Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThe 2019 Grenache Blanc Adelaida Vineyard combines 77% Grenache Blanc with 18% Picpoul and 5% Roussanne. It gives fresh orchard fruits with touches of beeswax, dried flowers and spices on the nose, and the light-bodied palate offers intense, earth-laced flavors with a touch of anchoring texture and a long, uplifted finish. This has enough character to drink on its own straight from bottle but will pair well with a wide variety of foods.
Coming all from the Adelaida Vineyard in Paso Robles and a blend of 77% Grenache Blanc, 18% Picpoul, and the balance Roussanne, the 2019 Grenache Blanc has a pretty bouquet of white flowers, dried herbs, stone fruits, and honeysuckle. Nicely balanced, medium-bodied, and elegant, it has good acidity, plenty of classic Grenache Blanc richness and depth, and a great finish. Drink it over the coming 3-5 years.
Ridge's history begins in 1885, when Osea Perrone, a doctor and prominent member of San Francisco's Italian community, bought 180 acres near the top of Monte Bello Ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains. He planted vineyards and constructed a winery of redwood and native limestone in time to produce the first vintage of Monte Bello in 1892. The historic building now serves as the Ridge production facility.
Though Ridge began as a Cabernet winery, by the mid-60s, it had produced several Zinfandels including the Geyserville. In 1972, Lytton Springs joined the line-up and the two came to represent an important part of Ridge production. Known primarily for its red wines, Ridge has also made limited amounts of Chardonnay since 1962.
The Ridge approach is straightforward: find the most intense and flavorful grapes, guide the natural process, draw all the fruit's richness into the wine. Decisions on when to pick, when to press, when to rack, what varietals and what parcels to include and when to bottle, are based on taste. To retain the nuances that increase complexity, Ridge winemakers handle the grapes and wine as gently as possible. There are no recipes, only attention and sensitivity.
Producing full-bodied white wines, Grenache Blanc can be unctuous and soft or floral and fresh. Some of the finest examples are terroir-driven, age-worthy wines. It is a key ingredient in white Châteauneuf-du-Pape and many white blends across southern France and NE Spain. Somm Secret—Grenache Blanc plays a key role in the vins doux naturels of Rivesaltes and a subsidiary role in those of Banyuls and Maury.