The IWFS-PV (International Wine & Food Society of Paradise Valley, a Phoenix, AZ, US, suburb) held their first event, PN tasting of 2002 CA and OR, US. This was the first event of the newly formed, and hopefully soon to be chartered group.
Wines, in order tasted:
Artesa Carneros 2002 - Artesa is Napa's newest winery. Their architecturally- acclaimed facility opened as Codorniu Napa in 1991, dedicated solely to mé thode champenoise sparkling wine production. Now they specialize in still wines. They produce Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Tempranillo, and a red blend, "Elements." I was somewhat familiar with Codorniu's sparklers, but had never tried their still wines. In the glass: garnet w/ light orange rim. On the nose: smoke, slightly burnt caramel - hint of mercaptin, bright cherry. In the mouth: body light, with soft tannins and a moderately short finish. Rating based on total of eight wines = 8.
Opolo Paso Robles 2002 - Opolo Merlot, Zinfandel, Syrah, Sangiovese, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and is located at 7110 Vineyard Drive, Paso Robles, CA. I had seen the name, but was not familiar with their wines. In the glass: garnet w/ lighter orange rim. On the nose: cinnamon/cardamom spice and a darker cherry than the Artesa. There was a hint of an unidentified floral aspect. Try as I would, I could not place a name on it. In the mouth: medium body, a mid- length finish, with some noticeable tannins. With time in the glass, an orange rind element became evident. Rating=4.
Elk Cove, Willamette Valley 2002 - Elk Cove is one of the older Oregonian wineries and does several single vineyard PNs, plus Pinot Gris. In the glass: darker garnet w/ small pink meniscus. On the nose: did I detect some TCA? There might also have been a hint of SO². I questioned the TCA (especially as there are often so many "earthy" elements in OR PN's, but I was the only one who picked up on it. I will admit that both the possible TCA and Sulphur dissipated in a few moments. Glad I wasn't called upon to declare this wine fit, as I might have sent it back. There were earthy mineral elements, which were also present in the mouth. Dark earth/dust, and cherry were also present. In the mouth: medium finish, with those damp stone/mineral tones. Rating-6.
Archery Summit, Premier Cuvee, Willamette 2002 - OK, wasn't Archery Summit part of Dick Arrowood's winery portfolio? Didn't, either Kendall-Jackson, or Jess Jackson (after he sold Kendall-Jackson) buy Arrowood, but keep Dick on as winemaker? Dang, it's hard to recall all of the buyouts, etc. Regardless, in the glass: dark garnet w/ almost no rim. On the nose: cinnamon, tar, smoke, hint of burnt caramel, rose, sweat, and plenty of dark cherry. My wife found a hint of bacon in this one, but I never did. Everything was well integrated ( see next). In the mouth: medium-long finish, with only a hint of oak. Later, pomegranate came into the bouquet. Rating=1.
Archery Summit, Premier Cuvee, Willamette 2003 - This was a special addition and it had all of the elements of the 2002, however each piece seemed to stand on its own and lacked the integration and softer tannins of the ‘02. There was a nice bacon element to it. My wife found this same hint in the ‘02, but I could not detect it, until the ‘03. It was a close call, but the rating on this one was 2, behind its older brother.
Domaine Carneros, Carneros 2002 - A US subsidiary of Tattinger, they are known mostly for their US sparklers. This still PN, however was very nice and at its lower price, was probably the QPR winner. In the glass: garnet w/ tiny brownish meniscus. On the nose: smoke, floral/rose, some dust/earth, but NOT TCA. There was an element that I could never place on the retro-nasal, that seemed to be a spice, maybe cinnamon, or cardamom, but not sure - nutmeg? In the mouth: medium-long finish, with velvety texture - really luxurious in the mouth. Tannins were light, and tight. Later, a plum/lightly-stewed prune element crept in. Rating=4. Was 3, until the AS ‘03 was poured. Of the 2002's it was a definite #3.
Robert Stemmler, Russian River Nugent Vineyard 2002 - Robert Stemmler got his start with the Krug Winery and has been producing highly-rated PN's for many years. In the glass: dark garnet almost all of the way to the rim. On the nose: burnt caramel/mercaptin and dark cherry. In the mouth: medium finish with light tannins. Rating=6
Domaine Serene Evanstadt Reserve, Willamette 2002 - Much has been written about Domaine Serene and their PN's lately, so I was really looking forward to this one. I had just had their Grace Vineyard in La Jolla, and wanted to taste the Evanstadt, as I had several bottles of it, and the Yamhill in the cellar. Was it a disappointment? No, not really, but it was not my #1, or #2 choice of the evening. Along with PN's they also do a Chard and a Syrah, but I have not seen either varietal. In the glass: medium garnet almost to the rim. On the nose: very earthy/dusty. Again, I was about to declare a tiny amount of TCA, but this passed, and the acid seemed good, plus there was a ton of fruit, so I think I was confusing the dust/musty/earthy aspects again. Dark cherry, and plenty of it. There was a bit of heat on the nose, but the wine is 14.1%, so I'm not sure what that element really was. In the mouth: maybe the longest finish of the group. Later on, I detected some coconut (I even placed a "?" in my notes on this one) and a hint of fresh ginger. This guy evolved nicely, but I was only able to rate it 3, after the AS PN's. The Quarterly Review of Wines gave the Evanstadt ‘00 the Best of Show award. A good one, but at almost twice the price of the AS, I'm not sure that it is any kind of a deal. OTOH, compared to many US PN's, maybe the AS is just under-priced. I'm still glad that I have some of this, plus the Yamhill, in the cellar. I would rate the Grace above the Evanstadt, but then I enjoyed it with a wonderful meal and some great friends, so this is not a fair comparison.
Taking a page from Dale's book, I'd give the AS ‘02 a B/B- and the rest fall down the list from there. With the possible exception of the Artesa, all are worth the $ and effort.
Hunt