Rejoined the Ridge "Zin List" recently. They send out six bottles, two each of three offerings, twice a year. You get six in the Spring and six in the fall, displaying the Zinfandels that Ridge will be shipping from their primary vineyards. These are not the very limited ATP productions, but the more familiar names like Geyserville, Lytton Springs, Sonoma Station, etc.
This offering included two each of 2000 Geyserville, 2000 Pagani Ranch, and 2001 York Creek Late Picked.
Here's my impressions on two corks that we pulled last night. The Pagani Ranch may be the richest, most full-bodied Zin I have ever tasted. The color is a deep purple, showing long legs. Alcohol is 15%, which isn't as intense as a lot of Ridge offerings. The nose shows a very mellow blackberry concentration with just a hint of leather in the background. On the palate, the blackberry intensifies and really delivers great flavor. There are some tinges of leather, vanilla and oak delivered with a subtle hand. The finish is velvety and long. Ridge claims this one should improve (!!) for three to five years. That will be something to experience. The wine is almost too powerful for accompanying food. It's a great fireplace sipper.
The second bottle was the York Creek Late Picked. I'm still working through a case of '96 Paso Robles Late Harvest that is almost port-like in its sweetness. The York Creek surprised in that it was not an overwhelmingly sweet wine. It was dark and almost black in the glass. 15.8% alcohol. The nose held some spice and that aroma of red berries in a field that makes a mid-western boy remember walking by the farms of Indiana or Illinois in July. On the palate it was only slightly heavier than the Pagani Ranch, with blackberry, raspberry and cinammon notes. Finish was a touch tannic, leaving the mouth just a bit puckered. This one will need a year or more in the cellar to settle down.
Can't wait for the Geyserville. That's always been my Ridge favorite.