Geyserville 2021 | Ridge | California

Name: Geyserville 2021 | Ridge | California
Brand: Ridge Vineyards
SKU: 570
Price: 69.89 EUR
Availability: InStock

69.89 €

69.89 €

Quantity :

Hurry! Only 5 Left in Stock!

Ridge Vineyards, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County (California). Three adjoining vineyards on a defined stretch of gravelly soil approximately one-and-a-quarter miles long and a half-mile wide. Manual harvest. 76% Zinfandel, 16% Carignane, 6% Petite Sirah and 2% Alicante Bouschet.

Destemmed. Natural primary and malolactic fermentations. Daily pump-overs. Pressed at 8 days. Aged 13 months in American oak barrels (11% new, 42% one-to-two years old, 47% three-to-four years old).

Wine Identification
The subject of this profile is the Ridge Geyserville 2021, a red wine produced by Ridge Vineyards. This bottling originates from California, specifically the Alexander Valley within Sonoma County.

Origin and Winemaking
Ridge cultivates the grapes for Geyserville across three contiguous vineyard blocks situated along a rocky soil stretch approximately two kilometers long and 800 meters wide. The harvest is conducted manually to ensure quality control at the source. The grape composition is a blend dominated by Zinfandel at 76%, complemented by Carignane (16%), Petite Sirah (6%), and Alicante Bouschet (2%).

The vinification process begins with destemming, followed by natural primary alcoholic fermentation and natural malolactic fermentation. Daily pump-overs are employed during the fermentation phase to manage extraction and temperature. After eight days, the wine undergoes pressing. The resulting wine is aged for thirteen months in American oak barrels. The barrel program utilizes a mix of wood ages: 11% new barrels, 42% one to two years old, and 47% three to four years old. This specific proportioning ensures that the oak influence is integrated rather than dominant, allowing the fruit character to remain prominent while adding structural complexity.

Tasting Profile
Geyserville presents as a robust red wine characteristic of Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley. The high percentage of Zinfandel provides a core of ripe dark fruit, while the inclusion of Carignane adds acidity and freshness. Petite Sirah contributes depth and color, and Alicante Bouschet offers additional tannic structure. The use of predominantly older American oak barrels imparts subtle vanilla and spice notes without overwhelming the natural fruit profile. The rocky soil terroir is expected to impart a mineral backbone and concentration to the final blend.

Overall Character
Ridge Geyserville 2021 represents a traditional, field-blended approach to Zinfandel production. With manual harvesting and natural fermentations, Ridge aims for balance and longevity. The wine is crafted to reflect the specific terroir of Alexander Valley, offering a structured yet fruity expression of Zinfandel.

Write your review

Geyserville 2021 | Ridge | California

Title for your review^* Your review^*

⭐ Vinaris Programme members earn 100 points once your review is approved.

Cancel

Learn more about Ridge Vineyards

In 1885 Osea Perrone, a doctor and a prominent member of San Francisco's Italian community, bought 180 acres (73 ha) near the top of Monte Bello Ridge, at 2,600 feet —792 metres— above the bay. He terraced the slope, planted vines and used limestone quarried on the mountain to build the winery that gave the wine its name: the first vintage under the Monte Bello label is from 1892.

The estate was reborn seventy years later, and in a distinctly un-winemaking way. Four Stanford Research Institute engineers —Dave Bennion, Hew Crane, Charlie Rosen and Howard Ziedler— made a quarter-barrel of Cabernet from the old vines still standing. It convinced them enough to re-bond the winery in time for the 1962 harvest. In 1966 they bottled the first Geyserville Zinfandel, and in 1969 Paul Draper joined, raised on a farm outside Chicago and drawn to wine after living in Italy and France. He was the estate's winemaker for forty-seven years, retiring in 2016 at eighty.

He described his own method as pre-industrial: native yeasts from the vineyard itself, minimal sulfur, and not a single commercial enzyme or nutrient. The house rule fits in one line —find intense fruit, intrude only when necessary— and it explains the quirk Ridge is best known for outside the trade: since 2011 it prints the full ingredient list on the back label, something no regulation required and almost nobody did.

The proof came twice. At the 1976 Judgment of Paris, the 1971 Monte Bello placed fifth. Thirty years later, on 24 May 2006, those same bottles were re-tasted: the 1971 won both the United States and United Kingdom panels and, in the combined result, finished eighteen points clear of the runner-up.

In Sonoma the story runs longer than ownership suggests: Ridge has made Geyserville since 1966 —from vines over 130 years old— and has worked Lytton Springs since 1972, though the property only became theirs in 1991. Since 2022 every estate vineyard is certified organic.

See all wines by Ridge Vineyards →