Inky purple hues with dark plum, black cherry, cedar, cola and sweet toasted oak on the nose. A full-bodied entry with black berry, cocoa powder, brown spices and peppermint on the palate. Layered textures and focused tannins lead to a long finish.

Assemblage: 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot Maturation: 16 months in 100% American oak barrels (55% new, 45% one year old).

In 1886, the first blocks of the Monte Bello Vineyard were planted and construction on the winery began. The first vintage was the 1892. In the early 1940s, the last of the old vineyard was abandoned; in the late forties a few blocks were replanted. Those cabernet vines-now over sixty-five years old-produced the first Ridge Monte Bello (1962) and subsequent vintages until 1974. By then other abandoned blocks had been replanted and their fruit considered for use in the Monte Bello. A number of those consistently produced a more accessible wine that developed its full complexity earlier and these were combined as the "Santa Cruz Mountains." With the 2008 vintage the name of this stylistically distinct wine became the Ridge Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, stressing the principal varietal and the Monte Bello Estate vineyard as its source.

(Commenting on the 2019 vintage) "The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate comes from the estate Monte Bello Vineyard on the eastern side of the Santa Cruz Mountains... its deep ruby/purple color is followed by a brilliant perfume of blue fruits, scorched earth, tobacco leaf, and lead pencil. Beautifully balanced and medium to full-bodied, with building tannins, it's a seamless Cabernet Sauvignon that has some up-front appeal given its balance and elegance yet will benefit from 2-5 years of bottle age and, I suspect, have 20+ years of overall longevity."
94+ Points.
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, (August 2022)