Ridge Vineyards
2020 Ridge Lytton Springs
2020 Ridge Lytton Springs
Rich blackberry and plum on the nose with notes of aniseed. Full-bodied with dark bramble fruit and well-coated tannins on the palate. The long finish reveals layers of black licorice and dried sage. MB (4/22)
Plentiful rain in early November and December subsided by January. Late spring rains during flowering reduced fruit set across all varieties, especially petite sirah. Thirty-eight blocks were picked at ideal ripeness over four weeks from August to September. Of these, twenty-six were selected for their rich black fruit and perfectly balanced structure. This classic Lytton Springs will be enjoyable over the next ten years. JO (11/21)
Rains in March and April helped the vines get through the summer.
Fermentation: Full crush; 100% natural primary and secondary.
Barrels: 100% air-dried American oak barrels (15% new, 15% one year-old, 20% two years-old, 20% three years-old, 15% four years-old, and 15% five years-old).
Aging: Thirteen months in barrel
Hand-harvested, sustainably grown, estate 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 (35 ppm at crush, 72 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.