1988-1993 Ridge Geyserville Vertical Tasting

[Bucko]

Opened for friends last night. The two most striking things about these wines are their ageability and consistency (no surprise on either count). Retaining their luscious fruit across the board, the 88 was showing some tertiary characteristics of leather, tobacco, and earthiness. The 92 stood out because of a minty nuance. No clear favorite in the bunch, but I leaned towards the 1990 myself. None of the wines were in any danger of going over the hill for a long time to come.

[miner49er]

Bucko
I am a big fan of ridge zins and although have not recently had the geys in a vertical I do have the 89-recent and taste them all on occassion. The 1990 is alway my favorite and has been since release. Same for the Lytton

[Bucko]

Ah, a person with a good palate -- it agrees with mine.... [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img] I am of the same opinion AFA the 90s -- they were and are wonderful examples of Zins.

Bucko

[Randy Caparoso]

Bucko, I couldn't add anything until today since I had misplaced my notes from my own last big tasting of Ridge Zins. In Feb. of '98 I was lucky enough to have hosted a tasting with about a dozen Hawaii Zin fanatics (we have them here, too) in the company of Paul Draper of various cuvees going back to 1964! Looks like we didn't do the exact same things you did -- we did 34 of them in all -- but here's the order of my personal favorites (everyone had various preferences):

1990 Geyserville - Stunning quality; sweet, juicy blackberry verging on blueberry; dense, plump, smoky oaked, long, intense, big yet perfectly scaled.

1995 Pagani - Sweet, luscious blackberry concentration; lots of spicey blackberry fruit on front of palate, becoming bigger, lusher, meatier, and more succulent as the seconds ticked by.

1990 Lytton Springs - Tight but intense and concentrated; blue and black fruit aroms; plump, juicy, voluptuous feel with zesty, revved up quality.

1995 Geyserville - Framboise like concentration in the nose; sweet, smoky, soy-like aromas and blackberryish richness on the palate; direct, but round, concentrated, with full tannins bolstering wall-to-wall flavors.

1988 Beatty Ranch - Sweet, concentrated aromas bof blackberries backed by sweet oak; liqueur like textured and intensity on the palate; zesty, rich, long finish.

1973 Geyserville - Richly oaked, but also pretty berry bouquet; round, full, smoothly textured; flavors still fleshy and full

1974 Monte Bello - Unusual tropical fruit (mango) mingling with sweet berries and buttery/creamy oak; round, soft, smooth and supple on the palate; balanced, moderately intense quality.

1986 Park-Muscatine - Slightly closed, toasty aroma, unveiling a vanillin/smoky richness and rounded raspberry flavor; fleshy, soft, plump quality on the palate with moderate tannin, silky texture and long, gentle finish.

1994 Lytton Springs - Slightly gamey edged, sweet nose; medium full, round, a little tight but densely structured; entering a tight period.

1991 Lytton Springs -- sweetlyoaked blackberry aroma; zesty, medium full, quite oaky and a little tight on the palate; but broad and rich in the feel.

1989 Geyserville - Leathery brett tones to smoky, sweet berry aromas; plump, smoky flavors on the palate; finishes a tad lean.

1970 Occidental Late Harvest - Browning color; low key, sweet tarry nose with smoky, caramelized tones that follow in long, smooth finish; a bit tired, but carrying 16.5% alcohol (and .5% residual sugar) quite well.

1977 Geyserville/Late Harvest Trentadue Ranch - Smoky, moderate bouquet followed by sweet, long caramelized flavors; lacks freshness, but touch of residual sugar carries interesting fruitiness to balance super-high alcohol.

Those are the ones I found to be attractive. The rest were not so exciting. For instance, the 1964 Monte Bello was quite old -- herby, with burnt leaf nose, soft, simple -- and a lot of the mid-'80s Geyservilles were quite lean and tough (more than just dumb -- just plain "stupid" since they should have been drunk younger).

And as you might surmise, my conclusion is that Ridge certainly makes great to merely good Zins in any given year, and that certain years ('90 & '95) are certainly greater than others. Finally, I would say that Ridge Zins -- and Zins in general, for that matter -- generally are best drunk within 10-12 years in the best years, and within 5 years in average years.

Interesting, no?

[Bucko]

Ridge Zins -- and Zins in general, for that matter -- generally are best drunk within 10-12 years in the best years, and within 5 years in average years.
***********
I couldn't agree more. I just polished off the last of my 1987 Geyservilles -- wonderful wine, but going nowhere but down.

Sounds like a great Zin tasting with Draper. Were you still walking straight? [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img]

Bucko

[Randy Caparoso]

Oh, we did just fine because we took our time, enjoying five food courses with each round of 8 wines (the tasting was filled out with various Petite Sirahs, a Barbera and a Mataro -- none of which were truly outstanding). I designed the menu myself -- with my corporate chef executing -- which you might find a little kinky, but it's what I often drink with Zinfandel:

1964-1973 Zins: Ahi Tuna Tortellini in Natural Beef Broth

1974-1980 Zins: Napa Cabbage Spring Rolls with Rice Noodles, Shiitake Mushrooms & Pork in Mild Wasabi Mustard Sauce

1981-985 Zins: Waimanalo Mesclun Salad with Crispy Gizzard "Croutons" in Warm Balsamic Vinaigrette

1986-1990 Zins: Wood Roasted Salmon in "Drunken" Sake Sauce

1991-1995 Zins: Rosemary Pork Loin Skewers in Green Herb & Natural Sauces

Dessert (with "whatevahs" Zins): Hawaiian Vintage Chocolate Petits Fours

I can still taste the day!

[Bucko]

Stop, you're killing me..... the last decent PacRim food that I have had was when we ate at Alan Wong's, just before we left Tripler in 1996. People cluck about the food in Seattle -- there is no comparison.

I sure do miss Roy's, Wong's, and a tiny little hole in the wall Thai place that we used to go to, name forgotten.

Bucko