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The History of Arnot-Roberts |
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Nathan Lee Roberts and Duncan Arnot Meyers. |
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Arnot-Roberts was Founded in 2001 in Healdsburg, CA by childhood friends, Duncan Arnot Meyers and Nathan Lee Roberts. The focus is on small lot, vineyard designated Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Chardonnay from Northern Californian vineyards. Sites are carefully chosen and are generally on the cooler end of the spectrum for the planted varieties. Collaboration with dedicated and passionate growers is paramount in the farming of these sites.
Duncan and Nathan grew up around winemaking in the Napa Valley. Nathan is a second generation cooper and personally builds all of the French oak barrels that are utilized in the ageing of all Arnot-Roberts wines. Over the years Duncan has worked making wine in the Napa Valley in wineries like, Caymus, Groth, Acacia, Kongsgaard. Total production of Arnot-Roberts is around 1,400 cases per year with eleven individual wines. Both primary and secondary fermentations are carried out utilizing native yeast and are bottled without fining or filtration. For the Syrahs whole clusters are retained during primary fermentation and the amount of new cooperage used for each wine is site and vintage specific, generally not exceeding 30% new. For the Cabernets, hillside sites of intense character are chosen, small amounts of whole clusters are retained during primary fermentation and the wines are age for two years in varying amounts of new French Oak cooperage, selected and toasted to meld with the vintage at hand. White wines are whole cluster pressed and stainless steel fermented with native yeast, then aged in neutral French oak barrels. Duncan and Nathan operate the Arnot-Roberts winery in a post-prohibition era winery building in the Western Sonoma County town of Forestville, at the edge of the Green Valley appellation. |
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