2022 Sandy Lane Carignane

Aromas of cranberry compote on the nose with hints of lavender and slate. Medium bodied with juicy acidity and elegant tannins. Ruby red in color with ripe raspberry, orange zest, and clove notes on the palate. Beautifully balanced with a nice, long brambly finish. MB (7/24)

Sandy Lane vineyard is located in Antioch, east of the San Francisco Bay. Planted in the 1890s, these vines are own-rooted, head-trained, and dry farmed. They grow in a unique soil called Delhi sandy loam, which looks like beach sand. This, coupled with daily afternoon winds, moderates the growing temperatures and preserves the delicate acidity. This fascinating old-vine carignane is ready to drink now, and will evolve over the next five years. SR (1/24)

Ridge has a long history producing wine from this Spanish grape variety. This is our first vintage of carignane from Sandy Lane, located in Contra Costa County, east of San Francisco. These 130-plus-yearold vines are grown in deep sandy soil on the bank of the Sacramento River. They are own-rooted, head trained and dry farmed, which is a viticultural anomaly, as most vines throughout the world are grafted onto resistant rootstock. The sandy soil protected these vines from phylloxera, creating an uninhabitable environment for the root louse.

Rainfall: 20 inches (below normal)
Bloom: Mid May
Weather: Spring rains brought some relief from the drought.

Harvest Date: 17 August
Grapes: Average Brix 24.1˚
TA: 5.58 g/L
pH: 3.64
Fermentation: 100% natural primary and secondary fermentation; 100% submerged cap; pressed at nine days.
Barrels: 100% air-dried American oak barrels; (9% new,11% one year old, 50% four years old, and 30% five+ years old).

Sandy Lane grapes, hand-harvested; destemmed and crushed; fermented on the native yeasts, followed by full malolactic on the naturally occurring bacteria; oak from barrel aging; minimum effective sulfur; 5ppm at crush, 46ppm during aging. Pad filtered at bottling. In keeping with our philosophy of minimal intervention, this is the sum of our actions.

See all food pairing recipes we have created specifically for this wine.