NOSE: intense, and high-toned; ripe pineapple; lemon; largely in-line with previous bottles and its age.
BODY: rich, orange-golden yellow/maize color of great depth; medium to medium-full bodied.
TASTE: palate reflects the Nose — medium+ to high acidity; ripe pineapple; very nice showing; largely consistent with previous bottles, although this one does give the impression of starting to thin out. Gut impression score 91 - 92. Although this wine can handle more age, I’m drinking mine now and over the near term.
I had a 375 of this a month or two ago. I’ve had a run of oxidized Arcadian chardonnay from around this vintage in the last year, so my hopes were not so high.
This cork was like it had been super glued to the neck. I couldn’t get it to budge with a waiter corkscrew, and I finally had to work all around the seal with an ah so to get the cork moving.
Maybe because of that, the contents were pristine. So light colored, fresh, lots of tart fruit and juicy acids. This particular bottle was not even later in its maturity window. So good.
As oxidation is, it varies from bottle to bottle, but that one was fantastic.
The issue with corks can often be related to the paraffin coating to prevent the very issue you faced. I have found on occasion an unevenness in the application of paraffin to a batch of corks. Too little and the cork is like cement and too much the cork can be pushed in by hand.
2005 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard- USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (11/24/2020)
– uncorked 20 min. before initial taste –
– tasted non-blind over a few hours –
NOSE: rich; high-toned lemon custard; buttery.
BODY: golden yellow-amber color; medium bodied.
TASTE: rich; medium+ to high acidity; alc. not noticeable (13.3%); slightly salty well-embedded hint of mineral; medium-light oak; extremely good.
Purchased a few bottles from Joe earlier this week and also had the privilege of meeting him. Such a wonderful guy with refreshing perspectives on family, winemaking, and more. Popped a bottle that same night because it was the right thing to do
2005 Arcadian Chardonnay Sleepy Hollow Vineyard- USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (6/19/2021)
I picked up this magnum in the morning and popped it with friends later that night. I definitely don’t have diamond hands for wine.
Served at slightly colder than cellar temp. A beautiful and rich golden colored Chard. The aromas filled the place with intoxicating notes of butter, sweet corn, pineapple, lemon, salinity, and crisp minerality. Lovely wine with excellent structure, acidity, and persistence. Despite the richness, there’s so much balance and uniqueness here.
Since you got to talk to him, what is the latest with him and Arcadian? Are they still making new wines, or just selling old stock? It seemed like something happened a couple of years ago, but I never really understood what. I was in the Grand Cru Society but just stopped getting or hearing anything.
Ah, he isn’t making new Arcadian wine and he’s been selling library wines. I didn’t ask him about specifics from past events since he never made any public comments, but talking about his upbringing, family, winemaking process, and life in the Valley already took a good 2 hours. What I do know is he’s figuring out what’s next for him, so hopefully it’s something we can all get behind.
What I do know is he’s figuring out what’s next for him, so hopefully it’s something we can all get behind.