This showed some serious reductive stank at first, but that mostly went away after an hour or so to reveal a bouquet of tar, black cherries and violets. In the mouth there is more of the black cherries, some licorice and a bit of funky asphalt lingering in the background. The tannins are nicely polished and the package is kept fresh by a great streak of acidity. In short, this is a very tasty effort (particularly at the price of entry). If I had any more of these, I'd be excited about the upside potential of another year or three of development but, alas, this was my only remaining bottle.
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One of the best showing after several bottles. Funky-earth and some spice on the nose.Nuancedl mouthfeel that was marked by pure red fruit, spice box, and a hint of roasted fruit sweetness. Nice acidity that still lingers.Persistent finish with some sweetness and notes of peppery spice. Drinking so well. Cheers!
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not your typical californian syrah. rustic, smoke, smooth, no tannins left, dark berry fruit, some old world funk. medium to almost light for a syrah, which threw me, but was elegant and a pleasure to drink.
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Earthy-funky nose. Slight brett, but some nice red fruit too. Palate features more red fruit, a savory richness and decent acidity. A wine to be enjoyed over a meal. In a nice groove right now. Top 5 in our Syrah tasting of 15 CA syrahs.
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Pizza, Wine and Guitars: Still going strong, this outstanding syrah is what other wines 3x its price should be: balanced, structured and solid core of fruit. Secondary nuances of smoked meats and bacon fat. Very smooth long finish.
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Dark purple in color with no real sign of age. First glass nose is very nice with bacon, black fruit, spice. After an hour in the decanter some smoke and more fruit. On the palate there are meaty, spicey flavors with dark fruit. Nicely structured with mouth watering acidity. Lots of youth left, but does this taste good. After a while in the decanter it opens a bit with more fruit, red and dark.
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all the notes I read on this reported "funk. Opened and poured a glass aand let it sit for a few minutes and there it was, yes plenty of funk. I poured it back in the decanter and after a few hours the fuck was gone. The blackberry and cherry fruit was pure and full but not overly done and intergrated nicely with some spice and chocolate. The spice wasn't as peppery as in some of the other Arcadian Syrahs Ive tried. Finished nicely with a touch of cocoa. When posting the notes on this I noticed the $25 price and couldn't believe it. One other note: I don't think this wine was typical Arcadian. From past experience with Joe's Syrahs they seem to be more European in style and this seems to be more typical of Cali. (of course this from my limited experience!!!)
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Man do I love this wine. One of the greatest Cali QPR syrahs in my book. Wonderful dark fruits, bacon fat and lip-smaking good finish. This wine can hold up well by itself or with a meal.
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Got the funked up nose going on here, but it's a good funk. Sweet red fruit on the palate and a good dose of acidity. A Syrah that begs to be consumed with food. In a good drinking space. Second good bottle this summer after the funked up one back in May.
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Saturday Dinner in DC: Not as flamboyant as the first bottle I drank, but still an outstanding syrah that has more in common with cote rotie than cote cali. Very balanced, with dark fruit and integrated tannins and not a hint of heat.
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Back on to a hot bottle of this after the funky one last month. Nose of funky-earth and some spice. Rich, sweet cherries up front on the palate marked with a bit of acidity that provides a youthfeel mouthfeel. Delicious tart cherry on the finish with some peppery notes lingering. This is great Syrah to myh palate.
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Interesting bottle here. A bottle two months ago was a stunner, this one...a bretty, funky, dirty-sock-fest. Saw a note on CT from FM3 about a similar experience. This bottle was really not drinkable, just a dirty nose, and sour red fruit on the palate with a funk aftertaste. Slight TCA or other culprit, but this was off.
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Decanted for 1hr. consumed over the next 3hrs. Lighter ruby red in color. Nice nose of barnyard, baking spices, bacon fat, and earth. Medium body and medium intensity with a earthy, old world core. Only a touch of raspberry fruit comes through on the palate. Finish is clean and enjoyable, a great QPR at $22.00
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This bottle was much better than the one we had 3 weeks ago. That bottle seemed to be strong with brett or barnyard notes, to the extent that I was not comfortable enjoying. The bottle here was much better, with still a note of funk but IMO more appropriate and requisite to the varietal and AVA. Nose is a little barnyardy and funky but not out of scale for me. Very nice palate of spicy, black peppery fruit and a citrusy finish with a hint of laquer. Overall, I liked the wine and others at the table even moreso.
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Fratello's Offline - Santa Lucia Highlands (Laguna Niguel, CA): Not really into this wine. Some blueberry and spicy peppercorns, but what I mostly got from this wine was stem. My guess is that this wine was fermented whole-cluster, in which case I would say it needs some more bottle age before showing its true potential.
