Cherry taste, leading into moderate spice, but not as much as I expected given the grapes involved. You think it is done, then the long finish kicks in. I was not impressed at first, but each sip brings out a little more complexity. Not really worth thirty five dollars.

This wine is a blend of 70% Zinfandel, 15% Carignane, 10% Petit Sirah, 3% Gernache and 2% Mataro with alcohol coming in at a reasonable 14.1%. Not very flashy on the nose for a Zin, with aromas of blackberry/black cherry fruit, licorice, smoke, pencil shaving, tobacco and wood spices. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, dry, with lots of concentrated flavours, balanced acidity and dusty tannins. This wine finish is very long, very smooth with good texture and a lot of detail. I have been following Ridge Three Valleys for quite some time now, very interesting as always, seemingly different from year to year but they always seem to produce a more refined, tasty, savoury style Zin blend. It would certainly be interesting to sit at the same table and be part of the team that blend the final product. Very enjoyable.