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~ Welcome to Arrowood Winery ~ |
Perched along an innocuous little section of the Sonoma Highway in Glen Ellen, sits a gem of a winery hiding in plain sight. In fact, if you aren’t paying attention, you may drive right past thinking it’s simply another gorgeous home. But as the home suggests, sitting among the vines, there is much more here than meets the eye.
Founded in 1986 by Richard Arrowood, then winemaker at Chateau St. Jean, the winery released it’s first commercial bottlings in 1988. Today, winemaker Heidi von der Mehden has been leading the charge since 2010. Although Arrowood was recently acquired by the conglomerate Constellation Brands, they continue to operate independently and craft some amazing wines.
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~ Arrowood ~ |
Recently we tasted the 2006 Arrowood Syrah, Saralees’s Vineyard. This inky purple wine is a slight blend of 97% Syrah with a dollop of Viognier (3%) in the true Rhone style. However, this is not a cool climate Syrah that focuses on the leaner side of the grape. This Saralee gives off aromas of crushed black berry, smoke, cedar, mint and smokey meat. On the palate the wine is polished and elegant. The blackberry flavors are intense and marked by leather, cured meat and mint. There’s a dusty essence of Sonoma on the finish. This is simply great stuff, and even at around $30, is quite the value. 93 points.
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~ 2006 Arrowood Russian River Syrah: Saralee’s Vineyard ~ |
E vero!
Wow! I haven't seen this available in NH, but sure looks like a steal! I'll keep my eyes open. John any idea how much longer this will keep?
Dennis,
To my dismay, I don't see Arrowood wines around here as much as I'd like. Their Sonoma Cabernet is great at under $30 and their Monte Rosso Cabernet (closer to $90) would be $150 if it were from Napa. This wine has plenty of legs. It's wonderfully balanced but can easily live to 10-12 years old, if not more.