September 2022 Shipment
Old World and New World “Micro-Cru”
We are excited to include two of our limited-production wines in your September Vigneron Collection shipment: The 96-point 2016 Tenuta di Arceno Valadorna Toscana IGT and the 99-point 2019 Anakota Helena Dakota Cabernet Sauvignon from Knights Valley in Sonoma County.
The 2016 vintage is considered an excellent vintage across Tuscany. The growing season began with cool, wet weather. By July, weather conditions had shifted to dry and hot with minimal rainfall. The wide thermal range produced wines with ripe fruit flavors, vibrant acidity, and explosive aromatics. This Merlot-led blend is sourced primarily from the Valadorna and Capria blocks, which produce the estate’s most complex and mineral-based expressions of this variety. The 2016 Valadorna is expressive and elegant with ripe fruit flavors, vibrant acidity, and explosive aromatics.
The Anakota vineyards are set along the flanks and foothills of Mount St. Helena and the Mayacamas Mountains. This rustic sanctuary possesses the sparse volcanic soils and ideal climate needed to produce elegant, profound, and age-worthy Cabernet Sauvignons. The Helena Dakota vineyard runs southwest to northeast on the western side of Mount Saint Helena, with slopes of up to 15 degrees. Prevailing westerly winds pass over a large, cold pond and blow uphill, parallel to the rows of vines. The 2019 Helena Dakota is a tour de force of ripe black currant, blueberry compote, fresh pencil shavings, and subtle toasted cardamom aromatics. The palate is supple and rich, perfectly balancing this wine’s firm structure, leading to a long finish of bittersweet dark baking chocolate, marked by fruit and iron minerality.
Anakota Helena Dakota Cabernet Sauvignon
“The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Helena Dakota Vineyard explodes with violets, aniseed, and cast iron, with a deep core of crushed blueberries and black cherries, evolving continually with each approach to the glass. The palate is stunning with its intensity and lift, pure fruits, pixelated tannins, and focused acidity that drives the very long finish. Its exceptional balance and super pure flavors, plus that characteristic streak of iron that appears across the Anakota portfolio, really take the 2019 Helena Dakota to the next level.”
99 Points - Erin Brooks, Robert Parker Wine Advocate, July 2022
Tenuta di Arceno Valadorna Toscana IGT
Expressive aromas of ripe black cherry, vanilla bean and toasted nuts are prominent on the nose. At first taste, the supple and approachable tannins from the Merlot provide a full mouthfeel. The core is warm and smooth, balanced by notes of ripe plums and chocolate-covered cherries. Cabernet Franc in the blend uplifts the palate with cedar and fresh mint. This well-rounded, dynamic wine can be enjoyed for years to come.
93 POINTS – Wine Spectator, Bruce Sanderson, September 2022