Ep. 114: Exploring the Legacy of Ridge Vineyards with Head Winemaker and COO, John Olney

In this episode of the Vint Podcast, Brady Weller and Billy Galanko host John Olney, the Head Winemaker and COO at Ridge. John has worked for this heralded California estate - founded in 1962 in the Santa Cruz Mountains - since 1996.  He studied oenology in Burgundy and held positions alongside renowned winemakers including Gérard Chave in the Rhône, Lucien Peyraud at Domaine Tempier and Aubert de Villaine of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. John started out at Ridge's flagship property, Monte Bello, and later oversaw the creation of perhaps the greatest wine in the United States, the "Monte Bello" Bordeaux blend, from those Santa Cruz vineyards. Then he moved over to Lytton Springs to work more with Zinfandel and helped to construct the beautiful facilities that now make the property a second home for the Ridge name. Appointed COO and Head Winemaker in 2021, John has etched his name in Ridge lore alongside his former boss and California winemaking legend, Paul Draper. John's vast knowledge is evident and he was exceedingly generous to share so much with us in this episode!

The Vint Podcast is presented by Coravin, the world's leader in wine preservation systems. Listeners of the Vint Podcast can take 15% off their purchase on Coravin.com by using promo code VINT15 at checkout*. Members of the trade can access exclusive discounts at trade.Coravin.com.

The Vint Podcast is a production of the Vint Marketplace, your source for the highest quality stock of fine wines and rare whiskies. Visit www.vintmarketplace.com.

To learn more about Vint and the Vint Marketplace, visit us at https://vint.co or Vintmarketplace.com or email Brady Weller at [email protected], or Billy Galanko at [email protected].

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Cheers!

Past Guests Include: William Kelley, Peter Liem, Eric Asimov, Bobby Stuckey, Rajat "Raj" Parr, Erik Segelbaum, André Hueston Mack, Emily Saladino, Konstantin Baum, Landon Patterson, Heather Wibbels, Carlton "CJ" Fowler, Boris Guillome, Christopher Walkey, Danny Jassy, Kristy Wenz, Dan Petroski, Buster Scher, Andrew Nelson, Jane Anson, Tim Irwin, Matt Murphy, Allen Meadows, Altan Insights, Tim Gaiser, Vince Anter, Joel Peterson, Megan O'Connor, Adam Lapierre, Jason Haas, Ken Freeman, Lisa Perrotti-Brown,...