2013 Geyserville

Saturated ruby/purple hue. Black cherry, plum, toasted oak, gravelly-rock mineral. Full-bodied, deep flavors of bramble, blackberries; fresh mint; chalky tannins. Sensuous, layered flavors persist in a long finish. EB (9/14)

Winter rains ended in December, and a warm February prompted early bud-break. Light rains in April saved the day, and let the vines set a full crop. This was the most uniform and evenly ripe vintage in many years. Fermentations began quickly, and we pressed on day seven. In assemblage, thirty-five percent of the lots were held out—an especially rigorous selection. The wine has elegant structure, intense berry fruit, and firm acid. It will be most enjoyable over the next eight to ten years.

Ridge has made the Geyserville as a single-site zinfandel in every year since 1966. The grapes are grown in three adjoining vineyards on a defined stretch of gravelly soil approximately one-and-a-quarter miles long and a half-mile wide (2 km x 0.8 km).

Rainfall: 24.5-30 inches (below average)

Bloom: Early to Mid-May

Weather: Warm spring and early summer followed by cooler weather that slowed ripening.

Harvest Dates: 6 -29 September

Grapes: Average Brix 24.3

Fermentation: Natural primary and natural secondary (malolactic) fermentations; 30% of the tanks were fitted with submerged cap grids, both those and the tanks with a floating cap were given full pump-overs; pressed at 7 days.

Barrels: 100% air-dried american oak barrels (20% new, 30% one and two years old, 50% three, four and five years old.)

Aging: Twelve months in barrel, Ingredients: Hand harvested, sustainably grown grapes; indigenous yeasts; naturally occurring malolactic bacteria; oak from barrel aging; minimum effective SO2.

Sustainably farmed, hand harvested estate-grown grapes; destemmed and crushed; fermented on the native yeasts, followed by full malolactic on the naturally-occurring bacteria; oak from barrel aging; minimum effective sulfur for this wine (30 ppm at crush; 86 ppm over the course of aging); pad filtered at bottling. In keeping with our philosophy of minimal intervention, this is the sum of our actions.

The Wine Advocate (October 2015): 93 Points “Made from 73% Zinfandel, 17% Carignan, 9% Petite Sirah and a splash of Mourvèdre, the 2013 Geyserville Proprietary Red Wine is a sexy, voluptuous, concentrated and hedonistic beauty that offers tons of plum, licorice, roasted herbs and leather like aromas and flavors. One of the more ripe and decadent wines in the lineup, it has the mid-palate depth and concentration to evolve for 15+ years. This was a terrific set of wines from Ridge. The 2012 Bordeaux releases all have brilliant purity of fruit, with surprising freshness and focus. They’ll need short term cellaring to be approachable, especially the Monte Bello. The 2013s are similar in style to the 2012s, with tight, fresh profiles and solid tannic grip.” – Jeb Dunnuck

California Grapevine (Vol. 1, October 2015): 90 Points Medium-dark ruby; attractive, spicy, fragrant, red and black berry fruit aroma with hints of white pepper and vanilla; full body; deep, rich, concentrated, ripe berry fruit flavors with a note of sweet oak; medium-full to full tannin; lingering aftertaste. Deserves a few more years of bottle aging. Very highly recommended. (Group Score: 16.4, 2/2/3; My Score: 17 [90/100], first place)

Vinous Media (July 2015): 94 Points. “The 2013 Zinfandel Geyserville is every bit as fabulous from bottle as it was from barrel last year. Ripe and voluptuous on the palate – yet with a super-classic conception of structure, the 2013 offers superb depth and impeccable overall balance. Waves of dark red cherry, pomegranate, spice, tobacco lead to more savory/ferrous notes that develop in the glass. Saline notes give the 2013 much of its energy and vivacity. This is a tremendous effort from Ridge.” – Antonio Galloni
Read review online at VinousMedia.com (subscription required)

Average Rating: 91.3

No. of Tasting Notes: 380

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