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Wow - real suprise here and great qpr. Wonderful syrah fruit with a firm structure and present but not obtrusive tannins. Most defintely could be confused with a cote rotie, it has a sweet bacon fat and almost creme brulee finish. Picked this up at LA Wine Company while conferencing it up at Rancho Mirage.
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My first Arcadian. Won't be my last. Loved this wine last night. Lots of funky-earth and some spice on the nose. A boatload of rich, bing cherries up front on the palate. Wonderful mouthfeel that was marked by pure red fruit on the lush palate. Slight tannins on the finish that is persistent with some sweetness and notes of peppery spice. Drinking so well. Unfolded in the glass with more cherry and chocolate notes coming out on the nose/palate. However, didn't get to let this open up all that much as it was everyone's fave and I think we shotgunned the bottle in about 30 min. I cannot remember enjoying a $25 CA Syrah more. I will be buying more today.
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This bottle is showing none of the red fruit that the bottle in November showed. The fruit is darker and a bit denser on the palate but far from a big bruiser.
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Syrah from CA tends to be too grapey for me - this one is nothing like that. I would not call this restrained, austere, etc. This is still CA in every way, it is fruit forward, but doesnt show any overripeness. Nice, expressive nose showing spicy brambly blackberry and white pepper. On the palate, minerals and fruit share the stage - finishes crisply, although a bit clipped. Awesome for the price.
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2002 Arcadian Syrah Sleepy Hollow Vineyard Wow! This is the first Sleepy Hollow syrah I have had but it sure as hell won’t be the last. This wine is amazing with about 2 hours airtime. Letting it rest for another year would probably be good but I will be cracking another bottle in the next few months for sure. On the nose and on the attack you get a nice splash of raspberry and then it flows into an amazingly balanced syrah. Often I tire of Cali syrahs after the first glass. Not that I don’t love that first glass but after that I am done…and probably buzzed. But this wine definitely leaves you wanting more. I think the alcohol was around 13.9%. Great job! 94 pts
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This was my first Arcadian, and what a treat! Unfortunately I'm writing this after the bottle is gone, but it was absolutely terrific. I will definitely explore more of what Arcadian has to offer.
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This was my first Arcadian and what a revelation. I decanted this for 2.5 hours in a Target Riedel Vivant decanter and drank over the next 4 hours. The color was a nice clear semi-translucent ruby with just a touch of pink at the edge. Upon opening the nose had a great Rhonish funk, blackberry, dark cherry, spice that was not pepper but more similar to allspice, and smoke. After about 4 hours the funk had subsided some and the fruit began to take on a darker profile with raw meat, steak sauce, and floral notes. Early on the mid-palate showed more of a red fruit profile with cherry up front and blackberry in the background. There is also a very nice minerality that I do not usually find in CA syrah with good acidity that expands across the palate. The alcohol is listed as 13.9% and was not evident. The thing I found so intriguing was how the wine was light on its feet but at the same time it had rich fruit and a great mouth feel. The finish was drawn out and lingering with bright fruit, spice and a touch of sweetness that faded over time. The fruit profile, after 4 hours in the decanter, began to change and became a bit denser with a stronger blackberry profile coming to the foreground but the mineral notes receded. This was a fun wine to drink by itself but also went nicely with food.
I saved a glass in an air tight carafe in the fridge for 48 hours and it was still drinking well. The Rhonish funk was still evident with bright fruit and acidity on the palate. This wine will certainly continue to improve with cellaring but is drinking great now with proper decanting.
I like this a lot and found it to be a nice change of pace compared to the big and dense style. I will definitely be buying some.
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4/24/2015 - rjoyer wrote:
This showed some serious reductive stank at first, but that mostly went away after an hour or so to reveal a bouquet of tar, black cherries and violets. In the mouth there is more of the black cherries, some licorice and a bit of funky asphalt lingering in the background. The tannins are nicely polished and the package is kept fresh by a great streak of acidity. In short, this is a very tasty effort (particularly at the price of entry). If I had any more of these, I'd be excited about the upside potential of another year or three of development but, alas, this was my only remaining bottle.
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11/15/2009 - decaturwinedude wrote: 91 Points
One of the best showing after several bottles. Funky-earth and some spice on the nose.Nuancedl mouthfeel that was marked by pure red fruit, spice box, and a hint of roasted fruit sweetness. Nice acidity that still lingers.Persistent finish with some sweetness and notes of peppery spice. Drinking so well. Cheers!
