. Normal average rainfall, 50".
Exposure: Southeasterly
Owner: Fritz Maytag

History
York Creek Vineyard, situated high on Spring Mountain, overlooks St. Helena and the Napa Valley from the west. Ridge came here in 1971 for the old-vine petite sirah. We first harvested York Creek zinfandel in 1975, and have made both wines in every vintage since.



Vineyard
First RIDGE Vintage: 1979
Location: Monte Bello Ridge, in northern California's Santa Cruz Mountains, overlooking the San Francisco peninsula.
Elevation: 1300 - 2660'
Age of Vines: Oldest planted in 1949; major replantings in 1968/9, 1972, 1982, 1987/8, 1990, 1995, 1997/8.
Training: Head-trained, cane-pruned (on trellis).
Irrigation: Non-irrigated. (Exception: New vines receive drip irrigation until established.)
Climate: Cool, mountainous — between the Mediterranean and Maritime Zones.
Exposure: Principally south/southeast

History
The Monte Bello vineyard was first planted when the winery was built, in 1886. In the early 1940s, the last of the old vineyard was abandoned; a few blocks were replanted in 1949. Those cabernet vines — now over fifty years old — made up the first Ridge Monte Bello in 1962, and subsequent vintages until the mid-seventies. By then, vines replanted during the sixties were maturing, and their fruit considered for use in the Monte Bello. The softer, more accessible lots were combined as a companion wine which, since 1979, we have designated Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet.

Ridge Vineyards Video
View a video of Ridge's winegrowers . Requires Quicktime and at least a 56K connection.
( Japanese | German )



Wines
Read and enjoy the character of each of our wines or search through our database of notes, label text, notes recorded. The Archive Search link on the left enables you to retrieve the various notes and descriptions of our wines.



TO AGE OR NOT TO AGE
In today's world, the most popular wines are the most immediately appealing wines. And it's certain that zinfandel, with its intense berry fruit, full body, and round tannins is immediately appealing. Most consumers have no interest in aging wine, let alone a place to store it properly. So why not drink up?

To put the question in perspective: Do red Burgundies and pinots merit long aging? A few go beyond eight or ten years — but very few. Vintage conditions come into question. Will first-growth Bordeaux from 1991, 1992, and 1993 actually improve if held for more than ten years? What gives any good red wine the ability to age?

First and foremost, I believe it is site-distinctiveness, and the suitability of the varietal to the particular site. Second: vine age, and the tonnage the vines are asked to carry. Here, the intention and ability of the vintner came into play. Depending on the approach taken, low-yield fruit from the finest site can make a fine, long-lasting wine — or lose its potential in the winemaking process. Vintage conditions are also a consideration.

Should zinfandel be aged? The best zins are so inviting in their first five or six years that laying them down seems almost silly. Should Ridge zinfandel be aged? In some cases, yes. Our labels usually recommend drinking them within the five-to-seven-year time frame, though clearly certain vintages will go longer. Properly stored Geyserville zinfandels from 1970, 1973, and 1977 are lovely — incredibly complex — even now. From Lytton Springs, the 1974 stands out. Is this typical of zinfandels being made today? Not really. Even at Ridge the eighties produced only one or two potentially long-lived wines. But the increased tannins, full ripeness, and particularly firm acidity of several recent vintages suggests that some of these wines will "go the distance." Notable among them: the 1999 Lytton Springs and the 2001 Lytton Springs and Geyserville.

Most zinfandels today are at their best over the first five years, and most Ridge zins can continue to develop for eight or ten. About one thing, however, there's no doubt. No red wine in its youth is as delicious or satisfying as a quality zinfandel.

Contacting Ridge
Phone
(408) 867-3233

Mail
17100 Monte Bello Road, Cupertino, CA 95014

Fax
(408) 868-1350

Email
wine@ridgewine.com