2008 lytton springs

Varietal Information

bottled March 2010
71% zinfandel, 21% petite sirah, 5% carignane
14.4% alcohol by volume

History

In 1972, Ridge made its first Lytton Springs from vines planted on the eastern half of the vineyard at the turn of the century, and purchased both the eastern and western portions of the vineyard in the early 1990s, (In the 1870s, under "Captain" William Litton's ownership, the two were part of one property; spelling evolved into "Lytton" by 1903.) The vineyard is planted to zinfandel and its principal complementary varietals.

Vintage

Harvest Dates: 28 August - 16 September
Grapes: Average Brix 24.9 degrees
Fermentation No inoculation; natural primary and secondary. Pressed at nine days.
Barrels: 100% air-dried american oak barrels (20% new; 55% one, two and three years old; 25% four and five years old)
Aging: Fifteen months in barrel

Growing Season

Rainfall: Thirty inches (below average)
Bloom: Early May
Weather: Dry spring and warm, dry summer, with no sustained heat spells

Winemaker Tasting Notes

Ripe nose of raspberry, plum, pepper and chapparel. Blackberry, mineral and vanilla notes dominate the palate. Well integrated tannins typical of this classic vineyard add to the long finish. EB (6/10)

Winemaker Video Tasting Notes

YouTube video (2:29) - winemaker John Olney presents the 2008 Lytton Springs.

• 2008 LYTTON SPRINGS 2008 Ridge Lytton Springs Proprietary Red Wine, Robert Parker , Wine Advocate 02-2010 , Tasting
  Rating: (91-93)
  
  The 2008 Lytton Springs Proprietary Red, a blend of 74% Zinfandel, 21% Petite Sirah, and 5% Carignan, possesses a deep ruby/purple color and good ac...(more)
• 2007 LYTTON SPRINGS 2007 Ridge Lytton Springs Proprietary Red Wine, Robert Parker , Wine Advocate 02-2010 , Tasting
  Rating: 92
  
  The 2007 Lytton Springs Proprietary Red (71% Zinfandel, 22% Petite Sirah, and 7% Carignan; 14.4% alcohol) exhibits a similar dark ruby/purple hue as well...(more)
• 2007 LYTTON SPRINGS Year's Best Zinfandel, Joshua Greene , Wine & Spirits 02-2010 , Tasting
  RATED: 91
  
  2007 Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs Zinfandel This starts with the sweet richness of Dry Creek zin, with plush, candied red fruit that turns savor...(more)
• 2007 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 01-2010 , Tasting
  2007 Ridge Vineyards Zinfandel Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley
  
  SCORE: 91 **
  
  71% Zinfandel; 22% Petite Sirah; 7% Carignane. Ripe enough to push its berryis...(more)
• 2006 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel year's best, Joshua Greene , Wine & Spirits 02-2009 , Tasting
  SCORE: 91
  
  2006 Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs Zinfandel Bright spice drives through the complex dark fruit of this old-vine blend, which includes petite sir...(more)
• 2006 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 01-2009 , Tasting
  RIDGE VINEYARDS Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley 2006
  
  SCORE: 89 *
  
  80% Zinfandel; 16% Petite Sirah; 14% Carignane. Although it teases with touches of spic...(more)
• 2006 LYTTON SPRINGS California's Central Coast, Stephen Tanzer , International Wine Cellar 11-2008 , Tasting
  2006 Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley (80% zinfandel, 16% petite sirah and 4% carignane): Deep ruby-red. Vivid red and dark berry aromas are complemented by dusty floral and mi...(more)
• 2005 LYTTON SPRINGS Wine of the Week - 2005 Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel, S. Irene Virbila , Los Angeles Times 11-2007 , Tasting
  Take a sip. It demands another. And another. The 2005 Lytton Springs Zinfandel from the Ridge estate is one of the best in recent memory. Rich and opulent, laden with sweet sp...(more)
• 2005 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 09-2007 , Tasting
  RIDGE Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley 2005
  
  SCORE: 89 *
  
  77% Zinfandel; 17% Petite Sirah; 6% Carignane. Ridge's latest bottling under the Lytton Springs ...(more)
• 2005 LYTTON SPRINGS New Releases: California, James Laube , Wine Spectator 06-2007 , Tasting
  Ridge Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs 2005 $33 A zesty spice bomb of a Zinfandel, with boysenberry, ripe cherry, licorice and toasted herb notes and ...(more)
• 2005 LYTTON SPRINGS Lining up some fine Ridge wines, Patrick Comiskey , Los Angeles Times 06-2007 , Tasting
  2005 Ridge Lytton Springs Zinfandel. From a Dry Creek Valley vineyard containing vines a century old, the 2005 is lush and sensuous, with a fragrance of briar and fores...(more)
• 2005 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel - New Releases, Nicholas Ponomareff , California Grapevine 04-2007 , Tasting
  2005 Ridge, "Lytton Springs," Dry Creek Valley ($33) -- Medium-dark purplish ruby; attractive, forward, intense, jammy, cherry and blackberry fruit aroma; medium-full ...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS ZAP, Harold Baer , Colorado Wine News 04-2007 , Press
  The 2004 Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley, $33, is 79% zinfandel, 18% petite sirah, and 3% carignane. It was aged for thirteen months in American oak, 20% new, and is still cl...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Top 100 Wines 2006, Linda Murphy and Lynne Char Bennett , San Francisco Chronicle 12-2006 , Tasting
  2004 Ridge Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel ($33)
  
