96 Wilford Wong of Wine.com I first fell in love with the 1972 Ridge Geyserville when I tasted it in the mid-1970s. The 2023 is better than it has ever been. This wine reveals aromas and flavors of dried rocks, earth, oak, and blackberries. Enjoy it with Moroccan spiced lamb. The dish's cinnamon, cumin, coriander, and paprika will provide the perfect pairing. (Tasted: March 19, 2025, San Francisco, CA)

96 OwenBargreen.com The 2023 ‘Geyserville’ is a marvelous, silky blend of mainly Zinfandel (70%) with 18% Carignane, 9% Petite Sirah and a touch of Alicante Boushet. Very dark in the glass, this delivers beautiful violet rose petals alongside mocha, tar, Cuban cigar and notes of garrigue with loganberry compote. The palate is fresh and refined, with an elegant mid-palate mouthfeel and light dusting of salinity. Well-structured and weighted, offering plenty of depth and flavor density, this is a marvelous effort that has yet to fully hit its stride —- but the incredible potential is there. The combination of weight and tension suggests this will be very long-lived. Give this another year in the cellar before uncorking. Drink 2026-2045

95 Jeb Dunnuck A perennial standout for the winery that is produced for wider distribution, the 2023 Zinfandel Geyserville is a blend of 70% Zinfandel, 18% Carignane, 9% Petite Sirah and 3% Alicante, the 2023 a highly ageable vintage with great acidity. That freshness helps to define the wine's juicy core of well-mannered, supple tannins and oak, the wine aged entirely in 100% air-dried American oak, 15% of it new. It truly offers the perfect balance of dark fruit and freshness, within a full-bodied richness and structure still built for aging, as with all Ridge wines. Enjoy now through 2033.

95 Decanter Just a mile from the winery in Lytton Springs, the Geyserville vineyard sits in an overall warmer pocket of Sonoma, but even here, 2023 was unusually cool and slow to start. The winemaking team states that this was the latest Geyserville harvest on record, since the first vintage in 1966. The crew was picking grapes up to November 1st. This classic old-vine field blend is always anchored by Zinfandel, with Carignane, Petite Sirah, and a few other varieties playing supporting roles in varying proportions, depending on the vintage. In 2023, with 70% of Zinfandel, the blend feels expressive and aromatic, with black and blue fruit leading the way, lifted by fresh herbs, a touch of mint, and a layer of baking spices. The oak is still settling in, but the structure is already in place, thanks in part to the 18% Carignane, which adds depth and acidity. It’s a young wine with plenty of promise, already showing well, with slightly chalky tannins, but it will really hit its stride with a few years in bottle.

95 Vinous A blend of 70% Zinfandel, 18% Carignane, 9% Petite Sirah and 3% Alicante Bouschet, the 2023 Geyserville is dark and brooding. Virile and intense, this is a monster wine that’s only at the very beginning of its evolution. So impressively articulated, the 2023 somberly marches from the glass with dark shadings of tobacco, inky black fruit, cracked pepper, sage, turned earth and pine, building powerful minerality with aeration. The 2023 will need several years to come around. It’s a sleeping giant today. - 95+ pts.

94 Wine Spectator Robust and simmering with intensity, this red serves up dark blackberry and cherry flavors laced with black pepper, licorice, cardamom and other dark spices. The finish is firm yet integrated. Zinfandel, Carignane, Petite Sirah and Alicante Bouschet. Best from 2026 through 2035.

94 James Suckling Bright and moderate aromas of red cherries, blackberry compote, coffee beans and spices. The palate is full-bodied with finely integrated tannins and a focused acidity that leads into a rounded and pure finish. A blend of 70% zinfandel with touches of carignan, petite sirah and alicante bouschet, which benefited from a cooler vintage. Drink or hold.

93 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate The 2023 Geyserville is a blend of 70% Zinfandel, 18% Carignane, 9% Petite Sirah and 3% Alicante Bouschet that matured for 16 months in 15% new air-dried American oak. It has youthfully dense aromas of blackcurrant, tar, violet, mint, turned earth and squid ink. The full-bodied palate is powerfully styled with highly concentrated, mineral-driven flavors. It’s framed by muscular, grippy tannins and juicy acidity and has a long, latent finish. It should be long lived in the cellar. - 93+ pts.