Arnot-Roberts: Leaders of the New (California) School

5/24/17 -

Much has already been written about Duncan Arnot Meyers and Nathan Lee Roberts, partners and collaborators in their nearly eponymous label, Arnot-Roberts. Started on a shoestring budget in Healdsburg, CA in 2001, both Meyers and Roberts have become emblematic of the new guard of California winemakers.

Delving into their personal ties to California is important to understanding the Arnot-Roberts story; one might say Napa Valley's history is literally woven into their DNA. As childhood friends since third grade, both served in the Cub Scouts together, and graduated in the same class at Vintage High School in Napa Valley (no pun intended). Roberts' father, Keith, founded one of California's only American-owned cooperages, and Roberts père et fils worked together after Nathan finished college. Moreover, Nathan's mother, Annie Roberts, was a longtime chef at the Robert Mondavi Winery, and his grandmother, Margrit Biever Mondavi (Robert Mondavi's widow), helped design the Arnot-Roberts labels. Meyers' father, David, was a Napa attorney, and among his father's close friends was Bernard Portet, co-founder of the famous Clos du Val winery.

Arnot-Roberts métier has been finding incredibly distinctive and often extreme vineyard sites, while strategically partnering with vineyard owners and consultants who take care of the grapes according to their specifications. Clary Ranch, a cool site for Syrah near the Petaluma Gap in the Sonoma Coast AVA, became a calling card for the winery (especially given their low alcohol levels compared to other wineries' bottlings). Their unique single-varietal bottling Trousseau (a blend from Luchsinger, Boham, and Bartolomei vineyards) and rosé blend (Touriga Nacional, Tempranillo, and Grenache) are domestic cult favorites among sommeliers and wine retailers. Lastly, their Cabernets and Chardonnays are evocative of how California wines were made several decades ago. Across their portfolio, the wines are elegantly balanced, texturally beautiful, and  truly reflective of their geographical locations and vineyard sites. We're proud to offer these limited quantities of wine today. Jonas Mendoza