  Elegant and balanced in a way few Zinfandels are today, it eschews power and high alcohol for fresh-tastin...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS New Releases from California's Central Coast, Stephen Tanzer , International Wine Cellar 09-2006 , Tasting
  2004 Lytton Springs Dry Creek ($33; 79% zinfandel, with 18% petite sirah and 3% carignane):
  
  Bright ruby. High-toned aromas of blackberry and fruitcake. Juicy, creamy-swee...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Robert Parker , Wine Advocate 06-2006 , Tasting
  This venerable producer, with as fine a track record as any winery in the world, continues to turn out high quality Zinfandels...
  
  RIDGE 2004 ZINFANDEL LYTTON SPRINGS ---...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Joshua Greene , Wine & Spirits 06-2006 , Tasting
  SCORE: 92
  
  2004 Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs Zinfandel An unusual vintage of Lytton Springs, this has a distinctive coolness to the fruit, partly expressed...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 05-2006 , Tasting
  RIDGE VINEYARDS Zinfandel Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley 2004
  
  SCORE: 95 ***
  
  Taking its accustomed place at the head of the class, this year's Lytton Spri...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 05-2006 , Press
  Let us establish at the beginning that we at Connoisseurs’ Guide do, in fact, understand the sounds made by a broken record. And, we confess without shame that we remember eve...(more)
• 2004 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel - New Releases, Nicholas Ponomareff , California Grapevine 02-2006 , Tasting
  2004 Lytton Springs: "Medium to medium-dark ruby with purplish tinges; attractive, somewhat restrained, herbal, plummy, spicy, slightly jammy, black cherry and blackber...(more)
• 2003 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel, Charles E. Olken , Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine 01-2006 , Tasting
  RIDGE Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley 2003
  
  **SCORE: 93
  
  76% Zinfandel; 18% Petite Sirah; 6% Carignane. On occasion Lytton Springs has been the biggest a...(more)
• 2003 LYTTON SPRINGS Multisource Wineries of the Year, Joshua Greene , Wine & Spirits 12-2005 , Tasting
  2003 Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs Zinfandel $30 (10/05)
  
  Recommended ~ SCORE 90...(more)
• 2003 LYTTON SPRINGS Dry Creek Zinfandel Recommendations, Thom Elkjer , Wine Country Living 09-2005 , Tasting
  Ridge Vineyards Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley “Lytton Springs” 2003 ($30): almost a quarter Carignane, this winner from Ridge is distinctly flavored, admirably complex, an...(more)
• 2003 LYTTON SPRINGS , James Laube , Wine Spectator 08-2005 , Tasting
  Excellent structure, with tight, mineral-edged tannins and a core of zesty wild berry and black cherry flavors that are firm and concentrated. It's almost Bordeaux-like in its...(more)
• 2003 LYTTON SPRINGS Zinfandel - New Releases, Nicholas Ponomareff , California Grapevine 04-2005 , Tasting
  2003 Ridge, "Lytton Springs," Dry Creek Valley ($30)
  
  Medium-dark ruby; pleasant, restrained, herbal, briary, ripe,
  sweet cherry fruit aroma with a hint of lavender and o...(more)
• 2002 LYTTON SPRINGS , W. Blake Gray , San Francisco Chronicle 03-2005 , Tasting
  2002 Ridge Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley ($30)
  
  If Geyserville is the Merlot of major-release Ridge Zinfandels, this is the Cabernet. Juicy and ripe aromas of black...(more)
• 2002 LYTTON SPRINGS Ridge Vineyards, Robert Parker , Wine Advocate 02-2005 , Press
  Ridge has been a reference point winery for so many years you would think they are hundreds of years old. The fact is, their history began in 1886, when an Italian doctor purc...(more)
• 2002 LYTTON SPRINGS New Wines from the Central Coast, Stephen Tanzer , International Wine Cellar 08-2004 , Tasting
  2002 Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley ($30; 75% zinfandel with 20% petite sirah and 5% carignane):
  
  Bright, dark red. Superripe aromas of plum, blackcurrant, espresso and ch...(more)
• 2002 LYTTON SPRINGS Bold Enough to Look the Sun in the Eye, Eric Asimov , New York Times Online 07-2004 , Press
  Ridge Dry Creek Valley Lytton Springs 2002......$30
  Clear fruit flavors with harmony and structure; cries out for grilled meats.
  
  ****************************************...(more)
• 2002 LYTTON SPRINGS Focus on California, Stephen Tanzer , International Wine Cellar 07-2004 , Press
  2002 Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley ($30; 75% zinfandel with 20% petite sirah and 5% carignane): Bright, dark red. Superripe aromas of plum, blackcurrant, espresso and...(more)