2017 Monte Bello Earns Perfect 100 Point Score

Jeb Dunnuck

On August 31st, Jeb Dunnuck announced a perfect 100 point score for the recent 2017 Monte Bello release. Dunnuck went on to write in this latest installment of reviews:

“While 2017 was challenging throughout California, Ridge knocked it out of the park and made one of the finest vintages of their Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon I’ve tasted (and I’ve had most of them). This is a legend in the making that drinkers and collectors will want in the cellar.”

– Jeb Dunnuck

The full review of the 2017 Monte Bello read as follows:

“Pure perfection, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Bello is a sensational effort from this estate that should be snatched up by drinkers and collectors. Based on 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 8% Petit Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that was brought up mostly in new American oak, this saturated purple-hued beauty is legendary Monte Bello in the making and has a stunning yet primordial bouquet of crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, graphite, chocolate, and chalky minerality. Full-bodied, incredibly powerful, and one of the most concentrated versions of this cuvée ever made (I’ve had most of them), it needs a solid decade of bottle age and will have 50-60 years of overall longevity. Despite the long drinking window, it offers plenty of pleasure even today. I followed this bottle for two days and it showed best right out of the gate, closing down and becoming more brooding and backward with air. It’s an incredible wine that I promise you won’t regret having in your cellar.”

– Jeb Dunnuck

New scores were also given for some of Ridge’s other recent releases. These included:

• 2017 Monte Bello – 100 points
• 2018 Pagani Ranch Zinfandel – 95 points
• 2018 Lytton Estate Petite Sirah – 92 points
• 2018 Lytton Springs – 92 points
• 2019 Grenache Blanc – 90 points