Winemaker Notes
Focused jammy blueberry fruit and pepper on the nose. On the palate, fresh cherry, mineral, firm acidity, balanced structure and long lingering finish.
Pair with blackberry braised beef short ribs, Kansas City baby back ribs or pappardelle with wild boar ragu.
Blend: 84% Zinfandel, 7% Petite Sirah, 7% Alicante Bouschet, 2% Mataro
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A blend of 84% Zinfandel with the balance Petite Sirah, Alicante Bouchet, and Mataró, the 2017 Zinfandel Pagani Ranch reveals a translucent ruby/purple color as well as a beautifully complex bouquet of sandalwood, spice box, new leather, charred earth, and mulled plums and blueberries. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and textured, with sweet tannins, this beautiful Zinfandel knocks it out of the park in this difficult vintage.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The medium ruby colored 2017 Zinfandel Pagani Ranch offers lovely layers of tricolored berry preserves and stone fruit cobbler with baker's chocolate, dusty earth, garrigue, iron, fried herbs, charcuterie and an exotic spice undercurrent. Medium to full-bodied, it floods the mouth with floral-tinged fruits framed firmly with grainy tannins and lifted by juicy freshness, finishing very long and layered.
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James Suckling
This mid-weight blend of 84% zinfandel, 7% petite sirah, 7% alicante bouschet and 2% mataro has a brambly, dark-berry nose with some purple flowers in the mix. The sleek palate has such freshness and the tannins are striking for their polish and finesse. Drink or hold.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2017 Ridge Pagani Ranch Zinfandel is bright, jazzy, and satisfying. TASTING NOTES: This wine is persistent, generous, and alive. Enjoy its active presence on the palate with grilled lamb chops. (Tasted: January 30, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
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.
In 1962, Ridge Vineyards made its first Monte Bello, and two years later its first zinfandel. 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.
In August 2021, Ridge Vineyards joined International Wineries for Climate Action (IWCA), a group of like-minded wineries that are dedicated to decarbonizing the global wine industry. RIDGE is committed to achieving Net Zero by 2050 and completes a biannual greenhouse gas audit utilizing the World Resources Institute Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol methodology and be verified by an internationally accredited, third-party auditor.
Unapologetically bold, spice-driven and jammy, Zinfandel has secured its title as the darling of California vintners by adapting well to the state's diverse microclimates and landscapes. Born in Croatia, it later made its way to southern Italy where it was named Primitivo. Fortunately, the imperial nursery of Vienna catalogued specimens of the vine, and it later made its way to New England in 1829. Parading the true American spirit, Zinfandel found a new home in California during the Gold Rush of 1849. Somm Secret—California's ancient vines of Zinfandel are those that survived the neglect of Prohibition; today these vines produce the most concentrated, ethereal and complex examples.
Perhaps the most historically significant appellation in Sonoma County, the Sonoma Valley is home to both Buena Vista winery, California's oldest commercial winery, and Gundlach Bundschu winery, California's oldest family-run winery.
It is also one of the more geologically and climactically diverse districts. The valley includes and overlaps four distinct Sonoma County sub-appellations, including Carneros, Moon Mountain District, Sonoma Mountain and Bennett Valley. With mountains, benchlands, plains, abundant sunshine and the cooling effects of the nearby Pacific, this appellation can successfully produce a wide range of grape varieties. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Gewürztraminer, and most notably, Zinfandel all thrive here. Ancient Zinfandel vines over 100 years old produce small crops of concentrated, spicy fruit, which in turn make some of the Valley's most unique wines. These can also be made as “field blends” (wines made from a mix of grape varieties grown in the same vineyard) along with Petite Sirah, Carignan and Alicante Bouschet.