Ridge Cabernet Estate is Not Vegan Friendly

Company email (August 2016) re: Ridge East Bench:
"Ridge strives to product wines that meet your requirements as often as possible. In looking at the last 4 vintages of East Bench it shows that we did meet your requirements for being vegan-friendly. Our wines are not bottled in any other location than one of our Ridge wineries at Monte Bello and Lytton Springs."

Company email (February 2014):
"I checked with our head of winemaking and replied with the following details.
Of anything we use in winemaking, the only item that could potentially be used that is non-vegan, is egg whites. When used, it is only used as a fining agent to reduce tannins. When added to a wine, it will be listed as an ingredient on the back label. Generally the only wine that receives egg whites at Ridge is the Cabernet Estate, occasionally the Merlot, too. We do not use isinglass, gelatin, casein, or any other animal derived products. Also, our wines are bottled at our own facilities (MB or LS wineries) under our full control."

Company email (May 2014):
"Thank you for your inquiry about Ridge Wines and more specifically Lytton Springs. Ridge now lists ingredients on all of our labels, so it is easy for you to see everything that is used and in our wines. Pertaining to the Lytton Springs, we may on occasion add tartaric acid and egg whites for tannin fining. We don’t add gelatin, isinglass, or lysozyme. The only animal product even remotely considered is fresh egg whites. If added, it would be listed as an ingredient. Our preference, however, is to avoid adding anything, except sulfur dioxide (which we can’t avoid using as oxidation and random spoilage would create significant issues with wine quality.)

Additionally, our wines are not manufactured or bottled anywhere else in the world."

Company email:
"To try and answer your question, as a general matter of winemaking practice, we do not use any animal products, however, this is not 100% the case. There are infrequent times when, for the purpose of tannin reduction in reds, egg whites are used to fine the wines, and isinglass is very occasionally used to remove yellow pigments in chardonnay. So while these are by far and away the exceptions to the rule, it would not be accurate to classify us as strictly vegan. I should think vegan-friendly might be more appropriate. Ridge is in fact at the forefront of a push to see wine labels follow food industry practices of including all ingredients on wine labels. Should this movement succeed, this would ideally make your task a much easier one!"