1. Chard: I really took a liking to this wine. Not as intense as the MonteBello bttlg, not as much oak. But a very bright/lively Chard that reflects the SCM terroir very well.
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2. ATP Zins: This is a whine I directed at DonnReisen for many a year. These are smaller lots of Zins that I expect something special from. Very often, they are not. In general, I seldom find they measure up to the regular Ridge Zins (LyttonSprgs/Geyserville/Pagani/Dusi). Are the vnyds not as good? Do they not put as much resources/effort into the? Are the yields higher? Not sure exactly what the reason is. The Jimsomare Zin is probably the sole exception. Admittedly, they're not priced as high as the regular Zins. But, all too often, they just don't seem as thrilling as the regular Zins. Not bad Zins...just nothing that special. Maybe my expectations are too high.
That said, these ATP Zins have an uncanny knack of, down the road w/ a few yrs of age upon them, rising up and biting you in the a$$ how good they are....sometimes. The BuchignaniZin '08 was just such a wine. When I tasted it when it first arrived last year, it was just another nice Ridge Zin...maybe a small step above the 3Vllys.
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3. Carignane: The Ridge Carignane is a wine that has long puzzled/perplexed me. It is, consistently, my least favorite wine of all the Ridges. Every time I taste some Ridges w/ EricBaugher, he urges me to give the Carignane another shot. He's not yet convinced me to change my view. That said, I think the the Ridge Carignane is about the best Carignane made in Calif. I've had a few from Priorat and Languedoc that I liked better...but in a much different style from what Ridge makes.
When young, the Ridge Carignanes tend to have a hard/tannic/bitey edge to them. The fruit seems to be mostly of the cherry kind. They seem to have a coarse/rustic character to them and lack the bright/high-toned notes you get in the Zins. And they seldom seem to develop much interesting character as they age...and seem to mature on a pretty fast track. Maybe..just maybe...you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear after all.
So...when my '10 Buchignani Carignane lands on my doorstop next month, I'll just roll my eyes, groan a bit...and try yet another one. Sorry, Eric.
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4. DynamiteHill: This is the last YorkCreek PS that Ridge will make. They gave up these grapes to FritzMaytag who can get a much better price than what Ridge was paying in a sweetheart deal. So sad....because the Ridge YorkCreek PS was one of the iconic PS's in Calif. At least, they're going out w/ a bang. This is one of the better YC PS's I've had of late. Resembles somewhat the '75 YC PS to my recollect. I don't think their LyttonSprings PS's quite measure up to any of the YorkCreeks.
TomHill
