Skip to content

William Kelley

thoughts on wine

Home
About
Contact
Publications

Tag: Ridge Vineyards

Ridge Monte Bello: a study in singularity

June 13, 2017

An expanded version of this article can be found at http://www.robertparker.com.

5 Comments Ridge Monte Bello: a study in singularity

Instagram

Tasting some 2018 Beaujolais from my cellar despite the quarantine... video with thoughts on the wines and the vintage at age one forthcoming. Since it was such a large crop, the 2018 vintage will be with us for some time—in fact, several producers told me that they’ll bottle their 2019s later than usual as they still have so much 2018 to sell.

This bottle is disappearing too fast... time to forget it in the cellar for a few months and revisit the 1976 🤭 #laberdolive #armagnac

Every time I open a bottle from Cédric Bouchard I’m reminded why he’s one of my favorite producers in the world. The balance is so pristine, and without the enriching artifice of oak or sugar, you can tell he harvests on the knife edge, avoiding both under- and over-maturity equally deftly. Vinification in steel, a lengthy prise de mousse, and four bars pressure rather than the usual six are the rudiments of his approach in the cellar. But with yields between 20 and 30 hectolitres per hectare, and by only harvesting the most pristine fruit, much of the work has been done already. Very few great winemakers create a whole new category of wine, but that is exactly what Bouchard’s Champagne’s represent. #cedricbouchard #champagne

Drinking California wine in Beaune 😱 but this was my best—and last, please send donations—bottle of the 1985 Monte Bello. This was the era of submerged cap fermentations, and the winery’s American oak wasn’t seasoned as long as it is today, so it’s a structurally more rustic wine; but time has rounded out those hard edges, and it’s showing brilliantly, with Monte Bello’s signature low pH contributing a structural spine that would differentiate it from many 1985 Bordeaux—to say nothing of north coast Cabernet.

This 1980 Gevrey-Chambertin from Roty was very impressive: deep, textural and impressively muscular for the vintage. Opening in the glass, it lost a somewhat ferric top-note, offering up a rich and complex bouquet. This must have been firmer and more structured than recent Roty vintages—it’s hard to think of a domaine where that wouldn’t be the case—but there’s also a real continuity of style here. Joseph Roty was one of the leaders of the appellation, someone to whom other vignerons would turn to for advice, and this bottle was testimony to why.

Two recent Italian wines. First, the 1985 from @emidiopepe - a stunning bottle. Cooler vintages of Pepe can taste quite savory and Burgundian (e.g. ‘94), whereas warm, ripe years are richer and more overtly southern (e.g. ‘83): but this ‘85 is both ripe, with inviting sun-kissed fruit tones, yet also unusually racy and transparent. It’s one of the finest vintages of Pepe I’ve tasted, so thank you, Chiara 🙏 A few days later, we opened this 2010 Cerretta Barbara from Conterno: I bought a case as a student, and the wine shut down hard soon after I acquired it, showing all its acid and alcohol. It’s drinking a lot better five years later, with succulent balsamic fruit, but the 15% abv is still a touch overbearing. I’d tolerate that much octane in Rayas or Montrachet, so I suppose it’s just a lack of real complexity that makes it onerous here. Maybe more of the latter will emerge with a bit more bottle age: certainly, time has been kind so far. In any case, these two didn’t really have much in common beyond their nationality and perhaps a few shared typographical conventions in evidence in their labels. #emidiopepe #giacomoconterno

Twitter

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy