TN: Big Arcadian Tasting in Atlanta Part II, With Joe Davis (1998-2005)

[Dennis_Atick]

We got together last night with a good group of guys, including Joe Davis, for another big Arcadian tasting. Hard to believe it had been 6 years since our last big Arcadian night. Amazingly, so many of the same wines are still holding strong, or still ascending.

Thanks to Don Cornutt for doing heavy lifting in keeping us on track and booking Antica Posta for the event. Thanks to Joe Davis for joining us and spreading knowledge about the wines/vintage. Always great to have the winemaker shed light on what went into the bottle. Thanks to a great group for the wine, fun, and friendship. @Mike_Evans @dcornutt @bradkaplan @rob_klafter @Steve_McL

There was a lot of wine, I tried to capture what I could in notes below:

BIG ARCADIAN TASTING IN ATL PART II, WITH JOE DAVIS (1998-2005) - (10/15/2023-10/16/2023)

• 2008 Saint-Chamant Champagne Brut Cuvee de Chardonnay - France, Champagne (10/15/2023)
  Very good again. Slightly herbal/yeast nose- a little oxidative-complex-clean fruit- good fruit-brisk-
• 2000 Arcadian Chardonnay Bien Nacido Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley (10/15/2023)
  14 years since my last taste...last night we had two bottles- one bottle was oxidized- old -second bottle was much more fresh-burgundian-clean, good acid- some peach and citrus notes. V good with scallop dish
• 2014 Jean-Claude Ramonet Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly Blanc - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Saint-Aubin 1er Cru (10/15/2023)
  From magnum, this was just great. Pure white Burg magic stuff- Minerals and stone fruits. Balanced bright acidity and citrus fruits. Long finish spiked with sweet fruit. Elegant. Yum
• 2019 Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (10/15/2023)
  When is this wine not great? young. So good- flint, weed (yes!) herbal- slight reduction- just lasts on palate. Power and elegance. Just tasty. Check.
• 1998 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  From a 3L. Aged Sleepy Hollow wins another Arcadian tasting. Just like last time. Autumnal nose, sous bois. Stemmy-herbal quality. Dujac-ish. -Super fresh acid- clean- beautiful red fruit - the acid here is stunning- blind you'd guess it was 10 years younger or more. Bravo, Joe.
• 1999 Arcadian Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  From magnum...just a tiny step down from the '98 next to it on table. A little rounder, feels it's age a wee bit more- but that beautiful aged pinot nose is there and such freshness on the palate. Burgundian. Splitting hairs if the '98 or '99 is better. Both amazing. <
• 2000 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  Again my note starts with "yes!" Another beautiful nose. Floral, mushroom/truffle spice mix...Palate is marked by red fruit and framed by a lively acidity that refuses to quit. Almost Youthful. Great with roast chicken dish. <
• 2004 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  Joe Davis was at the dinner and said '04 was the toughest vintage he'd worked. This is 16% alcohol- and harvested at 3am- too hot- this is a bit of a pass for me. Too much. <b
• 2003 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  All 2003s from everywhere show like 2003s. A tad hot, bigger bones. Not as overwrought as the '04, but pales to the 2000 and 2005.
• 2005 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (10/15/2023)
  Joe said this was his favorite vintage and one his favorite Pisoni's he's produced. As with the last bottle from 2017, there's a really silky texture to this wine. Fine on the palate. It still shows it's youth. Lot of power in reserve, Fresh fruit. Joe says try in 5+ years.
• 2001 Arcadian Syrah Robert O. Fleming Cuvée Garys' Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Monterey (10/15/2023)
  The wine still has a youthful verve that betrays the vintage on the label. At the one hour in the decanter mark...it really pops to reveal layers of black pepper and dark fruit. Balance of acid, dark fruit, iron...Savory. Acid streak. This wine just keeps kicking. Fabulous! Kudos, Joe!
• 1999 Arcadian Syrah Robert O. Fleming Cuvée Garys' Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Monterey (10/15/2023)
  Nose is floral, smoked meat, cracked pepper, olive-a savory essence. Very NRhone. All about the nose here. Palate shows rather rich plummy dark fruit, black pepper. Still got energy in the tank!
• 2001 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (10/15/2023)
  Again. This wine is amazing. Fresh, intense, lively, fierce, subtle, moving, joyful. Such a shift after red wines, and a perfect cleaner/closer. This wine will probably outlive me and I'll leave it for my kids to find out 30 years from now. Easily one of WsOTN
  
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[bradkaplan]

Thanks, Dennis, for the great notes. And thanks especially to Joe for making these amazing wines (and the various folks for bringing such a nice assortment).

