Amazing ‘garigue’ with a more rounded fruit on the background and in the immediate aftertaste after the sip. Great experience. 2010 is still very young in 2022 — 4 years ago
I think this is my first 100% Syrah from southern Rhône, and it really grew on me.
Slightly candied dark fruits balanced by a stream of medium yet vivid acidity. Peppery, herbal, and slightly floral. Mellow tannins.
Xavier Vignon has the formula to produce great Southern Rhône bottles at great price. And this is no exception, particularly considering the age of the bottle. — 7 years ago
Pithy with very smoky minerality, fresh orchard fruit and floral overtones. Lovely. — 8 years ago
For those of you that think a Rhone blend can't succeed in the Pac NW, I give you this: smokin good juice that will hit its peak in 1-2 years. — 11 years ago
An excellent red. Is more new world then French. Full bodied, complex and a long finish. — 7 months ago
We tasted nine Minervois Red Blends (Languedoc region of France), an unknown AOC to our group. This was designated a “vin de table” because as a single-varietal, it did not conform to the Minervois arcane AOC rules. I loved it anyways — 2 years ago
Full bodied and complex wine. Notes of blackberry, currant, pepper and floral. Wine feels a bit young even after decanting for 2+ hours. Excited to see what it will be in a handful of years. — 4 years ago
Excellent CA. Cab-etc. blend. Balanced, full bodied, dark and intense...great with steak, red meats but we'll drink w/more. Deep berry forward on the palate - maybe hip, still tasty and a bit bitey on the finish if you care - not enough to offend. I don't get the fantasmic world of arcane nose and flavor some raters experience. Que sera', sera', will drink again 14.9% alcohol that seems higher... — 5 years ago
Outstanding and keeps getting better. — 8 years ago
Black cherry, hemp cake, eucalyptus, licorice, smoky loam, blackberry juice, spicy tea, dyed into the linen of heavy curtains shielding the holy darkness. Violets, black cherries, tart cherry, dry tobacco, cedar twigs, raw cocoa nibs, dried blueberry, loose black tea, and formidable tannins that are silky with a small amount of grainy residuals. Brilliant as arcane runes on shotgun blueing. #fattorialaripa #tuscanwine #toscana #italianwine #redwine #redblends — 9 years ago
Serious Riesling. Great tropical flavors that resonate. Just a hint of sweetness with great complexity. If I could get it on the east coast, it would be a total "go to!" — 11 years ago
Back at Arcane after a year+. Dinner was excellent as always- the tasting menu seemed like a best of with all of their classic dishes. The wine picked by our Som was exactly as he explained-starts juicy but with time it opened up and got more complex. — 2 years ago
A nice Grenache blend that pairs well with chili. September 2023. — 3 years ago
Given that I am the only reviewer thus far, I feel the need to provide an update. Enjoying my last bottle now. The nose is of prune, stewed fruits, earth. On the palate, the tannins are now fully integrated, muddled blue and black fruits dominate, with some raisin and prune. A much better showing than my prior review. I feel almost apologetic because this is a very good Gigondas. I wouldn't hold this longer though.
91+ points — 4 years ago
Les Amoureux by Xavier Vignon, another single-vintage wine in the Arcane portfolio, is a beautiful embodiment of the southern Rhône from the spectacular 2016 vintage. A blend of 80% Grenache, with the 20% split between Mourvèdre, Cinsault and Caladoc, and sourced from the AOCs of Gigondas, Lirac, Vacqueyras, Beaumes-de-Venise and Rasteau, it’s a fragrant but powerful wine that balances bright red fruit, dollops of garrigue and a smokey character with a good amount of acidity and tannin characteristic of a young Rhône wine. A basic Côtes du Rhône given the blend of multiple terroirs, this is the finest of Vignon’s wines that I’ve tasted to date and it should age well for the next decade. — 6 years ago
Unique fernet expressions—heavily minted/eucalyptus powered which was a fun experience. — 8 years ago
Inky wine from rim to rim. Charred boar ragout, marigolds and violets, in cedar planters. Chunky baker's chocolate baking, teak, black shoe polish, burnt mocha rye, mint in turned soil scribbled on by grape scented marker. Smoked plum, worm castings, raw chocolate, espresso grounds, graphite dust. Oak and pepper belched from an arcane volcanic sacrifice. Wood tannins mushroom and coat the tongue. Next year's harvest might be a lock with this kind of dark dedication. #crozeshermitage #crozes #rhonewine #syrah #purpleteetharesexy — 9 years ago
Peter van den Besselaar
Vintage 2015 | morello cherries in smell, for me always a hint to Syrah. Juicy, good balance. The swallow factor while tasting… Very good. — 5 months ago