Ambiance
When friends and family visit, I take them to Ridge.
When people from out of town ask me where to go wine tasting, I say Ridge.
Hands down.
Every time.
Ridge.
Why Ridge?
Ridge is a wine institution dating back to 1885.
In 1976 Ridge came in 5th among ten French and Californian wines at the Paris tasting which is now known as the Judgment of Paris.
Ridge is always beyond exceptional quality.
The tasting room may seem at first glance a little sterile.
I WILL say though that there are fascinating charts, maps and museum like artifacts in the tasting room to peruse. Their little wine museum paints the picture of early winemaking in Dry Creek Valley.
I suggest going to Ridge on a sunny day and sitting out on the patio!
Lots of comfy patio couches, shade, and vineyard views.
I find it grounding to sip Ridge wine and be in the presence of 115 year old vines!
Cost:
There are three different tasting flights.
The Single Vineyard tasting is $10 Per Person.
Tasting fee is NOT waived with wine purchase.
Wines range from $32 to $200+ per bottle.
Appointment Needed?
No, open Mon-Thu 11:00am-4:00pm and Fri-Sun 11:00am-5:00pm
Wine Pick
Ridge East Bench Zinfandel
The price point of $32 is also in my budget for exceptional wine!
Dog Approved
Yes!
My little Lexi Bear has been here several times on the patio.
Social Media Worthy
Ummmmmmmmm…..I’m embarressed.
See the pic below?
A mere 2 seconds after taking this photo a man rushed up to me.
‘Get out of the vineyard!!!! Don’t you know those are 100 year old vines?!?!?!?!’
I take full responsibility.
I’m so used to visiting more approachable winery favs, and they let me pose, dance, and play in the vines.
Ridge, not so much.
Kinda like being a kid and going to……let’s say…The Vatican. You can look, but NO TOUCH!
From the patio you can get some nice insta view pics. ; )
Feel Good Vibes
I remember 6 years ago when my ex, a winemaker, introduced me to Ridge.
I had no concept of wine, let alone the Sonoma County treasures.
He would take me wine tasting, and I held my glass with claw hands around the bowl of the glass and not the stem. You could always tell my glass. The one with all the dirty smudges and sticky handprints.
I’d take a gulp of wine and had no idea if I liked it. No idea how to savor it.
I would watch my ex carefully. Study the way he got his nose all up in the wine’s business. Watch how he held the glass by the foot and swirled quickly. Noticed how he sipped and held the wine in the center of his tongue before swallowing. Observed how he held the glass up to the sun.
Ridge was a top favorite winery for us.
It was at Ridge that I got my first exposure to balanced wine; not the cheap, sugar bombed, girl’s night out wine.
After the two of us moved to Healdsburg, Ridge was where we celebrated.
I had no clue, at the time, what that celebration actually meant for me.
In retrospect, it was a celebration of my entrance into the paradise of Sonoma County, which I now consider my forever home.
My ex is irrelevant on several heartbreakingly painful levels.
Look at me now.
Sonoma Wine Life.
100 Wineries In 100 Days
Standing with confidence as the wine goddess I have evolved into.
Wine Nerd Facts
If you want to nerd out visit the Ridge Website.
One of the most comprehensive, relevant, and easy to navigate winery websites out there.
Wine Club? Fun Events?
Yes.
I want shipments of their Zin, and it wouldn’t be too shabby having access to Member dinners overlooking this view.
Unfortunately, not quite in my budget right now.
Ridge is in my top 5 Wine Clubs I would join.
Sheila’s Tasting Notes
Ridge is to be opened and enjoyed with your favorite small group of people.
Not people you kinda like.
Not people who only say Happy Birthday to you on Social Media.
I once brought my favorite bottle of Ridge Zin to a dinner party filled with loads of Healdsburg locals and wine industry peeps.
I thought by bringing Ridge it would give me street cred.
Branching out after dating a winemaker is hard! Living in an area surrounded by people who work in the industry and you don’t, is intense.
Bringing the bottle was a mistake.
I placed my Ridge on the table.
Wine hawkes swooped in.
I think I got a tiny little glass before it was gone.
Lesson learned.
If I serve you Ridge wine, it’s a huge compliment.
If I open Ridge wine at a dinner party, the people at that party MUST be extra special to me.
Ridge is my special occasion wine, and I save the corks and date them.
Ridge smells like my wine coming out story.
Who needs fake friends and a cheating ex when you can savor a bottle of reliable, exceptional Ridge.