Popped and poured at cellar temp. Still quite dark hued and opaque with no signs of bricking. Pine sap, pomegranate and herbes de Provence on the nose. Earthy black cherry fruit on the attack with quite pronounced acidity on the finish. Still a bit burly and drinking like a youngster, but quite good. We will see if this unfurls a bit as it opens.
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Earthy, savory, with pomegranate, and sour plum. Thankfully, the initial barnyard funk blew off. This has been drinking so well for several years. It is well balanced, and has a dark fruit long finish. My last bottle, and if I had more, I wouldn’t wait.
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Medium-deep, moderately translucent raspberry red color with a slightly evolved pomegranate hue. Ripe, juicy and slightly sweetish nose with dark-toned, slightly sauvage aromas of black cherries, some brambly blackberries, light bretty notes of phenolic smoke and leathery funk, a little bit of ripe black raspberry, a hint of earthy Pinosity and a faint touch of Band-Aid. The wine is dry, savory and quite concentrated on the palate with a medium body and intense flavors of brambly black raspberries, some smoky phenolic tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light funky notes of new leather, a hint of ripe cherry and a touch of savory wood spice. Wonderfully silky yet firm texture with high acidity and still moderately grippy medium-plus tannins. The finish is long, ripe and juicy with rather savory flavors of succulent dark fruits, some leathery funk, a little bit of smoky phenolic spice, light brambly notes of black raspberries, a hint of gamey meat and a sweet touch of wizened red cherry.
A beautiful, complex and harmonious Pinot Noir that shows a little bit of evolution but also quite a bit of still surprisingly vibrant and youthful fruit along with a subtle yet somewhat noticeable streak of bretty funk that really doesn't obfuscate any complexity, only adds to it. The wine shows remarkable intensity - more so than any other of the four Arcadian Pinots we had - and impressive sense of structure that doesn't feel in any way excessive relation to the body or to the fruit. The wine is distinctively Californian in its ripe, even somewhat concentrated fruit, so you couldn't mistake this wine for a Burgundy, but with its savory and slightly funky overall character, this isn't your run-of-the-mill Cali Pinot either. Terrific stuff by any standards. Not affordable at 63€, but delivers for the price. Highly recommended.
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I wouldn’t want to hold it any longer. Mostly earth and mushroom with some dates and cherry fruit. Fruit became deeper with air but I think this is at peak.
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Popped-and-poured after another wine was corked. Backward start with powerful black and red cherry throughout, this took an hour to soften and open up, but came together nicely with time. Best when finished after 2+ hours, so certainly upside from here.
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Open an hour before serving. Complex array of red, black and blue berry aromas with a rich spicebox and floral whiffs. Similar flavors with good weight and persistence through to a long, slightly sweet finish. A step up vs the 2007 Fiddlestix from the other day. This might still have upside from here. I believe this is another of the wines that received extended elevage.
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Red-fruited, with a pleasant herbal aspect. Oak is noticeable, and I do hope to see a bit more of it get swallowed with additional bottle age. Well-relaxed, so no crime to drink now, but its best days are still before it.
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Dense garnet color with nice clarity. Complex aromatics of pressed lavender & violets, plum & pomegranate fruit, smoked paprika & earthy spices. Bright and snappy black cherry & fig fruit with seamlessly layered dense secondary notes of earth-spices, anise and dark florals, Medium-bodied with fleshy elegance through the middle. Beautifully integrated acid, finely structured with silky & polished medium tannins. Good overall depth on the finish, moderate in length. Very youthful - driven by its bright and elegant fruit with secondary notes still tightly wrapped, but omnipresent. If opening now give it a decant, but otherwise this is easily held for many years before hitting early maturity. Excellent.