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3/4/2009 - jameswm13 wrote: 89 Points
Almost like a pinot
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2/8/2009 - RussW wrote:
Sadly my last bottle but as good as ever and a fantastic QPR.
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8/10/2008 - lolo66 wrote: 90 Points
not your typical californian syrah. rustic, smoke, smooth, no tannins left, dark berry fruit, some old world funk. medium to almost light for a syrah, which threw me, but was elegant and a pleasure to drink.
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7/5/2008 - jthielen wrote: 90 Points
Let it sit for an hour after opening. Wonderful red fruit and pepper. More California than Rhone in style, not that there is anything wrong with that.
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3/10/2008 - decaturwinedude wrote: 90 Points
Earthy-funky nose. Slight brett, but some nice red fruit too. Palate features more red fruit, a savory richness and decent acidity. A wine to be enjoyed over a meal. In a nice groove right now. Top 5 in our Syrah tasting of 15 CA syrahs.
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10/24/2007 - madeiradog wrote: 91 Points
Pizza, Wine and Guitars: Still going strong, this outstanding syrah is what other wines 3x its price should be: balanced, structured and solid core of fruit. Secondary nuances of smoked meats and bacon fat. Very smooth long finish.
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10/12/2007 - bobfrank wrote: 92 Points
Just great!
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9/28/2007 - caboychuck wrote: 91 Points
Dark purple in color with no real sign of age. First glass nose is very nice with bacon, black fruit, spice. After an hour in the decanter some smoke and more fruit. On the palate there are meaty, spicey flavors with dark fruit. Nicely structured with mouth watering acidity. Lots of youth left, but does this taste good. After a while in the decanter it opens a bit with more fruit, red and dark.
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9/21/2007 - charbo wrote:
all the notes I read on this reported "funk. Opened and poured a glass aand let it sit for a few minutes and there it was, yes plenty of funk. I poured it back in the decanter and after a few hours the fuck was gone. The blackberry and cherry fruit was pure and full but not overly done and intergrated nicely with some spice and chocolate. The spice wasn't as peppery as in some of the other Arcadian Syrahs Ive tried. Finished nicely with a touch of cocoa. When posting the notes on this I noticed the $25 price and couldn't believe it. One other note: I don't think this wine was typical Arcadian. From past experience with Joe's Syrahs they seem to be more European in style and this seems to be more typical of Cali. (of course this from my limited experience!!!)
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7/31/2007 - madeiradog wrote: 91 Points
Man do I love this wine. One of the greatest Cali QPR syrahs in my book. Wonderful dark fruits, bacon fat and lip-smaking good finish. This wine can hold up well by itself or with a meal.
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7/12/2007 - decaturwinedude wrote: 90 Points
Got the funked up nose going on here, but it's a good funk. Sweet red fruit on the palate and a good dose of acidity. A Syrah that begs to be consumed with food. In a good drinking space. Second good bottle this summer after the funked up one back in May.
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6/30/2007 - madeiradog wrote: 90 Points
Saturday Dinner in DC: Not as flamboyant as the first bottle I drank, but still an outstanding syrah that has more in common with cote rotie than cote cali. Very balanced, with dark fruit and integrated tannins and not a hint of heat.
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6/18/2007 - decaturwinedude wrote: 91 Points
Back on to a hot bottle of this after the funky one last month. Nose of funky-earth and some spice. Rich, sweet cherries up front on the palate marked with a bit of acidity that provides a youthfeel mouthfeel. Delicious tart cherry on the finish with some peppery notes lingering. This is great Syrah to myh palate.
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6/2/2007 - decaturwinedude wrote:
Interesting bottle here. A bottle two months ago was a stunner, this one...a bretty, funky, dirty-sock-fest. Saw a note on CT from FM3 about a similar experience. This bottle was really not drinkable, just a dirty nose, and sour red fruit on the palate with a funk aftertaste. Slight TCA or other culprit, but this was off.
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4/20/2007 - aes0300 wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for 1hr. consumed over the next 3hrs. Lighter ruby red in color. Nice nose of barnyard, baking spices, bacon fat, and earth. Medium body and medium intensity with a earthy, old world core. Only a touch of raspberry fruit comes through on the palate. Finish is clean and enjoyable, a great QPR at $22.00
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2/16/2007 - Frank Murray III wrote:
This bottle was much better than the one we had 3 weeks ago. That bottle seemed to be strong with brett or barnyard notes, to the extent that I was not comfortable enjoying. The bottle here was much better, with still a note of funk but IMO more appropriate and requisite to the varietal and AVA. Nose is a little barnyardy and funky but not out of scale for me. Very nice palate of spicy, black peppery fruit and a citrusy finish with a hint of laquer. Overall, I liked the wine and others at the table even moreso.
