OUR VINEYARDS
Our collection of vineyards is among the most impressive in California; it’s also one of the most diverse. These parcels tempted legendary viticulturist Phil Freese out of retirement to work with us after a storied career re-designing the vineyards for Opus One and perfecting Mondavi’s To-Kalon holdings in Oakville. These vines, under Phil’s vigilant supervision, provide Jesse with a vast selection of grapes to work with. Each vineyard yields grapes whose unique character is both deeply tied to the land and allows Jesse’s inimitable vision to shine through with each and every bottling.
APERTURE ESTATE VINEYARD
Our 32-acre estate vineyard was always destined for greatness. Well before we took ownership, the land surrounding our winery constitutes some of the oldest vineyards in the world. Within California, the grapes grown on it have contributed to some of the greatest wines in American history, including the critical darlings made by the legendary Paul Draper at Ridge. In our desire to follow in that proud tradition, we enlisted the expertise of four wine experts with PhDs who ensured the right vines were planted in the soils best suited for them—all surrounding our winery. We look forward to releasing our first wine from this vineyard in our Fall 2020 release.
Whether you’re inside our winery or on the patio, you’ll have a prime view of our estate vineyards to the west. Planted closest to the winery, in our unique volcanic soil studded with gravel, we have prime Cabernet land. In the middle, there’s a beautiful layer of blue clay like they have at Petrus, in Pomerol, and where our best Merlot grows. Off in the distance is a treeline, which is actually the Russian River. Between our winery and the water is a large vineyard that was planted in 1912, and some of the grapes grown there were among those used in Ridge’s first single-vineyard wine. The region’s history and future converge here like nowhere else.
DEL RIO VINEYARD
Perched atop a steep hillside in the southeastern part of Alexander Valley, Del Rio Vineyard is one of the true jewels of the appellation. The pitch of the land and the depth of the soils mean that the vines’ roots stretch deep into the earth, which imbues our finished wine with the kind of tension and concentration that we look forward to exploring vintage after vintage. The land itself faces south-southwest, which means that the grapes benefit from warm sunshine throughout the day. Combine that with the vineyard’s unique white-chalk volcanic soils, and you have the perfect recipe for wines of depth, power, and richness.
OLIVER RANCH VINEYARD
This is our northernmost vineyard, located about a mile and a half east of Geyserville and designed entirely by Phil Freese, who still manages it today. When its owner, Steve Oliver, conceived of his vision for the four-acre parcel, his instructions to Phil were simple: Do whatever you need, and spare no expense, in creating the best vineyard you possibly can. The vines are planted on the same high-density model as Phil used at Opus One, and they’re all dry-farmed, which allows the volcanic soils and ancient river gravels to shine through in every single sip of profoundly structured red wine that comes from this carefully cultivated land.
SJ RANCH VINEYARD
This seven-acre plot in the Alexander Valley is so diverse that it’s divided up into seven individual blocks that range from a quarter-acre to three-and-a-half acres. It’s composed of two main soil types: Deep, well-drained gravels from what was most likely an ancient river bed hundreds of millions of years ago; and soils that bring together gravels and more volcanic material. Two different clones of Cabernet are planted here, and they’re among the last grapes we pick every year: The fog that blankets SJ allows the berries to hang and ripen at a wonderfully slow pace, and the purity and expressiveness of the wines are unmatched. We lease, control, and farm SJ Vineyard in its entirety, and we wave hello to our neighbors at Vérité along Thomas Road. Our SJ Vineyard wines showcase the quintessentially Bordeaux-influenced earthiness and terroir-specificity that this part of the valley is famous for.
OLD VINE CHENIN BLANC VINEYARD
Our Chenin Blanc is among the most profound in the state, and the incredible soil is a big reason why. Because the Chenin vines sink their roots deep into Clarksburg’s clay-loam soils, they have the opportunity to pull power and presence from deep within the earth. Combine that with the “Delta Breeze” that sweeps in from the San Francisco Bay, allowing the fruit to ripen fully and at a perfectly leisurely pace, and Jesse is given all the raw materials he needs to craft a Chenin Blanc of weight and detail.
DRY STACK VINEYARD
Sauvignon Blanc is often an afterthought for red-wine-focused producers, but our commitment to expressing the full range of Bordeaux varieties means that it’s every bit as important as our Cabernet and Merlot. We source our precious Sauvignon Blanc from Dry Stack Vineyard, 550 ft. above sea level in Bennett Valley, along the eastern flank of Mt. Taylor. There, marine-clay loam mingles with enough stones scattered throughout to make for perfect drainage, which lends the juice unparalleled concentration and expressiveness. We blend it with a bit of Semillon, as they do in Bordeaux, and the result is a white wine of haunting texture and inimitable ageability.
“We have a unique style within Alexander Valley. We have powerful, rich fruit characteristics, but then,we have these very fine and silky tannins, with elegance and freshness and higher natural acidity.”
— JESSE KATZ, WINEMAKER
