With tonight's dinner of lasagne, I opened:

2000 Ridge Lytton Springs (80% Zin; 20% Petite Sirah; 14.8% ABV)
color: dark garnet with no bricking
nose: cedar, mint, dark fruits
palate: soft, oak-influenced, mint, plummy

In search of a decent pasta wine, I pulled this bottle from the cellar.
Paul Draper indicated that the wine would be at its best in "5 to 7
year" as of 10/01. This was an odd showing. The intense minty quality
was offputting, and Jean felt that the wine was a bit hot, too. No
hurry, though, as the wine seemed quite young, so we'll revisit later
and see whether the wine has calmed down.

Mark Lipton
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