USA, California: Richard Arrowood 50th Anniversary Retrospective Tasting August 28, 2015
Richard Arrowood, who I have known for close to 30 years, certainly has one of the most impressive resumés of any winemaker in California. He was born in Santa Rosa, California, and by age 20 was already working in a laboratory at Korbel Winery. After completing his college and post-graduate education in Fermentation Science at California State University in Fresno, he joined United Vintners, then in 1970 became Assistant Winemaker at Rodney Strong. From there he went on to his first fame and hopefully fortune, working at the brand new Chateau St. Jean winery in 1973. He stayed there until 1990, when he started his own Arrowood Winery in Glen Ellen. This lasted for a decade, when he sold Arrowood to the Robert Mondavi family, who subsequently sold the winery in 2006 to the Jackson family (Kendall-Jackson).
In 2000, Arrowood started Amapola Creek Winery on a 100-acre site and began planting Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Petite Verdot. The winery is relatively limited in production, producing 3,000 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, a handful of Chardonnays, and Zinfandel from their neighbor, the historic Monte Rosso Vineyard.
In 2015, Dick Arrowood celebrated his 50th anniversary in the wine business, and it has been an impressive run, as indicated by the following tasting notes. This tasting took place at the end of April, 2015. It was remarkable in its scope, diversity, overall quality, and particularly the ability of so many of the wines to age beautifully. Since I have only been writing about wine for 37 years, it was a true honor and privilege to be invited to this 50th anniversary retrospective tasting. The following are my notes in the order in which the wines were actually presented.
In summary, kudos to a career and life well lived by Richard and Alis Arrowood. Their impressive achievements over a 50-year span are largely unmatched in California today, but hopefully there will be more and more members joining that club as some of my peers who started around the same time I established the Wine Advocate also approach 50 years of winemaking. This was a great event, and it was a real honor for me to participate. —Robert Parker
This is a complete list of the wines tasted and Mr. Parker’s rating.
1 2
Year Wine Name Rating Maturity Price
2010 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 95 Young
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2009 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Early
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2008 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Early
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2007 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 96 Early
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2006 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 90+ Young
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2005 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 95 Early
Amapola Estate Vineyard
2012 Amapola Creek Cuvee Alis Estate 87 Mature
2011 Amapola Creek Cuvee Alis Estate 85 Mature
2010 Amapola Creek Cuvee Alis Estate 93 Mature
2009 Amapola Creek Cuvee Alis Estate 90 Mature
2010 Amapola Creek Petite Sirah Monte Rosso 94 Early
Vineyard
2010 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 90 Early
Vineyard
2009 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 93 Early
Vineyard
2008 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 90 Early
Vineyard
2007 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 93 Early
Vineyard
2006 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 89 Early
Vineyard
2005 Amapola Creek Zinfandel Monte Rosso 92 Early
Vineyard
1991 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 87 Mature
Sauvignon
1990 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 85 Mature
Sauvignon
2007 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 95 Early
Sauvignon Monte Rosso Vineyards
2005 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 95 Early 70
Sauvignon Monte Rosso Vineyards
2004 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 96 Early 65
Sauvignon Monte Rosso Vineyards
2007 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 95+ Early 75
Sauvignon Reserve Speciale
1997 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 93 Early 100
Sauvignon Reserve Speciale
1994 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 96 Early 109
Sauvignon Reserve Speciale
1993 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 92 Mature
Sauvignon Reserve Speciale
1987 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Cabernet 92 Early
Sauvignon Reserve Speciale
2008 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Chardonnay 94 Mature
Alary Vineyard
2005 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Chardonnay 93 Early
Alary Vineyard
2005 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Chardonnay 95 Mature
Reserve Speciale
2004 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Malbec 87 Mature
2007 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Pinot Blanc 87 Mature
Saralee's Vineyard
2006 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Syrah 91 Mature
Saralee's Vineyard
2002 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Syrah 93 Mature
Saralee's Vineyard
1997 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Syrah 93 Mature 45
Saralee's Vineyard
1995 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Syrah 88 Mature 85-90
Saralee's Vineyard
1994 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Syrah 90 Early
Saralee's Vineyard
2009 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery Viognier 89 Mature
Saralee's Vineyard
2005 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery White 95 Early
Riesling Special Select Late Harvest Hoot Owl Creek Vineyards
2004 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery White 92 Early
Riesling Special Select Late Harvest Hoot Owl Creek Vineyards
2009 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery White 92 Early
Riesling Special Select Late Harvest Saralee’s Vineyard
2008 Arrowood Vineyards & Winery White 90 Early
Riesling Special Select Late Harvest Saralee’s Vineyard
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 89 Mature
1978 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Mature
Glen Ellen Vineyard
1977 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 88 Mature
Glen Ellen Vineyard
1976 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Mature
Glen Ellen Vineyard
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Early
Glen Ellen Vineyard
1977 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 86 Mature
Jack London Vineyards
1977 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Mature
Laurel Glen Vineyards
1976 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Mature
Laurel Glen Vineyards
1 2
1 2
Year Wine Name Rating Maturity Price
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Mature
Laurel Glen Vineyards
1974 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 89 Mature
Sonoma
1979 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 89 Mature
Wildwood Vineyard
1976 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 89 Mature
Wildwood Vineyard
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Cabernet Sauvignon 89 Mature
Wildwood Vineyard
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Gewurztraminer Late 96 Mature
Harvest Belle Terre Vineyard
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Johannisburg Riesling 92 Mature
Individual Bunch Special Select Late Harvest Belle Terre Vineyards
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Johannisburg Riesling 96 Mature
Individual Bunch Special Select Late Harvest Robert Young Vineyards
1983 Chateau Saint Jean Johannisburg Riesling 96 Mature
Special Select Late Harvest Robert Young Vineyards
1977 Chateau Saint Jean Zinfandel Glen Ellen 88 Mature
Vineyards
1975 Chateau Saint Jean Zinfandel Glen Ellen 88 Mature
Vineyards
1977 Chateau Saint Jean Zinfandel Wildwood 85 Mature
Vineyards
1976 Chateau Saint Jean Zinfandel Wildwood 90 Mature
Vineyards
Below is the detail on the Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon’s that were tasted.