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2/15/2007 - Paul Lin wrote: 86 Points
Fratello's Offline - Santa Lucia Highlands (Laguna Niguel, CA): Not really into this wine. Some blueberry and spicy peppercorns, but what I mostly got from this wine was stem. My guess is that this wine was fermented whole-cluster, in which case I would say it needs some more bottle age before showing its true potential.
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2/14/2007 - madeiradog wrote: 91 Points
Wow - real suprise here and great qpr. Wonderful syrah fruit with a firm structure and present but not obtrusive tannins. Most defintely could be confused with a cote rotie, it has a sweet bacon fat and almost creme brulee finish. Picked this up at LA Wine Company while conferencing it up at Rancho Mirage.
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2/10/2007 - decaturwinedude wrote: 91 Points
My first Arcadian. Won't be my last. Loved this wine last night. Lots of funky-earth and some spice on the nose. A boatload of rich, bing cherries up front on the palate. Wonderful mouthfeel that was marked by pure red fruit on the lush palate. Slight tannins on the finish that is persistent with some sweetness and notes of peppery spice. Drinking so well. Unfolded in the glass with more cherry and chocolate notes coming out on the nose/palate. However, didn't get to let this open up all that much as it was everyone's fave and I think we shotgunned the bottle in about 30 min. I cannot remember enjoying a $25 CA Syrah more. I will be buying more today.
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11/11/2006 - jameswm13 wrote: 87 Points
I think this needs a few more years of rest.
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8/2/2006 - RussW wrote:
This bottle is showing none of the red fruit that the bottle in November showed. The fruit is darker and a bit denser on the palate but far from a big bruiser.
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4/8/2006 - sivilli wrote:
Syrah from CA tends to be too grapey for me - this one is nothing like that. I would not call this restrained, austere, etc. This is still CA in every way, it is fruit forward, but doesnt show any overripeness. Nice, expressive nose showing spicy brambly blackberry and white pepper. On the palate, minerals and fruit share the stage - finishes crisply, although a bit clipped. Awesome for the price.
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3/6/2006 - Ali wrote: 88 Points
I like Joe's restrained style on pinots and chards, but I like my Syrahs over the top.
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3/3/2006 - jasonh wrote: 94 Points
NOTE IS FROM MARCH 2006
2002 Arcadian Syrah Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Wow! This is the first Sleepy Hollow syrah I have had but it sure as hell won’t be the last. This wine is amazing with about 2 hours airtime. Letting it rest for another year would probably be good but I will be cracking another bottle in the next few months for sure. On the nose and on the attack you get a nice splash of raspberry and then it flows into an amazingly balanced syrah. Often I tire of Cali syrahs after the first glass. Not that I don’t love that first glass but after that I am done…and probably buzzed. But this wine definitely leaves you wanting more. I think the alcohol was around 13.9%. Great job!
94 pts
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2/24/2006 - etherscreen wrote: 91 Points
This was my first Arcadian, and what a treat! Unfortunately I'm writing this after the bottle is gone, but it was absolutely terrific. I will definitely explore more of what Arcadian has to offer.
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11/25/2005 - RussW wrote:
This was my first Arcadian and what a revelation. I decanted this for 2.5 hours in a Target Riedel Vivant decanter and drank over the next 4 hours. The color was a nice clear semi-translucent ruby with just a touch of pink at the edge. Upon opening the nose had a great Rhonish funk, blackberry, dark cherry, spice that was not pepper but more similar to allspice, and smoke. After about 4 hours the funk had subsided some and the fruit began to take on a darker profile with raw meat, steak sauce, and floral notes. Early on the mid-palate showed more of a red fruit profile with cherry up front and blackberry in the background. There is also a very nice minerality that I do not usually find in CA syrah with good acidity that expands across the palate. The alcohol is listed as 13.9% and was not evident. The thing I found so intriguing was how the wine was light on its feet but at the same time it had rich fruit and a great mouth feel. The finish was drawn out and lingering with bright fruit, spice and a touch of sweetness that faded over time. The fruit profile, after 4 hours in the decanter, began to change and became a bit denser with a stronger blackberry profile coming to the foreground but the mineral notes receded. This was a fun wine to drink by itself but also went nicely with food.
I saved a glass in an air tight carafe in the fridge for 48 hours and it was still drinking well. The Rhonish funk was still evident with bright fruit and acidity on the palate. This wine will certainly continue to improve with cellaring but is drinking great now with proper decanting.
I like this a lot and found it to be a nice change of pace compared to the big and dense style. I will definitely be buying some.
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