Robert Parker (96)
The 2022 Monte Bello is a rich and distinctly firm iteration of this classic cuvée, evoking a hypothetical blend between the textural power of the 2017 and the bracing structure of the 2015. The nose displays a classically deep and resonant bouquet of red and black fruits, vanilla pod, dark chocolate, cigar wrapper and dried herbs, with balsamic overtones and admirable oak integration. The palate combines lush generosity with an eminently sturdy core, concluding with a stern, bracing finish of firm tannins, pleasantly complemented by gentle succulence. It will take time to view the full potential here, but it certainly delivers the tried-and-true profile long-time fans will expect. This vintage is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc.
James Suckling (97)
A fruit-driven example of Monte Bello coming from the warm 2022 vintage. There are layers of blackcurrants, black cherries, cedar, licorice, olive brine and spices on the nose. The palate is full-bodied with a seamless mouthfeel, fine tannins and bright acidity. Much to love for early drinking, but will age well.
Jancis Robinson (18.5)
Full bottle 1,223 g. 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 2% Cabernet Franc. Grapes destemmed and sorted; 100% whole berries. Both primary and secondary (malolactic) fermentations are completed by ambient yeasts and bacteria. Aged 21 months in 100% new oak (95% American oak, 5% French oak). pH 3.36, TA 9.13 g/l. Minimum effective SO2 (35 ppm at crush, 114 ppm during ageing). Certified organic. Deep purple with a fuchsia rim. Absolutely stunning. Rich black fruit, a beautiful vein of green, cassis and cedar and spice from oak. Tannins are smooth but building and the acidity is mouth-watering and fresh. Going back to the Estate Cab from this you're able to see the purer fruit character and that the wine is more complex and feels cooler even at higher alcohol. The finish goes on forever. I feel confident in saying that given a decade or two this will be a perfect wine.
Vinous (96)
The 2022 Monte Bello feels like a cooler-vintage wine, defying all expectations of the torrid growing season. Juicy, fresh and very old school, the 2022 sashays with true elegance as it unfurls into classic layers of cedar box, tobacco, grilled herbs, tart cherry and crushed rocks. A return to a more typical percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in this vintage can be felt in the wine's upright build and darker aromatic shadings. Winemaker John Olney chose to keep the 2022 in barrel for 21 months, a little longer than usual, in an effort to tame its fierce young tannins. That prescription worked out swimmingly. The 2022 is a very serious, structured wine, but its textural polish is beyond reproach. It's a Monte Bello that whispers rather than shouts. Time is very much on your side.
Jeb Dunnuck (98)
Aged in 100% new oak, the 2022 Monte Bello blends 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc, selected from 18 of 21 lots by blind tasting. After assemblage, the wine spent 21 more months in barrel. The vineyard starts at 1,600 feet and goes up to 2,700 feet at top, and is spread out across 4 different ranches, Klein, Rousten, Torre and Perrone, the wines getting more tightknit and ageable as the vines move up the mountain. By the end of harvest, Monte Bello is split into 55 different blocks, which are then picked and fermented separately. Year after year, this is a “wow” wine, herbal, lightly spiced in oak, with a lovely creamy, velvety texture and a backbone of well-resolved tannin supporting a medium-bodied, balanced spirit of mountain garrigue. These wines typically age 20-25 years or more.
Decanter (97)
The limestone soils, and the short distance to the Pacific Ocean as well as the seriously high elevation, (ranging from 1600-2700ft) means that the Santa Cruz Mountains, produce a very different Cabernet than much of California. The 2022, drought vintage, a third straight year, meant tannic, tiny fruit on the Montebello estate. The wine was fully destemmed and only pumped over half as often as a typical vintage for Montebello. Its a tightly wound iteration in its youth with 100% new American oak for 20 months. Expressive on the nose, with taut black fruits, fresh pine needles and mineral notes of wet clay and roasted herbs. The palate is fresh and medium weight, (13.8%abv) with so much lively freshness in its youthful exuberance. Salty ocean notes open the palate chasing taut eary season blackberries and plum skins. The palate opens overtime revealing dried mint, and alpine meadow herbs that buoy the fruit expression and carry this masterfully made wine toward its zenith, but... don't touch it for another 10 years for the best result.
Owen Bargreen (99)
A totally stunning wine from a warm vintage, the 2022 Ridge ‘Monte Bello’ combines nearly all Cabernet Sauvignon (86%) with 10% Merlot and small parts Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot from their estate vineyard high atop the Santa Cruz Mountains. Silky tannins frame a generous core of dark currants, roasted figs, dark chocolate shavings, anise seed and shades of black licorice on the palate. The remarkable power, intensity and minerality leads to a mouth-watering effect on the palate. A dazzling and dense wine that has some great cellaring potential, try to resist this beauty for another year.
