The most structured and backward is the 2007 Chardonnay Ritchie Vineyard, which comes across as slightly tannic. Full-bodied with an earthy, rich minerality, fresh, lively poached pear, honeysuckle, and subtle smoke and tropical fruit notes, this well-delineated Chardonnay reveals laser-like clarity. It will drink well for 5+ years. - Wine Advocate

In 2007, this stunning Chardonnay is our pick of the very good bunch from Ramey. It reflects much the same winemaking hand insofar as it is firm, compact and solidly-structured with nary a suggestion of fat, but it moves to the head of the clan by virtue of its extra richness and depth. While it presently hints at stony complexity and teams generous, wonderfully continuous, young fruit with very deftly fit oak, it has a good distance to go before it fully unwinds, and to drink it before it has had the chance to age for two or three years will be to miss what is sure to be a very grand wine. - Connoisseurs' Guide

Wine maker notes

Situated directly in the center of the Russian River appellation, our block of Ken Ritchie’s vineyard was planted in 1972 to the Old Wente selection. Widely spaced - the fashion at the time – these old vines, with their thick gnarly trucks, produce only a tiny quantity of grapes per vine. The bench land soil is pure Goldridge loam, common to great vineyards in the in this part of the Russian River Valley. Like the wine from Hyde and the Hudson Vineyard, this wine is able to absorb more oak without being overwhelmed, and sees about seventy percent new Burgundian barrels. It spends about twenty-one months in barrel, completely sur lies, before being bottled without filtration. The 2002 vintage is our first release of this wine, of which we produced a small quantity - 323 cases.