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won't rate, health issues prevented me from tasting this fully... but I agree this has the high acid that I like and expect from Arcadian... nothing soft of cloying about this wine, on the other hand it wasn't (subject to my tasting issues) one of my favs from them either... my gut is that I would have given this a 91 if my sinuses hadn't messed me up
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-- tasted a single pour non-blind over approx. 30 minutes -- -- from 3L --
I distinctly remember chasing after my 2 yo daughter while enjoying this wine, so my TN suffered greatly as a result. All I wrote down was "hint of brett on the Nose; medium bodied; rich fruits on the palate." Beyond that, I remember this presenting quite well – more relaxed than I was expecting, especially out of 3L. Perhaps this will be a relatively early-drinking Pisoni: I'll likely take a 750mL for a spin sometime soon, to take a closer look at where this one is. As usual with Joe's take on Pisoni fruit, I loved it.
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Consumed as part of a side by side comparison tasting of five different 2007 Pisoni Pinot Noirs. This was very lean and old world like; needed food. Improved greatly on day two. I think it will continue to age for many years. I will try another in a couple of years.
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Ripe red fruit with moderate brett, which is a bit too much brett for my taste. Coupled with the ripeness this lends a suggestion of Southern Rhone. Maybe it just didn't strike me right today.
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pretty wine decanted but had late in the evening with limited faculties and friends guzzling...more discerning palates (not me) thought this was excellent
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Had beside the 2007 Pisoni Estate, and what a contrast the two were. While the Pisoni Pisoni was big, bold, sweet dark fruited, boozy, and ripe, the Arcadian was silky, suave, lighter red fruits, strong fine grained tannins, minerally, and polished. Some preferred one, some the other. Most that felt the Arcadian would ultimately show the best in either case, as it has ample room to develop and improve further. Darn nice juice. Probably 2017 for my next.
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Tasting room pour. First thing I noticed was how thickly fruited this wine was. Just an observation...not a good or bad thing, nor surprising beings it's an '07. Any ways, bright but dense red fruits and dried flowers fill the nose, with some old leather and a mild underpinning of brett. Also bright and energetic on the palate with thick layers of juicy red fruits, leather, minerals, and some light wood notes. Usually I'm fairly brett sensative and though this has a moderate vein running throughout, it never overwhelms... in fact it adds complexity and lends it an old world feel inspite of its obvious Cali fruit. Med body effort with strong flavor penetration. Even with the bold red fruits, good acidity keeps this vibrant across the palate and prevents it from ever feeling "heavy". A moderate but pleasant medicinal note lingers on the med length finish. A fruit forward pinot to be sure, but with a sturdy frame, good acidity, and a sense of elegance. This needs time to balance itself... drop a little fruit, lighten up the palate, gain some additional complexity, and let the elegance shine through and this'll be rockin. Heck, it's outstanding already. 91-92 today but with another 7-10 years left to figure itself out.
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Opened and poured, this bottle gave a somewhat disappointing showing based on previous experiences with this wine. The aromatics offer a brett element that was not evident in previous bottles. At times the bouquet seemed more "Cotes-du-Rhone" than Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir. Hopefully this bottle represents the exception and not the direction this wine takes with additional bottle age.
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Opened and poured, this bottles gave a good showing, but seemed more reserved and lacked the balance that previous bottles have shown. This bottle suggests that the wine may have entered a more reserved or awkward stage. This seems to have shed some of its youthful fruit and vibrancy. Hopefully an additional year or two of bottle age will provide a more harmonious showing.
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-- decanted for 3 hours before initial taste -- -- tasted non-blind over 2 hours -- -- pH: 3.37; TA: 6.5 g/l --
NOSE: cool red fruits; lots of mineral; hints of leather and horse saddle; on the whole, moderately expressive with an elegant richness, but still somewhat reserved.
BODY: garnet color of medium depth; medium bodied.
TASTE: ripe (but not overripe or over-extracted) cranberry and red currant; ashy mineral; hint of florals; not oaky, although I did notice a hint of oak on my last sip; 13.8% alc. is noticeable; excellent acidity; fine tannins are barely drying and bit grippy; comes across as both giving and reserved at the same time.
This wine seems like a total tease right now: it’s obviously very good, and a pleasure to drink now, but I get the sense there’s much greater rewards in store for those who wait; this wine would greatly benefit from at least another 5 years in the cellar.
