Ridge made a Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet from 1978 through the late 1980s, before changing the naming to ‘Estate.’ With the 2023 vintage, Ridge had the opportunity to purchase fruit from along Montebello Road, as well as other sites throughout the Santa Cruz AVA. Made just like all the Ridge wines. The well-known Monte Bello structure leaps out at you, taut and lean, salty, but backed by ample cherry fruit and a touch of oak spice. This wine has concentrated and dark fruit, Bright and spicy, a mountain Cabernet through and through. There’s an approachability here, and that is the role of this Santa Cruz Mountains Cabernet in the library of ageable Ridge wines. Elegance married to approachability.