Re the two 2008 Saint Chamant, I can’t find any good information online regarding the distinctions between the Cuvee Royale and the Cuvee de Chardonnay, though both Don and Steve said something to the effect of the Cuvee Royale being “of the style” of the elder generation of the family. “Champagne Saint-Chamant was established in 1930 by Pierre and Hélène Coquillette. Their son, Christian, took over the estate in 1950 and led the production for an impressive 70 years. After Christian passed away in 2020, his son Stéphane succeeded him as the third generation, committed to carrying on the long traditions that have been established here.” The Martine’s website says of both that they are both 100% chardonnay from Grand Cru Chouilly, “hand-harvested. Average élevage time is for nine months, in stainless steel and enamel tanks. Dosage approximately five grams per liter.”

The two wines definitely came across as being of the same family tree, and seemed to converge even more as they aired out, though the Cuvee de Chardonnay came across to me as a bit fruitier than the Cuvee Royale.

Other wines you missed (I think) were the Dujac 2017 Morey Saint Denis Monts Luisants (chardonnay) which showed really nicely, though not with the same wow factor of the Boillot, and the 1990 Huet Haut-Lieu moelleux, which I thought was fantastic, despite the cola color, but also made for a terrible side by side with the Prum. They were just so different and seemed to clash a good bit, with Prum singing with bright acidity and the Huet feeling a bit flabby in comparison.

[Mike_Evans]

Thanks for taking notes, quite an accomplishment given the volume of food and wine. One minor correction is that the 1999 Sleepy Hollow was from a single magnum.

[Dave_McIsaac]

@Mike_Evans

Thanks for taking notes, quite an accomplishment given the volume of food and wine. One minor correction is that the 1999 Sleepy Hollow was from a single magnum.

Sounds like a great time.

Mike, I was going to ask what the difference between a 3 L and a double mag is…

[Dennis_Atick]

Thanks for the additional info on the bubbly. And I totally forgot the Dujac!

[PHuff]

Wow, what a great tasting, I am jealous!..I bought a bunch of Arcadian wines back in the day, but I drank them all a while ago and haven’t had one in years…but I have fond memories of drinking some really pure and balanced Pinot’s and Chards…Regarding the other wines, the 2014 Jean-Claude Ramonet Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly caught my eye…2014 was such a great vintage for White Burgundy…

[Doug_Lee]

Dennis thanks for this great post. Terrific to see that Joe is out there and doing well. Agree that the 2005’s (particularly the Pisoni) are still on an upward trajectory.

Cheers,
Doug

[Dennis_Atick]

Thanks, Doug. Agreed on all counts!
Cheers,
DEnnis

[Steve_McL]

A great gathering, thank you @dcornutt and thanks Dennis for the notes/photos. SInce others have written so well on the Arcadians, I’ll weigh in a bit on the rest.

I was struck by the way, when we first thought no one had any Arcadian white, that the universal go-to was “ok, then white Burgundy will be an acceptable substitute”

Loved the Ramonet- I could’ve stopped there. The Boillot was as good as ever, though the guy that brought it was clearly a clueless wing nut
Dujac makes a white?! Who knew? Interesting juice.

I thought the Vouvray looked terrible and tasted great. Bringing no expectations to this cola-colored brown glass, I found remarkable nuttiness, rancio, petrol, fresh and dried fruit; almost tawny port-like, but lighter and leaning more to acid than a port. By itself, it would have been notable, a pleasant sip to end the evening…but it wasn’t alone…

The Prum came ready and threw serious shade. Wonderful stuff. I was replete with good wine, good food and much laughter, yet if I had been home I’d have been tempted to finish this balanced, light-yet-powerful nectar

I saw how important it was when tasting many (many) related wines to have a drill sargent/ designated grownup there to marshal bottles and keep an increasingly tipsy troop of rogue males in line at a table full of fragile glassware and much alcohol. (Thank you Jody)

A final thought on hosting, also courtesy of Jody; while family-style serving platters of shared food sounds cozy, its a asking for trouble to pass plates in the vicinity of 50+ wine glasses…

[dcornutt]

Wonderful notes here. I loved the two Sleepy Hollow pinots and the 2000 Pisoni. The 1998 was my favorite of the night. Even though it was a little lean in a way it was so complex. The 2001 and 1999 were my favorites of the syrahs. It was so nice to have Joe around.

[Dennis_Atick]

Excellent recap, Steve. Even if we didn’t totally convert you You are correct, it was excellent to have Jody there to keep us on track. No easy fete. A great night.