Ridge Lytton Springs 2006

It was the first nice looking Saturday we'd had in a while, so Denise and I did something that had been on the back burner for several weeks - lunch at The Lobster in Santa Monica.  You really want lunch at The Lobster on a gorgeous day.  The view can't be beaten.  Up and down the beach between Malibu and Marina del Rey, this is the view we want on a bright sunny day.  So, even though it was a bit chilly, and even though a friend of ours emailed of snow on the Grapevine, we hit the road for the Pacific Ocean.

The Lobster has been at the foot of the Santa Monica Pier since 1923.  Wait, maybe they've been there longer than the Pier.  I don't know and I'm not looking it up.  At any rate, they've been there since the days when the entire restaurant was contained in the four walls of what is now the entryway!  Walk up a few steps and you have a magnificent view of the Pacific, the Pier and all its modern playday glory.  Love that ferris wheel - from a distance.

To cut to the chase, she had lobster, I broke "scallops tradition" and had the BBQ salmon.  She opened with a crab salad, I started with a plate of hummus and olives.  And I had some wine.

The Ridge Vineyards Lytton Springs Zinfandel was billed in the wine menu as a blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Grenache.  Looking around since then, I suspect the restaurant may have left out a mention of Carignane in their "page talker."

The smell of this wine is absolutely stunning.  Huge grape jam dominates the nostrils, reminding Denise at first of Jello, before it has set in the fridge.  I picked up some meaty notes, too.

The taste is quite forceful.  It doesn't just roll over your palate, it marches across it.  It's a dark, strong tasting wine.  The jammy "Welches" streak runs through it as it did on the nose, with spiciness and licorice to boot.  A pretty hefty touch of leather comes over, too.  It is quite dry - muscular, you might say.  The wine is well structured, but not a lightweight at all.  Not even a middleweight.