WTN: Three Over The Weekend...(short/boring)

Tried these over the weekend:
1.Ridge Calif LyttonEstate Grenache (10% PS/10% Zin; DryCreekVlly; 14.7%; 49 brls; Bttld: April '08; Drk: 3/08-3/12-3/13: EB) 2006: Med.dark color; rather earthy/dusty strong oak/smokey/toasty light Grenache/strawberry/spicy classic Ridge red nose; fairly tart some tannic/hard light strawberry/Grenache fairly/earthy/dusty strong smokey/toasty/oak/Draper perfume flavor; med.long light strawberry/Grenache some smokey/toasty/Ridge oak bit tannic/hard finish; whispers quietly of Grenache and strongly of Ridge red winemaking; would like much more lush/Grenache fruit. $28.00 (ATP)
________________________
2. LeonBeyer GWT AC: A (11%-14%) Eguisheim 1988: Med.gold color; slight nutty bit piney/smokey/pungent/used fireworks quite perfumed/fragrant/old GWT/spicy/cinammon very complex nose; soft rich/lush slight nutty/honeyed spicy/old GWT/cinammon slight piney/PineSol/smokey very complex lovely flavor; very long/lingering slight bitter/tangy rich/lush/honeyed spicy/old GWT/cinammon slight smokey/piney/pungent very complex finish; a lovely/gentle complex expression of old Alsace GWT. $18.00
________________________
3. DryCreekVnyd Estate SauvBlanc DCV3/DryCreekVlly (Planted in 1972; 13.5%) 2009: Pale green/yellow color; slight herbal/pungent fairly classic SB light minerally/grapefruity/lemony rather perfumed nose; fairly tart quite lemony/grapefruity light herbal/cat pee/pungent/SB some mineral/tangy/flinty quite attractive flavor; med.long lemony/grapefruity some herbal/cat pee/SB some mineral/flinty/pungent very attractive finish; quite a lovely SB very much in a Loire style. Very fairly priced at $25.00
___________________________________________
A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. RidgeRhones: This Grenache is pretty typical of the Ridge ATP Grenaches and Syrahs. The varietal character speaks with a quiet voice and shouts strongly of Ridge red winemaking. That said, I long ago made my peace w/ the Ridge Rhones; they speak more of Ridge winemaking and not much about varietal character. I guess I would like more intensity of fruit than they usually deliver. OTOH, they can sometimes evolve into some very/very interesting wines w/ btl age. But sometimes not. They are, I guess, Ridge's unique expression of Syrah and Grenache; different from any other winery in Calif. They rarely overwhelm, but are almost always well-made/interesting Ridge reds. I'd love to see what Carlisle or Bedrock could do with that beautiful old-vine Grenache fruit.
What puzzles me a bit is here it's 2012, and they're just now releasing a 2006 ATP wine?? And towards the end of the predicted drinking window. As we sometimes say in Kansas...WTF?? Sometimes, the Ridge ATP program makes me shake my head in puzzlement. Was this release just an afterthought (at 49 barrels; that's a pretty serious afterthought)?? Did they plan it that way? Or did the wine takes so long to come around that they had to delay its release? Or did it just get lost in the (barrel) shuffle at Ridge?? Curious minds would like to know. That (also) being said; the Ridge ATP wines (including the Zins & Carignanes) are, by and large, really good wines. Sometimes they develop into great wines. I still look forward to receiving my Ridge ATP shipment every month. But I think maybe they should focus some strong attention on their ATP program so it doesn't seem so...hap-hazard/willy-nilly. End of rant..a rant I've delivered before.
___________________
2. DryCreekVineyards: I think DCV is making the best wines they ever have in their history. Because they're not reviewed by certain Monktown attourneys, because they don't have an oversubscribed mailing list w/ a 5 yr waitlist, because they're available in KeoKuk, IA and every little non-descript burg throughout this great Nation, because they are so reasonably priced, because....; they never seem to get any buzz and fall way below everybody's radar. They deserve way better than that. Wake up, folks...these are very good wine; some of my favorites. Good grief...I even like their [size:tiny type]Merlot[/size] End of rant.
Tom

I finally had a chance to try the 2006 Ridge Grenache. We enjoyed this with grilled salmon burgers, one of those times when food and wine are in harmony. I didn't find much tannic structure on day 1 (there is about 1/3 bottle left), so the wine felt a little `soft' to me. It's interesting that this is a current ATP release (in January), when the bottle notes are from 2008, suggesting a drinking window of 4-5 years, i.e., NOW.

I don't think I'll leave my other bottle for long. This is tasty right now, and I'm pretty sure it's not going to get any better. I forget if we were told why this was held back so long or not. Having said all that, a very nice drinking wine right now, and at the ATP price, quite reasonable too.

Tom,

I was an ATP member for 10 or so years and only stopped because they don’t ship to Mass. and I got tired of bringing wine home from my brother’s house in Colorado. I have no idea if these ATP wines got lost in the shuffle or they were intentionally waiting but I always assumed that the ATP wines were marketed much differently than the nationally distributed wines and that sometimes included releasing ATP wines that were more ready to drink than say Geyserville or Lytton Springs. I’m not a marketing guy but if you think about marketing these small batch experiments and introducing people to the Ridge style wouldn’t it make more sense to release them later than LS and Geyserville? Again, I have no idea what goes on with the ATP wines (and these wines, in particular) but I’ve got to believe the whole marketing plan is very very different than the “regular” wines. Now you can correct me.

Hi Tom -

Thank you for the notes yet again. You are making me take another look at the Dry Creek wines in my area - not that I am one to be blown away by raw power, but perhaps I am still underestimating these?

To echo Tom Troiano, I have never subscribed to the Ridge ATP program because of Massachusetts shipping laws. Around here, it is hard to find many Ridge wines from before 2007 or so, aside from some 1970s wines that are understandably priced at the point that they would have to be very special occasion purchases for me to bring to a wine geek event. Nonetheless, I do enjoy reading your notes on these wines.