2010 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 95 points The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Vineyard was showing fabulously well. Dense purple, still quite youthful and vibrant, with a FROM: USA Sonoma, good 20 years of upside to it, the wine has North Coast, beautiful blueberry and blackberry fruit, some California, USA licorice, incense and a touch of toast in the VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon background. Full-bodied, ripe, but very much in DRINK: 2016 - 2032 Dick Arrowood’s balanced yet powerful style, ESTIMATED $0 this wine is a beauty. COST: SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, This flight concentrated on the current winery of #220 Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola Aug 2015 Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of
the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed organically.
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site. -
2009 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 92 points The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Vineyard is also outstanding, but perhaps not quite as potentially complex and majestic as its FROM: USA Sonoma, 2010 counterpart. The wine displays a dense North Coast, ruby/purple color, a deep, full-bodied mouthfeel, California, USA a touch of spicy oak, new saddle leather, VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon blackcurrants and loamy soil notes. His élevage DRINK: 2015 - 2030 for these wines is similar to what he used for his ESTIMATED $0 Reserve Speciale wines under the Arrowood COST: label – 80% French oak and 20% American oak, most of it new. SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, #220 This flight concentrated on the current winery of Aug 2015 Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola
Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed organically.
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site. -
2008 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 92 points The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Vineyard is full-bodied, slightly monolithic, but chunky, rich, dense, and just in need of more FROM: USA Sonoma, bottle time, I think. There is plenty of depth and North Coast, richness, but the wine doesn’t sing and show the California, USA nuances that the 2010 does. VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon DRINK: 2015 - 2025 This flight concentrated on the current winery of ESTIMATED $0 Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola COST: Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed #220 organically. Aug 2015
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site. -
2007 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 96 points The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Vineyard is out of this world, a profound example and one of the all-time great Cabernet FROM: USA Sonoma, Sauvignons from Dick Arrowood. (Keep in North Coast, mind, I tend to underrate these wines, based on California, USA how this retrospective tasting turned out.) This VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon wine offers up loads of new saddle leather, broad DRINK: 2015 - 2035 blackberry and blackcurrant fruit as well as ESTIMATED $0 licorice, forest floor and floral notes. It has a COST: beautiful texture, full body, and sweet, well- integrated tannin and acidity. This is a stunner, SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, and for my taste, among the three greatest #220 Amapola Cabernet Sauvignons to date (which Aug 2015 also include the 2005 and 2010). However, I
look forward to what he has done in 2012 and 2013.
This flight concentrated on the current winery of Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed organically.
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site. -
2006 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 90+ points The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Vineyard is still tightly knit at age nine. It has an opaque purple color, some smoky barbecue, FROM: USA Sonoma, camphor and black currant fruit, excellent depth, North Coast, ripeness, and length. This wine still needs a few California, USA more years of bottle age and should keep for two VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon decades as well. DRINK: 2018 - 2038 ESTIMATED $0 This flight concentrated on the current winery of COST: Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was #220 planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed Aug 2015 organically.
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site. -
2005 Amapola Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Amapola Estate Vineyard Add to Print List RATING: 95 points Another stunner is the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon PRODUCER: Amapola Creek Estate. This is certainly in keeping with my vintage notes for the retrospective I did of the FROM: USA Sonoma, 2005 vintage for Bordeaux varietals in Northern North Coast, California in Issue 219. A beautiful wine with California, USA sweet black and red currant fruit, licorice and VARIETY: Cabernet Sauvignon graphite, the wine is big, full-bodied, yet at the DRINK: 2015 - 2035 same time, pure, elegant, and vigorously fresh ESTIMATED $0 and lively. This is a savory wine that builds COST: incrementally on the palate and finishes splendidly. It should drink well for at least SOURCE: eRobertParker.com, #220 another 15-20 years. Aug 2015
This flight concentrated on the current winery of Dick Arrowood and his wife Alis – Amapola Creek. This entire vineyard, which is all part of the Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma, was planted by Phil Coturri and is farmed organically.
Dick Arrowood’s Zinfandels all emerge from the Monte Rosso Vineyards, and he did an impressive vertical of six separate Monte Rosso Zinfandels, going from 2010 to 2005. Monte Rosso Vineyard has been a fabulous source for many different varietals, but certainly among the best has always been the Zinfandel farmed at this high-elevation Sonoma site.