Bottle of Ridge Monte Bello 2021, a Cabernet Sauvignon blend from the Santa Cruz Mountains, California, 750ml

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Ridge Monte Bello Santa Cruz Mountains 2021 750ml

Name: Ridge Monte Bello Santa Cruz Mountains 2021 750ml
Brand: Ridge
SKU: 588778
Price: 319.99 USD
Availability: InStock

$319.99

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Monte Bello is Ridge's flagship, a Cabernet-based blend from mountain vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains. In 2021 it's 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, so the label simply says "Monte Bello".

The rest of the blend is 31% Merlot and about 5% Petit Verdot, chosen from 22 Monte Bello parcels. It fermented with native yeasts and spent 19 months in all-new oak, mostly American, unusual for a top California red. A dry winter and spring cut yields by more than a third, giving small berries and concentrated tannin.

The winery describes mountain blackberry, cassis, anise, lavender and violets, toasted oak and an earthy, mineral edge, with fine-grained tannins and firm acidity.

Ridge says it will develop over the next 20 to 25 years. For a Napa icon to drink sooner, choose Heitz Martha’s Vineyard 2014.

James Suckling suggests waiting until 2031. If you open it now, decant it for three hours.

It's also listed with our fine and rare wine, and the rest of our Cabernet Sauvignon is a click away. Pick it up at our Brooklyn store or get same-day delivery in Brooklyn, Manhattan & Queens.

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Product Detail

What it is

Type: Red wine
Grape: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2021

Taste

Sweetness: Dry
Body: Full-bodied

Where it's from

Producer: Ridge
Country: United States
Region: California
Sub-region: San Francisco Bay
Appellation: Santa Cruz Mountains

The bottle

Size: 750ml
Alcohol: 14.3%

Awards

100 James Suckling
"Tightly wound at this stage, the wine is massively concentrated, taut, yet trim and medium-bodied. Aged in 100% new oak, predominantly American, it offers espresso, blackberry, black cherry and vanilla bean flavors with a linear intensity and drive. Known to age and improve for several decades, this is one of California’s most collectible cabs and from a classic, age-worthy vintage. Best from 2031"

98 Decanter
"It's a journey. This wine offers high mountain pine bough, petrichor, and floral predominance of violet, high mountain lavender, and scrub. The palate is crisp and taut, with bright berries, blood orange and savoury mint. A true mountain wine with alpine herbs and wildflowers that lift deep fruit tones of blackberries, figs and muddled mint leaves. Leather, crushed stone and smoked cedar plank come together in America's most singular and iconic Cabernet Sauvignon."

97 Wine Enthusiast
Our summary: Matt Kettmann named it a Cellar Selection, with a drinking window into the 2040s.

97 Vinous
Our summary: Vinous (Billy Norris) rated the 2021 Monte Bello 97 points.