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Arcadian in the OC with Joe Davis
Jim Dietz's
Tasted December 7, 2008 by WetRock with 781 views
Introduction
Rick put together a great event and Jim hosted and cooked some great meats as usual for our foray into the Arcadian lineup. The big man himself even joined us driving down from the Central Coast the day of his open house. All in all another very fun evening with a great group that can't fail to have a great time.
The Chardonnay lineup stole the show for me. I've enjoyed Sleepy Hollow's before from Arcadian and tonight they were the best but the real surprise was how well the older Bien Nacido's drank. A true and welcome departure from 99.8% of California Chardonnay these wines showed nice acids, balanced palates and clean even character which is so rare in the new world. The Pinots were wee bit confusing for me in the big picture. The oldest examples seemed overwhelmed by tart acidity while all of the younger examples seemed to need more age. All in all good wines and for the most part also departures from a lot of Cali Pinot though not in the extreme as the Chards are. The small sampling of Syrahs lead me to think they are also some years from their best but I didn't see the big departure here from the majority of Cali Syrah like the other varieties.
Flight 1 - Pinot Noir (12 notes)
Red
1998 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard
Nice herbal aromas. This is still substantial in feel though I'm not sure that it has really come together yet. Dark red fruits with strong tannins still, on the tart side with a bit of a bitter finish and strong acidity. Would work better with a dinner of lighter meats. Probably best in a couple more years.
Red
2000 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Earty funk component. Over whelming citrus on the palate with a touch of red fruits. Fat feel in the midpalate none the less. Not enough fruit to balance the acidity for me.
Red
2000 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard
Spicey with some roasted fruit character. Lean styled is seemed a bit bland with the finish dropping off.
Red
2001 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Sweet spicey nose with a touch of heat. Sweet grapefruit character, on the lean tart side.
Red
2001 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard
Sweet blackberry nose on the tight side. Late grip with strong citrusy acids. I think this was pretty tight.
Red
2001 Arcadian Pinot Noir Garys' Vineyard
Big red fruits with plenty of tarry funk. Concentrated sweet fruits. This probably needs a couple more years to relax.
Red
2001 Arcadian Pinot Noir Francesca's Cuvée
Big piney and Christmas spice aromas over red fruit melange with a touch of geenish notes. Thicker than the other wines with nice concentration and a good grip. Needs time but lots of potential.
Red
2002 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
This had a very oddly complex nose that several of us were having a tough time defining though we enjoyed it. Light in character the nose showed some dark cherry, grape skins and....salty fish? Cranberry and cherry flavors on a still fat palate with a big sweet middle with a touch of citrus and a good grip. Could use a bit more acidity but its best days are ahead of this one. Should be very good in the next coupe years.
Red
2002 Arcadian Pinot Noir Dierberg Vineyard
Big cranberry nose with more sweet red fruits that are Christmas spiced. Broad palate with lots of cranberry and pretty good depth. On the tight side with nice tannins. Recommend more sleep.
Red
2003 Arcadian Pinot Noir Rio Vista
Tight nose with a bit of tar. Weak concentration but bright sweet violt expression. Light in character and a bit simple. I've yet to have anything from this vineyard that showed much complexity.
Red
2003 Arcadian Pinot Noir Francesca's Cuvée
Somewhat stewed tomatoey nose. Dark cherry and funky citrus tight and grippy. In sharp contrast to the 2001 this seems to be in a funky place right now.
Red
2004 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard
Rich soft dark red fruits with plenty of cranberry. Rich dark palate with a fat middle before some juicy sweetness. Late grip and lots of richness. I can see why this isn't Joe's favorite wine. Its got that big yummy expressive character that doesn't exactly make for an elegant dinner companion but would make for a fun evening on its own. Would recommend another year or two to round out but dun stuff now.
Flight 2 - Chardonnay (8 notes)
White
1996 Arcadian Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard
Impressive. Thanks to Gerry for digging up this treasure, the first year of Arcadian and the wine was terrific without the cache. Notes of truffle and mushroom on the nose. Very evenly elegant across a fairly long palate. Nicely balanced with good citrus notes and a strong finish. A nit pick is maybe it could have used more expression overall but an excellent and impressive wine.
White
1998 Arcadian Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard
Tired nose of roasted nuts and a bunch of caramel with a sherried quality. Butterscotch palate with good acidity. This also seemed to mellow out with air and drop the sherried notes for the most part. Still not my fav of a strong lineup.
White
2000 Arcadian Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard
I wasn't very fond of this initially but it picked up more and more the longer it was opened and became one of my favorites on the evening. Initially there was some straw aromas and sherried notes on the palate. But that seemed to recede leaving a stony nose of lemons. A slightly sweet palate of lemon and vanilla with strong acidity and some minerals with a touch of veggies. Very nice elegant Chardonnay so very very rarely seen from California. And they even age!
White
2000 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Aromas of sweet butter. Terrific length and plenty of citrusy acids. A very welcome departure from the vast majority of Cali Chards. Very nice wine.
White
2001 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Nose of lemon and straw. Fairly sweet with a fat midpalate that did go leaner later on. Probably in need of some time but the sweetness was a bit much for me.
White
2002 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Sweet lemony nose. Bright tart and sweet lemon flavors. Could use more complexity and expression but nicely made and styled. Judging by the other wines probably in need of a couple years more.
White
2003 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
Big nose of butterscotch and lemon. Big palate with strong acidity and more butterscotch. I think the ripeness must have been up in this vintage in comparison to the other wines next to it. Nice and probably needs to mellow out some more.
White
2005 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard
I take notice when on a night of copious Pinot and Syrah my WOTN is a Chardonnay.....from California. Very stoney nose with sweet lemon laced with light butter. Lean styled yet well concentrated with excellent acidity. Excellent wine that will go a long time but drinks very well now. Outstanding.
Flight 3 - Late Arrivals (2 notes)
Red
2002 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard
Oddly complex nose of big dark fruits, herbals and some heat. Pisoni blackberries with a dose of herbs on a tight grippy palate. In need of more time to integrate clearly.
Red
2003 Arcadian Pinot Noir Dierberg Vineyard
Tart nose showing stemmy herbals. Tart acidity overwhelms with strong tannins. Maybe needed more air.
Flight 4 - Syrah (6 notes)
Red
2001 Arcadian Syrah Robert O. Fleming Cuvée Garys' Vineyard
Black pepper dominates the nose and leads to the palate. Dark lean grippy fruit with a touch of heat.
Red
2003 Arcadian Syrah Robert O. Fleming Cuvée Star Lane Vineyard
Asphalt petroleum nose. Rich broad fruits with a dose of citrus.
Red
2003 Arcadian Syrah Hommage à Max
My kind of Syrah nose with tar and bacon. Tar seems integrated into a palate of dark berries with good tart acidity and good grip. Probably has its best days ahead of it but very good.
Red
2005 Arcadian Syrah Hommage à Max
Fat nose of funky tires. Rich and funky with big juicy berry fruits. In need of time but very good.
Red
2005 Arcadian Syrah Purisima Mountain Vineyard
Very incomplete note as this was a late pop 'n pour. I remember very good complexity on this one showing it's 100% whole cluster character on it's sleeve. Well balanced. I remember thinking I liked it a lot.