The Monte Bello vineyard on a ridge more than 2,500 feet above the Pacific to the west, and Silicon Valley to the east, is one of the world's most atmospheric and historic vineyards. The Bordeaux grapes grown there are responsible for Ridge Vineyards' top wine. The vineyard has some of the oldest Bordeaux vine varieties in the whole of California. The oldest Monte Bello vines have been 60 years in the ground. Ridge adopts a natural rather than technological approach to winemaking. As Ridge maintain 'As with raising a child, there are no recipes, only attention and sensitivity. Cask samples of the 2010 suggest a dark purple, dense coloured Monte Bello with cassis and bay leaf aromas, and sweet fruit and solid ripe tannins on the palate. The winemaking is now led by Eric Baugher. He believes this to be one of the greatest vintages of Monte Bello.

2010 assemblage:74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot, 2% Cabernet Franc

"The 2010 growing season was long and cool, reflecting the influence of an El Niño year, defined by a short but intense heat wave in late August. But whereas Ridge’s Sonoma County vineyards experienced a high of 117 degrees Fahrenheit for two days, Monte Bello ridge only reached 105 degrees. The ensuing 2010 Monte Bello is very classic in profile, offering up aromas of crushed cassis, plums, cigar tobacco, rich loamy soil, black tea and dark chocolate. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, with a deep and concentrated core of vibrantly crunchy fruit framed by velvety tannins, concluding with a long, tangy finish that’s still youthfully chewy. Though the two vintages are very close in quality, the 2010 is very different in profile from the somewhat larger scaled 2012: it’s less expansive, but built around a brighter vertical line. I’d recommend cellaring it for an additional three or four years and don’t expect it to truly hit its stride until after 2025.
96 points.
(William Kelley, The Wine Advocate, May 2018)