B: 50, 5, 12, 17, 8 = 92+
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Pretty much what you would expect from an Arcadian Pinot - balanced like a Burgundy but with a touch of Central Coast CA character in there if you listen closely. Feels more approachable than an 05 Dierberg that we drank recently - perhaps owing to the fruit forward nature of the 2007 vintage. As with a lot of Joe Davis' pinots, we won't know for years just how good this can be.
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Excellent. Needs a lot more time. Very complex nose and palate. Double decanted through a vinturi and it still took a couple of hours to give up those great aromas and flavors.
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2009 Pinot Days Seminar - Southern AVA 2007s (Fort Mason, San Francisco, California): Barrel sample - dark cherry red color; nice deep red fruit, cherry and touch of baking spice on nose; solid tart cherry palate with good acidity; medium-plus finish 90-92 pts. (40% whole cluster; to be released in a year and a half or so; Joe says, "It needs more time in barrel.")
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4/13/2024 - jreis Likes this wine:
Popped and poured at cellar temp. Still quite dark hued and opaque with no signs of bricking. Pine sap, pomegranate and herbes de Provence on the nose. Earthy black cherry fruit on the attack with quite pronounced acidity on the finish. Still a bit burly and drinking like a youngster, but quite good. We will see if this unfurls a bit as it opens.
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4/14/2023 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Earthy, savory, with pomegranate, and sour plum. Thankfully, the initial barnyard funk blew off. This has been drinking so well for several years. It is well balanced, and has a dark fruit long finish. My last bottle, and if I had more, I wouldn’t wait.
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10/23/2021 - forceberry wrote: 95 Points
13,8% alcohol, 6,5 g/l acidity.
Medium-deep, moderately translucent raspberry red color with a slightly evolved pomegranate hue. Ripe, juicy and slightly sweetish nose with dark-toned, slightly sauvage aromas of black cherries, some brambly blackberries, light bretty notes of phenolic smoke and leathery funk, a little bit of ripe black raspberry, a hint of earthy Pinosity and a faint touch of Band-Aid. The wine is dry, savory and quite concentrated on the palate with a medium body and intense flavors of brambly black raspberries, some smoky phenolic tones, a little bit of stony minerality, light funky notes of new leather, a hint of ripe cherry and a touch of savory wood spice. Wonderfully silky yet firm texture with high acidity and still moderately grippy medium-plus tannins. The finish is long, ripe and juicy with rather savory flavors of succulent dark fruits, some leathery funk, a little bit of smoky phenolic spice, light brambly notes of black raspberries, a hint of gamey meat and a sweet touch of wizened red cherry.
A beautiful, complex and harmonious Pinot Noir that shows a little bit of evolution but also quite a bit of still surprisingly vibrant and youthful fruit along with a subtle yet somewhat noticeable streak of bretty funk that really doesn't obfuscate any complexity, only adds to it. The wine shows remarkable intensity - more so than any other of the four Arcadian Pinots we had - and impressive sense of structure that doesn't feel in any way excessive relation to the body or to the fruit. The wine is distinctively Californian in its ripe, even somewhat concentrated fruit, so you couldn't mistake this wine for a Burgundy, but with its savory and slightly funky overall character, this isn't your run-of-the-mill Cali Pinot either. Terrific stuff by any standards. Not affordable at 63€, but delivers for the price. Highly recommended.
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9/30/2021 - Diane (LI) wrote:
My second bottle within a few months and I am loving it. Earthy with cherry pit, mushroom, and ending with sour plum. It is in the zone.
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5/10/2021 - Diane (LI) wrote:
I wouldn’t want to hold it any longer. Mostly earth and mushroom with some dates and cherry fruit. Fruit became deeper with air but I think this is at peak.
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1/26/2021 - Burgundy Al wrote: 90 Points
Popped-and-poured after another wine was corked. Backward start with powerful black and red cherry throughout, this took an hour to soften and open up, but came together nicely with time. Best when finished after 2+ hours, so certainly upside from here.
