Review: 2024 Ridge Vineyards Grenache Blanc Paso Robles

While people may try in earnest, no one in Kentucky can really pinpoint with certitude the end of the summer season and the beginning of autumn. The people who do often gesture vaguely to the arrival of pumpkin spice and Keeneland. Under no circumstances should their opinions carry any weight. Thankfully for those who don’t even bother to partake in this exercise, this Grenache Blanc from Ridge Vineyards shows up in a quantum state of living both seasons at once. Kind of like a guy wearing cargo shorts, an undersized soccer jersey picked up on clearance and sandals to Christmas dinner, oblivious to the world around him.

It’s a blend of 85% Grenache Blanc, 12% Picpoul, and 3% Roussanne and presents with aromas of pear, orange zest and mild jasmine. However, it’s on the palate where this wine spreads out with ample generosity: plenty of pear joined by ripe apricot, hazelnut, and a big current of minerality on the finish with enough acidity to keep things well focused throughout.

What you end up with is a wine built for the tail end of a long patio dinner, and it’s the first evening you notice you needed a sweatshirt or sweater and failed to bring one along. It doesn’t rush things, and when it comes to enjoying this bottle, nor should you. It already knows where the calendar is going and works well in either season with measured restraint and class.

A- / $43

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