2009 Ridge Vineyards "Lytton Springs" Dry Creek Zinfandel

Perfect vintage - great 100+ year field blend vineyard - this is one of the best lytton springs I've tasted in recent memory.

If you haven’t tried the Lytton Springs and Geyserville bottlings by Ridge Vineyards by now you probably have been living under a rock, or on some deserted island somewhere. For decades, the first Geyserville was made in 1966 and first Lytton in 1972, these have been the best zinfandel based wines in the United States. For either instant consumption or long term cellaring few have ever shown as much promise and continuously paid such great dividends. At the annual Zinfandel Advocates and Producers Tasting (ZAP) back in January there was really one Zinfandel that stood out from all the rest and that was the 2009 Lytton Springs. There was so much wine in the bottle there that so many else at the same even couldn’t even hope to have. Fast forward nine months later and the wine has grown even more into itself with wonderful aromatics of gingerbread, spice cake, muddle blackberries and a waft of cigar smoke. This hits the mouth brimming with size, generous with its ample fruit and spice, but yet never feels excessive. It is sort of like a perfect steak, marbled and rich, needing almost nothing but a pinch of salt and pepper to make it sing. Long, dry and spicy with great balance, add a pinch of braised meat and this will do you well for decades to come.