Brassfield Estate house spotlight
The official Brassfield Estate Winery film walks High Serenity Ranch in High Valley, the volcanic ranch and cellar behind this 2021 Eruption from Volcano Ridge.
2021 Brassfield Estate Winery 'Eruption' Volcano Ridge Vineyard Red High Valley, USA
Volcano Ridge proprietary red, Wine Enthusiast 93, a High Valley 2021 you can open at nineteen dollars.
The 2021 Eruption is a Volcano Ridge blend of Syrah, Malbec, Petite Sirah, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Zinfandel: blackberry, blueberry, dried violet, and oak spice after 10 months in French and American oak, now $19.
Volcano Ridge red from Round Mountain, not a leftover Lake County blend
Volcano Ridge sits beside an ancient cinder cone on the eastern edge of High Valley, 1,900 to 2,200 feet on red Konocti volcanic sand and tephra. Brassfield ferments the Eruption lots separately, then 10 months in French and American oak. Wine Enthusiast 93: brambled blackberry, black currant confiture, violet, dried herbs, molasses, then ripe black plum, black cherry cream soda, sarsaparilla, bay leaf, grilled orange, mineral, a dry long finish, decant 30 minutes, grilled ribeye. Michael Apstein scored it 91 at $28. This is the bottle that puts High Valley volcanic red on a weeknight table at nineteen dollars.
The house
Jerry Brassfield bought the original ranch in 1973. The estate now farms both sides of High Valley, including Round Mountain volcano.
The wine
Volcano Ridge proprietary red. Separate small-lot ferments, 10 months French and American oak, lightly fined and filtered. 14.9% ABV.
The scores
Wine Enthusiast 93. Wine Review Online 91 at a $28 typical. The Tasting Panel found dark chocolate, espresso, and dried violet.
The drinker
Blackberry and violet first. Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. Grilled ribeye or short ribs.
Blackberry and blueberry, then violet, sarsaparilla, and mineral
The winery leads with concentrated blackberry and blueberry, dried violet, and oak spice, then a palate-coating Volcano Ridge mouthfeel. Wine Enthusiast added black currant confiture, molasses, ripe black plum, black cherry cream soda, sarsaparilla, bay leaf, grilled orange, and a dry mineral close. The Tasting Panel found dark chocolate, espresso, black olive, new leather, and soy, with dried violets on a dusky, structured palate.
Estate fruit from Volcano Ridge, planted 2003 and 2004 on steep red volcanic soils. A Lake County red year with enough tannin to stand up to a steak and enough fruit to open now with air.
Blackberry, blueberry, black plum, violet, dried herbs, molasses, oak spice.
Full, 14.9% ABV, 10 months French and American oak, firmly tannic, silky volume.
Sarsaparilla, bay, mineral, dry length. Decant 30 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Small lots, then 10 months of French and American oak
The Eruption components ferment separately so Syrah, Malbec, Petite Sirah, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Zinfandel keep their jobs in the blend. Ten months in French and American oak, lightly fined and filtered. Vines struggle in Konocti volcanic sand and tephra at 1,900 to 2,200 feet, and that struggle is the wine's density.
Round Mountain volcano sits on the property. Volcano Ridge is the eastern, red-soil reading of High Valley.
Decant 30 minutes as Wine Enthusiast asks. Serve 60 to 64 F. Grilled ribeye is the house match.
A cattle ranch, a volcano, then a red called Eruption
Brassfield is still a family ranch with volcanic ground and wildlife on the property. Eruption is how Volcano Ridge speaks as one wine.
Jerry Brassfield purchased 1,600 acres in 1973. The estate grew across the eastern and western sections of High Valley.
Carlos Valadez, with generational roots at the ranch, farms certified-sustainable fruit and makes the wines in the caves.
The 2021 Eruption is that ranch in a glass: Volcano Ridge, not a Napa lookalike with a Lake County label.
Char on steak, depth on a braise
Dark fruit, violet, and tannin want browned beef and a slow sauce, not a polite salad.
Two plates. One butter-basted steak. One pot of red-wine short ribs.
Serve 60 to 64 F. Thirty minutes of air is enough. A large red glass.
Pan-Seared Butter-Basted Steak
A thick steak, butter, and a hot pan. The simple Eruption match.
Why it works: Fat and char soften the tannin. Browned edges echo blackberry, sarsaparilla, and dried herbs.
View Recipe for pan-seared butter-basted steak (opens in a new tab)
Red Wine-Braised Beef Short Ribs
Slow beef, wine, and herbs. The weekend plate.
Why it works: The braise absorbs grip while tomato and herbs echo blackberry, bay, and dried herbs.
View Recipe for red wine-braised beef short ribs (opens in a new tab)Put this Eruption in the cart
Wine Enthusiast 93, Volcano Ridge, High Valley. Nineteen dollars.
Put it in the cart. This is Lake County volcanic red priced for weeknights, with enough structure for a ribeye.
