Winemaking
Ribbon Ridge Vineyard is in the ultra-small category of wineries known as Indie Wineries. In 2003, our first commercial vintage, we produced a grand total of 325 cases. Production has grown slowly but steadily, from 500 cases in 2004, 700 cases in 2005, and 1100 cases in 2006. Dewey Kelly is the winemaker and makes the Ribbon Ridge Vineyard wines at Carlton Winemakers Studio.
Being small allows us to personally nurture each wine through the winemaking process. We process most of our pinot noir in small 1.5 ton fermenters like that pictured to the right. We do use jacketed, stainless steel tanks for the white wines. Working out of Carlton Winemakers Studio allows us to hand craft each wine and yet have access to the very best equipment and technology.
Our philosophy in winemaking is simple. No, that really is our philosophy in winemaking: Simple. We believe that wines are mostly made in the vineyard, and our job in the winery is to make sure nothing goes wrong between the vineyard and the bottle. So we do as little to the wine as we can get by with, especially with the pinot noir.
At the winery, the pinot noir fruit is gently destemmed, leaving mostly whole berries in the fermenters. We typically allow the berries to sit for a few days at <50 degrees to maximize the amount of contact between the juice and the skin. After a few days, we raise the temperature of the berries to 58 degrees and allow the fermentation to start naturally, without the addition of commercial yeasts. Ten days to two weeks after the fruit arrives at the winery, primary fermentation is complete. The wine is drained off of the skins and seeds, settled, then racked directly into French oak barrels where it rests pretty much undisturbed throughout the winter and spring until we start preparing it for bottling the next summer.
In 2005, we harvested nearly 8 tons of fruit from our vineyard and bottled just under 500 cases of Ribbon Ridge Vineyard pinot noir. The 2005 Estate pinot noir maintains the high standards set by the 2003 and 2004, scoring 91 points in Wine Spectator. For the first time, we produced a reserve wine in limited quantities. Called the "Wedding Block Reserve" after the spot in the vineyard where we were married, this wine shows the vineyard at it's best. The 2005 pinots were released in mid-2007 and are currently still available in limited quantities.
The 2006 pinot noir was bottled in September 2007. We bottled 600 cases of the Estate and 100 cases of the Wedding Block Reserve. Look for the Estate to be released Memorial Day 2008. The Reserve will be held back at least another 6 months and should be available in late 2008. We will provide tasting notes on these wines soon.
The 2007 vintage, our fifth, is currently in barrel. In June we will start working on the blends for 07 with an eye towards bottling them in August of 2008. Early barrel samples suggest another strong year, so we're looking forward to assemblage. One thing that is very exciting about the 2006 and 2007 wines is that we're finally seeing production levels that will allow us to make the wines available to more retail shops, wine bars, and restaurants.
In addition to the Pinot Noir, we also make an Early Muscat and a proprietary Alsatian-styled white blend, called Cuvee M, from purchased grapes. The 2006 Cuvee M is currently available as is our Early Muscat. Last year we also introduced Muse, an Early Muscat wine fortified with Early Muscat Grappa. Visit the Wine List section for tasting notes and the Purchase link to buy online.
Screw Caps
Screw Caps are the way of the future, and Ribbon Ridge Vineyard was among the first producers in Oregon to use screw cap closures on all of our wines.
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