This year’s version of my annual “late spring” trip {inside joke} to NW Arkansas was not too much unlike previous ones over the last few decades. It included quality time with dear friends and their family members, time at their cabin and boating on Beaver Lake in the Ozark Highlands near Rogers, an Arkansas football game, this time a winner over highly ranked Tennessee, following the grandchildren on their new adventures and achievements, the fall season with attending color change and tons of fun with an equal amount of wine.
As usual, I take a few bottles to compliment the quality cellars of my hosts and their family members. Here’s some notes of some of those wines by category rather than when drank chronologically:
NV TALBOTT SPARKLING BRUT- a few months ago, this showed up in my blind wine tasting group and was thought to be a fine, elegant champagne that most of us guessed was vintage including my guess that it was a 2008 Laurent-Perrier Brut; we were aghast at how good it was and loved it to the extent, one of our members stopped by the winery while traveling near their area and bought some for all of us; this was my first pull for the wines to take on the trip and it was as good as it had been previously, possessing charm, elegance, a light and cheery persona and exceptionally refreshing while delivered in a frothy, almost cotton candy like mousse; it had mild citrus fruit notes throughout that included lemon and lime and a subtle hint of saline which came in late; it sported fine acidity and once again, impressed the 3 of us who shared it.
NV VEUVE-CLIQUOT BRUT ROSE- I was happy to see this being chilled as it used to be one of my favorite NV roses in the 1990s and early 2000s and it had been many years since tasting the last one; this was deliciously fruity, but not overly so with fresh and bright red cherry and strawberry on the nose and palate with noticeable sweetness, but not cloyingly so; it had a nice creamy mousse and held on to its flavorful red fruit profile over the course of drinking the bottle.
NV TZARINA No 1 BRUT in magnum- 50% Chardonnay and Pinot Noir; this was a first for me from the producer, Chanoine Freres, which happens to be the 2nd oldest house in the region, founded in 1730; it was a terrific bubbly presented in a classy magnum clear glass bottle; it offered aromas of fresh citrus fruit which once tasted translated into initially grapefruit, then lemon and lime followed with a coat of honey and a touch of minerality; it had a nice balance, medium body and a soft, pleasanter mousse.
2006 LOUIS ROEDERER CRISTAL- I took this to share with folks I knew would enjoy it and also to check in on the vintage as it was my last bottle and I’m preparing to reload; glad I did as it was stupendous; following its still very youthful light yellow color came aromas of bright citrus fruit with lemon and lime most prominent plus honeyed yellow apple which became more dominant on the palate; it had a wondrous creamy, oily mouthfeel with some weight, bright acidity, full body and an extended finish that resulted in holding off for the next taste for a while to allow for the complete experience to be treasured. I’m looking for more as I type these notes.
2018 LUCIA SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS CHARDONNAY- this is a blend of 100% estate fruit owned by the Pisoni family sourced from select barrels of the Pisoni and Soberanes vineyards; it was another of my brings and I was delighted at how remarkable it showed; it had a medium yellow color and the nose offered nice floral, citrus, pear and yellow apple notes which were delivered in an oily textured medium all the way to the back end; on the palate, it gave some slightly baked yellow apple, honeysuckle and pear with a hint of lemon along with some minerals before everything came together for a grand finish; also notable was its nice balance which was aided by the oak being nicely integrated.
1969 BODEGAS MUGA RIOJA- I bought 2 bottles of this years ago and decided to take one just try it out and toss if not viable; the ullage was mid neck, but the partial label was quite tattered and after pulling the cork, I almost tossed it after getting a Port like nose, but deferred by positioning it as a dessert wine at the end of dinner; the nose definitely consisted of fortified notes with sweet dark fruit that made up most of the taste profile along with some minerality before it was topped off with Sherry like almond milk; we had a few sips and then tossed it as it was not all that good.
1993 STAGS LEAP WINE CELLARS CASK 23 NAPA VALLEY- 100% Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from a reserve blend from both S.L.V. and Fay vineyards that are situated adjacent to each other below the Stags Leap crag on the eastern slopes of Napa Valley; this was my last bottle of a case I bought many years ago and it was the best one of all and maybe one of the best red wines I’ve had in 2024, certainly in the top 5; decanted and poured within 15 minutes; the color was a very rich dark purple and the nose offered wondrous aromas of eucalyptus, cedar, tobacco and dark chocolate accented dark fruit which on the palate translated into blackberry, plum and black currant; it was full bodied with layered depth and had a super smooth mouthfeel that highlighted the grand finish leaving me with the idea that it was a special treat to be able to have even just a sip of this gem.
1997 JORDAN CABERNET SAUVIGNON SONOMA COUNTY- my friends are big California Cab fans and years ago bought many wonderful wines especially from the 1980s and 1990s; Jordan was one of their favs and I’ve been blessed to have had many bottles from their cellars over the years and discovered a mutual admiration for them finding them less intense, easier on the palate and more feminine than their bigger and bolder Napa brothers; this bottle was an anomaly in that it had a funky, mineral, steely kind of nose and a strange taste profile that actually improved over time, but never to the point it represented the true class previously experienced nor expected; so, the next best thing happened as a bottle of 1994 Jordan was opened.
1994 JORDAN CABERNET SAUVIGNON SONOMA COUNTY- this was stellar and had a lot of what we expected in the 1997, plus check out the price tag; what a great QPR; it was in its prime giving wondrous aromas of mild chocolate, mocha and tobacco laden dark fruit which once tasted included blackberry, black currant and a touch of black cherry; it was medium to full bodied and had that soft and smooth mouthfeel that served to lighten up the intensity factor making for an ever so pleasant quaffer.
2019 FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA ARCHIMEDES ALEXANDER VALLEY- this was opened on the first night; it is comprised of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon and named after the Greek mathematician Archimedes who, about 2,000 years ago, established the laws of physics; it was youthfully vibrant, inky dark purple and rich and full bodied with layers of amazing flavors unfolding over time; it had loads of power and surprisingly, enough to finesse to balance out the intensity; the aromatics and taste profile included mint chocolate accent dark fruit with black cherry most prominent; another welcomed surprise was its velvety texture which also served to ease up on the intensity; this was my first exposure to this producers flagship wine and it was impressive at this early stage while being built for the long run evidenced by its bracing tannic structure.
2010 FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA ARCHIMEDES ALEXANDER VALLEY- 2 nights later, I get a 2nd round of Archimedes, this time at the daughter’s home; I encouraged it to be decanted and don’t know how much it helped within a few minutes, but it was drinking really good albeit still being a couple of decades away from its apogee; it had the equally dark and intense purple color, aromatics, richness, full body and length, but it was surprisingly closer to being balanced; I got milk chocolate without the mint accent and more blackberry and black currant along with maybe its signature velvety texture.
2015 BEAULIEU VINEYARD TAPESTRY RESERVE RED WINE NAPA VALLEY- this is made up of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, 7% Malbec, 4% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot aged in a mix of French, American and Hungarian oak (60% new) for 22 months; I would have thought the % of Merlot was much greater as it expressed the smooth texture and blueberry fruit I attribute to such, but there was so much more; leather and tobacco accented blackberry and plum fruit was most evident in the nose and the taste while it was being delivered in a smooth textured medium all the way through; it had some weight and depth and lots of finesse and charm.
Well, there were more bottles opened during this wonderful visit, but those were the highlights while the Arkansas win over Tennessee was the most treasured experience not withstanding the loving friendship, support and family inclusion of my extended NW Arkansas folks. Go Hogs!
Cheers,
Blake