2008 ~ No. 9
Wine Talk: Arcadian
Winery
When
he looks at a vineyard, Joe Davis – owner of and winegrower
for Arcadian
Winery – doesn’t see row after row, acre after
acre of vines. Instead, he sees individual plants, each one
a vineyard unto itself.
It’s his way of looking at the world, both literally
and metaphorically. “I set out to make something that
rivals the best,” Davis says of his wines. “It
comes down to little details.”
For example, during one challenging vintage, Davis decided
to do a green harvest. This technique enhances the flavor
of grapes by removing the green ones from the vine, allowing
it to focus more energy on the remaining grapes. So he had
his workers go through the vineyard picking by hand each and
every green, unripe grape from each vine. The task took six
weeks and, Davis jokes, “a lot of beer!”
His winegrowing philosophy began taking shape while studying
for two years under legendary Burgundian winemaker Jacques
Seysses, owner of Domaine
Dujac. Davis looked to France as a homeland and wanted
to “learn something that could help back at home.”
His work in Burgundy “led me to thinking about a sense
of place in California and how you get there. In France, homage
is paid to individual sites with an emphasis on wine growing,”
Davis says, noting that in California, “It’s the
opposite idea with an emphasis on wine making.”
The result is taking control over what goes on in the vineyard,
striving to keep yields low on the vine with low sugar and
high acidity in the grapes. “With healthy fruit, we
can be non-interventionist in the cellar,” Davis notes.
“But we are consistent in elevage.”
Meaning, he uses the same winemaking techniques for all his
wines, including picking whole clusters and sorting them early
in the morning to ensure chilled fruit (photo), using a cold
soak to extract as much color and tannin from the skins as
possible, and aging the wine in new French oak. (He buys one
tree a year and has it made into barrels used for all the
wines that vintage.)
Thus,
each wine is able to express its unique character from vintage
to vintage while maintaining the consistent threads that give
the wine its sense of place. It’s an amazing amount
of work requiring tremendous dedication from Davis and his
team, but it’s worth it. The payoff in the bottle is
spectacular.
Tasting
the Wines
For the first time ever, Arcadian Winery recently offered
a tasting of library wines – vintages dating back to
1998, two years after the estate’s founding. It was
also the first public tasting of his Francesca wines, created
and named for his daughter and previously unavailable for
sale. These are a blend of the wines in barrel from the various
vineyards and vary from year to year.
I
was lucky enough to be invited to this august event. It was
a pleasure to taste the Pinot Noir wines from the various
vineyards and vintages next to each other. It gave an excellent
sense of how these wines will change and hold up as they age.
And I LOVED the Chardonnay wines, which neatly manage to be
both Californian and Burgundian in style. Arcadian also crafts
Syrah.
Here’s the full report; prices are estimated retail.
Pinot Noir
Bien Nacido 1998
Very light with notes of wood, cherry, minerals, vanilla and
tar. Definitely older, but still quite crisp. $62.50 Rating:
B1
Bien Nacido 2000
A dark oaky nose turned fresh on the palate with notes of
flowers, cherry and cola. Nice and savory. $58 Rating: A2
Dierberg 2003
Very rich and meaty with a rounded feel and peppery notes.
I overheard a lot of tasters noting this as their favorite.
$62 Rating: B2
Fiddlestix 2001
Though light in color, this wine was quite dark on the palate
with lots of meat, tar and tea notes, and less cherry and
mineral qualities. $65 Rating: B2
Sleepy Hollow 2001
Very evocative aromas of violet and cherry. The wine is soft
and round on the palate with a nice creamy feel and peppery
finish. $73.50 Rating: A2
Sleepy Hollow 2003
Violet, pepper and an odd hint of lime came through the aromas.
The wine was full on the palate, with that distinctive creamy
feel and easy, peppery finish. $56 Rating: A1
Garys’ 2001
The nose was a bit closed, but lots of classic flavors danced
on the palate – cherry, cola, vanilla. $91 Rating: B3
Rio Vista 2003
Fresh with notes of vanilla, violet and red cherry. Very soft
on the palate, but not much structure. $80.75 Rating: C3
Pisoni 2000
Nice deep color, very meaty aromas layered with notes of tar
and earth. Delightfully fresh on the palate, with bright fruit
flavors and light peppery feel. $120 Rating: A3
Pisoni 2003
Really nice, juicy cherry flavors with less structure than
the 2000, but boy, will this be fantastic in a few more years!
$102 Rating: A2
Francesca 2000
There is a distinctly smoky tone to the aromas. The wine is
very soft on the palate but with a nice bite on the finish.
Very nice. $120 Rating: A3
Francesca 2001
Smoke again! Notes of branches, cherries and pepper. This
wine is less fresh, more serious than the 2000. $102 Rating:
B2
Francesca 2003
Yep, smoky aromas! The green bramble also comes through on
this wine, with soft flavors on the palate. Delicious but
young – I want it to develop and try it again in a few
years! $99 Rating: B2
Chardonnay
Sleepy Hollow 2000
Nice cream and butter aromas, with a citrussy, Sprite-like
impression on the palate. There’s the slightest touch
of sweetness here too. Very drinkable. $62 Rating: B3
Sleepy Hollow 2002
Aromas of citrus (especially lemon) and white flowers echo
on the palate. Round, creamy and a touch tart. Nice. $48.50
Rating: A2
Sleepy Hollow 2005
Bright with younger aromas. Overall, less sophisticated and
structured than the other two. Like a boeuf bourguignon,
the flavors need some additional time to blend. But in a couple
of years - watch out! $50 Rating: B2
Ratings Guide: A to F is wine quality;
1 to 3 is value for quality, 1 a wine that tastes better than
its price, 2 is neutral and 3 is a wine that isn’t up
to snuff for the cost.
Piedmont
Find
This
month, I also got to preview some Italian wines that are coming
to the US this fall from an estate called
Fratelli
Alessandria. Founded in the 19th century, the winery received
its first gold medals in 1843 for “improvement in winemaking
[and] successful expeditions of their wines overseas.”
Today, owner Gian Battista along with his wife, brother
and son carry on the family tradition. Their vineyards comprise
12 hectares spread over some of the best crus in Verduno
and Monforte.
Gian’s son Vittore took over winemaking in 2001 and,
with his influence, the estate shows a unique style that
blends the traditional with the modern. I found all the
wines have a traditional Langhe core with a light, elegant
tone that gives the wines a lot of finesse.
They make wines from a number of traditional grapes as
well as Chardonnay. I only tasted their Barolos (a tragedy,
I know!), which were quite lovely. All are from the excellent
2004 vintage and, while they can be enjoyed now, these will
age nicely for many years to come.
Prices are estimated retail.
Barolo 2004
Earthy, floral and mineral aromas were reflected on the
palate. Very smooth and lifted. $49.50 Rating: B1
Barolo 2004 “Gramolere”
From 40 year old vines, this wine has notes of oranges and
roses with subtle notes of earth and tar. $58 Rating: B2
Barolo 2004 “San Lorenzo”
From one of the greatest vineyards in Verduno, this wine
has nice depth and sultry aromas that promise what they
deliver. The tannins are there, but surprisingly smooth.
$62 Rating: B1
Barolo 2004 “Monvigliero”
From the other greatest vineyard in Verduno (photo), this
Barolo is more on the earthy/tar side and an excellent expression
of the grape. $62 Rating: B1
Thirsty?
Please let me know if any of these wines are of interest
– I’ll help you source them and find the best
prices
