Tasting Note                          

91     2005 Ridge Pagani Ranch       4/4/08 ($33)

96% Zin, 1% Alicante Bouschet, 2% PS, 1% Mataro 14.2% alc
Color: Medium purple garnet. (3.0) Bouquet: Very briary with rich Zinberry fruit, but leaner than usual, with excellent acidity and a healthy dose of oak. (3.0) Body: A middleweight that does not coat the mouth, but has excellent fruit and acidity. (3.0) Flavor: Parallels bouquet with tangy Zinberry fruit, particularly tart cherry. Also has an interesting cotton candy nuance. Compelling. (3.5) Finish: Parallels flavor, but not quite as full. The delicious tangy, tart cherry cotton candy fruit lingers with some fancy oak and briar complementing. (3.0)
Overall: Lean for Pagani Ranch, but still possesses the usual fine old vines character. It is also balanced and the tart cherry fruit is delicious. Could improve in the next 2-4 years, but should be relatively fast maturing. It's quite accessible now, just give it an hour in a decanter for the full fruit effect. If you're an old vines Zin lover, like me, Pagani Ranch is a no brainer. (15.5)