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12/23/2020 - grafstrb wrote: flawed
-- TCA --
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9/6/2019 - Burgundy Al wrote: 91 Points
Open an hour before serving. Complex array of red, black and blue berry aromas with a rich spicebox and floral whiffs. Similar flavors with good weight and persistence through to a long, slightly sweet finish. A step up vs the 2007 Fiddlestix from the other day. This might still have upside from here. I believe this is another of the wines that received extended elevage.
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12/2/2018 - grafstrb wrote:
Red-fruited, with a pleasant herbal aspect. Oak is noticeable, and I do hope to see a bit more of it get swallowed with additional bottle age. Well-relaxed, so no crime to drink now, but its best days are still before it.
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11/20/2018 - MattMauldin Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dense garnet color with nice clarity. Complex aromatics of pressed lavender & violets, plum & pomegranate fruit, smoked paprika & earthy spices. Bright and snappy black cherry & fig fruit with seamlessly layered dense secondary notes of earth-spices, anise and dark florals, Medium-bodied with fleshy elegance through the middle. Beautifully integrated acid, finely structured with silky & polished medium tannins. Good overall depth on the finish, moderate in length. Very youthful - driven by its bright and elegant fruit with secondary notes still tightly wrapped, but omnipresent. If opening now give it a decant, but otherwise this is easily held for many years before hitting early maturity. Excellent.
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2/15/2018 - WoodieBayArea wrote:
won't rate, health issues prevented me from tasting this fully... but I agree this has the high acid that I like and expect from Arcadian... nothing soft of cloying about this wine, on the other hand it wasn't (subject to my tasting issues) one of my favs from them either... my gut is that I would have given this a 91 if my sinuses hadn't messed me up
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11/11/2017 - grafstrb wrote:
-- tasted a single pour non-blind over approx. 30 minutes --
-- from 3L --
I distinctly remember chasing after my 2 yo daughter while enjoying this wine, so my TN suffered greatly as a result. All I wrote down was "hint of brett on the Nose; medium bodied; rich fruits on the palate." Beyond that, I remember this presenting quite well – more relaxed than I was expecting, especially out of 3L. Perhaps this will be a relatively early-drinking Pisoni: I'll likely take a 750mL for a spin sometime soon, to take a closer look at where this one is. As usual with Joe's take on Pisoni fruit, I loved it.
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1/21/2017 - bdhanna Likes this wine: 90 Points
Consumed as part of a side by side comparison tasting of five different 2007 Pisoni Pinot Noirs. This was very lean and old world like; needed food. Improved greatly on day two. I think it will continue to age for many years. I will try another in a couple of years.
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12/26/2016 - Redguy wrote:
Ripe red fruit with moderate brett, which is a bit too much brett for my taste. Coupled with the ripeness this lends a suggestion of Southern Rhone. Maybe it just didn't strike me right today.
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4/27/2015 - Mr T wrote:
pretty wine decanted but had late in the evening with limited faculties and friends guzzling...more discerning palates (not me) thought this was excellent
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12/16/2014 - MindMuse wrote: 93 Points
Had beside the 2007 Pisoni Estate, and what a contrast the two were. While the Pisoni Pisoni was big, bold, sweet dark fruited, boozy, and ripe, the Arcadian was silky, suave, lighter red fruits, strong fine grained tannins, minerally, and polished. Some preferred one, some the other. Most that felt the Arcadian would ultimately show the best in either case, as it has ample room to develop and improve further. Darn nice juice. Probably 2017 for my next.
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9/14/2013 - Blue Shorts wrote: 90 Points
Very good, but not as fruity as it should be at this young age, at least for an Arcadian Pisoni. Drink now.
