2015 RIDGE, GEYSERVILLE, RED BLEND, ALEXANDER VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

Saturated ruby color. Intense dark berry fruits, gravel earth, black licorice, mint, and exotic spices. Powerful bramble fruit entry, sensuous, well-defined tannins, great depth of flavor, enjoyable lengthy finish.

Sporting a deep mix of dark fruits that runs from cassis to blackberries along with complexing elements of cocoa and earthy spice, this year’s edition of the Ridge Geyserville evokes all the accustomed richness that we have come to expect. It is a well-extracted and eminently ageworthy offering whose tannic, youthfully tight structure warrants a wait, but its astringency is never out of bounds and its insistently fruity finish is the hallmark of a wine guaranteed to repay five or more years of keeping with great dividends.