Ridge 2006 Lytton Springs Vineyard

Quick Overview

This wine has wild berry, licorice and smoky dill aromas and ripe, powerful blueberry, tar and leather flavors wrapped in muscular tannins.

Ridge 2006 Lytton Springs Vineyard
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Product Description

After long, hard rains in March, budbreak came by mid-April. In late July, extreme temperatures sunburned the west-facing blocks. These are planted predominantly to Petite Sirah, which sustained the highest loss. Veraison was late, and light rains further slowed maturation. They thinned the damaged clusters, and harvested the remaining fruit, fully ripe, between mid-September and mid-October. As tannin developed pumpovers were reduced, pressing at dryness on day nine. After a natural malolactic, twenty of the thirty-four blocks were selected for the 2006. This classic Lytton Springs was barrel aged for fifteen months. Approachable now, it has the structure to be cellared and enjoyed over the next ten years.

Blend: 80% Zinfandel, 16% Petite Sirah, 4% Carignane

Additional Information

Food Pairings	Chicken Cacciatore
Varietal	Zinfandel
Appellation	Dry Creek Valley
Accolades	91 points -- Stephen Tanzer 88 points -- Wine Spectator
Winemaker Profile	Paul Draper Paul Draper grew up on an eighty-acre farm in the Chicago suburb of Barrington. After attending the Choate School and receiving a degree in philosophy from Stanford University, he lived for two years in northern Italy. Later he attended the University of Paris and traveled extensively in France, gaining practical experience in traditional winemaking. In the mid-sixties, with a close friend, he set up a small winery in the coast range of Chile and produced several vintages of Cabernet Sauvignon. He joined Ridge Vineyards in 1969, and presently resides atop Monte Bello Ridge with his wife Maureen and daughter Caitlin. He is known for his crafting of fine Cabernets and Chardonnays from the Monte Bello Estate vineyards, and as a pioneer in the production of long-lived, complex Zinfandels.
Case Price	Buy 6 for $ 33.25 each -- 5% discount Buy 12 for $ 31.50 each -- 10% discount Mix and match for quantity discount