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march 2010 / the tasting panel / 73 Casidy Ward: Hidden Ridge Vineyards Down the ridge as the crow flies, Casidy Ward and hus- band Lynn Hofacket began developing the Hidden Ridge Vineyards off Spring Mountain Road in 1991. At an elevation of 900 to 1700 feet, the daring site re- quired clearing gnarly oak and manzanita shrubs before planting the vineyards on very steep slopes. The end result is a unique 55-acre vineyard divided into 21 steeply ter- raced blocks on sandy loam soils and small amount of clay. At harvest, Casidy, Lynn and the winemaking team of Marco DiGuilio and Tim Milos use a non-interventionist approach. In the vineyard, no refractometers are used to measure Brix, or degrees of sugar. Instead, they pick based on flavor, acidity and balance of tannins once the grapes are fermented. Despite low yields, typically ranging from one-and- a-half to two tons per acre, the intensity of the fruit is always there. "You can't make mass-produced wines from a mountain vineyard," says Casidy. Heather Munden: St. Francis Winery In Sonoma Valley, winemaker Heather Munden loves working with grapes from Nuns Canyon Vineyard, a steep hillside prop- erty at elevations ranging from 600 to 800 feet. As the wine queen at St. Francis Winery, Heather uses fruit from the special blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Zin- fandel and Syrah to craft the Wild Oak and Artisan Series wines. A foodie at heart, Heather says that if a particular block doesn't work as a stand-alone, she will use the fruit to make a signature blend more complex. "To me, the joy of working with this fruit is like falling into a tub of butter or pork fat. No matter what, it's got to be yummy!" Heidi von der Mehden: Arrowood Vineyards Further south on the ridge is Monte Rosso, an epic hillside vineyard ranging from 800 to 1,000 feet, originally planted in the 1850s. Heidi von der Mehden, the associ- ate winemaker at Arrowood Vineyards, works with three special blocks that offer intensive flavors, small berries, high tannins, great structure and an intriguing rustic herb note that represents the magnificence of the iron- rich soils at Monte Rosso. Other hillside vineyards that Heidi works with in So- noma Valley include the Smothers-Remick Ridge near Glen Ellen and Murray Ranch on Sonoma Mountain. Along with selected barrels of Monte Ros- so, the fruit from the other two vineyards is used to make the Réserve Spéciale Cabernet Sauvignon, Arrowood's highest- priced wine. Following the phi- losophy of legendary founding winemaker Richard Arrowood, Heidi says the focus is to create mountainside wines that are powerful, elegant and balanced enough to be enjoyed when opened young or aged for ten-plus years. Lise Ciolino: Montemaggiore Of course, Bordeaux varieties are not the only grapes grown in the mountains of Sonoma County. On the rocky ridge at the southern edge of Dry Creek Valley is Mon- temaggiore, a cool-climate estate vineyard purchased by winemaker Lise Ciolino and her husband Vincent in 2000. Named after a small mountainside village in Sicily, this certified biodynamic vineyard features 8.5 acres of Syrah, 1.25 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, a tiny block of Viognier and 800 olive trees, all planted at 750 feet above the valley floor. Lise's passion for Syrah started when she tasted red Her- mitage wines while visiting M. Chapouti- er in the northern Rhône Valley with her father at the age of 16. Since then, she has fallen in love with the concentrated flavors of the grape, the tex- ture and the variety as a whole. The uniqueness of the cool-climate site—and Lise's Old- World-meets-New mantra—is shown in Montemaggiore's upcoming 2007 Paolo's Vineyard Syrah, which features aromas of roasted meats and white pepper, spicy flavors of ripe red currant, dark chocolate, earth and spice. Power, grace and rustic dignity at its finest! Heather Munden is winemaker at St. Francis Winery. Heidi von der Mehden, associate winemaker at Arrowood Vineyards. Cool-climate sensation: winemak- er Lise Ciolino of Montemaggiore, Dry Creek Valley.