2018 Ridge Monte Bello

Opaque, saturated ruby in color. Aromas of cassis, fennel, cola, clove-nutmeg spice, toasted oak, wet crushed stone, black tea, and sweet dry chaparral. Palate of ripe cassis, blackberry, and mountain bramble. Lively acid and polished velvety tannins with a smooth, full body and long finish showing limestone mineral and forest floor. EB (4/20)

December brought intense rains but they ended by January. Drenching spring storms saved the growing season. Though summer was foggy and cold, the vines received abundant sunshine and warmth that ripened the grapes by early October. Reduced pump-overs during fermentation helped moderate tannin extraction. Assembled by blind-taste, twenty-two lots came together to make this superb vintage. Sensuous and showing great complexity, it will be enjoyable over the next thirty years.

Winter rains were late to arrive, delivering a season’s worth or rainfall in March. This gave Monte Bello 75% of the 26 inches of rain for the year, which is below normal. Spring remained cold with heavier than usual fog, slowing the progress for a late September harvest.

Fermentation: Grapes destemmed, 100% whole berry fermentation. 15% automated berry sorting. Fermented on the native yeasts. Pressed at eight days. Natural malolactic.
Selection: Twenty-three Monte Bello parcels
Barrels: 100% new air-dried oak barrels (90% American, 7% French, 3% Ozark).
Aging: Seventeen months in barrel

Hand-harvested; estate grown Monte Bello Vineyard grapes, organically farmed, destemmed and sorted; fermented on the native yeasts; full malolactic on the naturally occurring bacteria; 0.22 g/L calcium carbonate added to moderate the high natural acidity in seven of the twenty-three fermenters; oak from barrel aging; minimum effective sulfur 35 ppm at crush, 78 ppm during aging; depth filtered at bottling. In keeping with our philosophy of minimal intervention, this is the sum of our actions.