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11/25/2012 - Redguy wrote:
Tasting room pour. First thing I noticed was how thickly fruited this wine was. Just an observation...not a good or bad thing, nor surprising beings it's an '07. Any ways, bright but dense red fruits and dried flowers fill the nose, with some old leather and a mild underpinning of brett. Also bright and energetic on the palate with thick layers of juicy red fruits, leather, minerals, and some light wood notes. Usually I'm fairly brett sensative and though this has a moderate vein running throughout, it never overwhelms... in fact it adds complexity and lends it an old world feel inspite of its obvious Cali fruit. Med body effort with strong flavor penetration. Even with the bold red fruits, good acidity keeps this vibrant across the palate and prevents it from ever feeling "heavy". A moderate but pleasant medicinal note lingers on the med length finish. A fruit forward pinot to be sure, but with a sturdy frame, good acidity, and a sense of elegance. This needs time to balance itself... drop a little fruit, lighten up the palate, gain some additional complexity, and let the elegance shine through and this'll be rockin. Heck, it's outstanding already. 91-92 today but with another 7-10 years left to figure itself out.
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10/7/2012 - sehill wrote:
Opened and poured, this bottle gave a somewhat disappointing showing based on previous experiences with this wine. The aromatics offer a brett element that was not evident in previous bottles. At times the bouquet seemed more "Cotes-du-Rhone" than Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir. Hopefully this bottle represents the exception and not the direction this wine takes with additional bottle age.
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5/12/2012 - sehill wrote: 88 Points
Opened and poured, this bottles gave a good showing, but seemed more reserved and lacked the balance that previous bottles have shown. This bottle suggests that the wine may have entered a more reserved or awkward stage. This seems to have shed some of its youthful fruit and vibrancy. Hopefully an additional year or two of bottle age will provide a more harmonious showing.
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2/24/2012 - sehill wrote: 91 Points
Similar to previously tasted bottles.
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2/14/2012 - grafstrb wrote: 92 Points
-- decanted for 3 hours before initial taste --
-- tasted non-blind over 2 hours --
-- pH: 3.37; TA: 6.5 g/l --
NOSE: cool red fruits; lots of mineral; hints of leather and horse saddle; on the whole, moderately expressive with an elegant richness, but still somewhat reserved.
BODY: garnet color of medium depth; medium bodied.
TASTE: ripe (but not overripe or over-extracted) cranberry and red currant; ashy mineral; hint of florals; not oaky, although I did notice a hint of oak on my last sip; 13.8% alc. is noticeable; excellent acidity; fine tannins are barely drying and bit grippy; comes across as both giving and reserved at the same time.
This wine seems like a total tease right now: it’s obviously very good, and a pleasure to drink now, but I get the sense there’s much greater rewards in store for those who wait; this wine would greatly benefit from at least another 5 years in the cellar.
B: 50, 5, 12, 17, 8 = 92+
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12/10/2011 - amateurwino wrote: 90 Points
Pretty much what you would expect from an Arcadian Pinot - balanced like a Burgundy but with a touch of Central Coast CA character in there if you listen closely. Feels more approachable than an 05 Dierberg that we drank recently - perhaps owing to the fruit forward nature of the 2007 vintage. As with a lot of Joe Davis' pinots, we won't know for years just how good this can be.
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11/30/2011 - sehill Likes this wine: 92 Points
Another outstanding showing for this wine.
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6/22/2011 - Blue Shorts wrote:
Excellent. Needs a lot more time. Very complex nose and palate. Double decanted through a vinturi and it still took a couple of hours to give up those great aromas and flavors.
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6/18/2011 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 91 Points
2011 Pinot Days: 183 Wines from 65 Producers (Fort Mason Festival Pavillon, San Francisco, California): Focused, raspberry, strawberry, cranberry nose; tasty, poised, tart cranberry, tart cherry, mineral palate; medium finish 91+ points (40% whole cluster)
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6/27/2009 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
2009 Pinot Days Seminar - Southern AVA 2007s (Fort Mason, San Francisco, California): Barrel sample - dark cherry red color; nice deep red fruit, cherry and touch of baking spice on nose; solid tart cherry palate with good acidity; medium-plus finish 90-92 pts. (40% whole cluster; to be released in a year and a half or so; Joe says, "It needs more time in barrel.")
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