Arietta – A Complete Retrospective: 1996-2015
BY ANTONIO GALLONI | MAY 3, 2017
This complete retrospective
provided a fascinating opportunity to track the evolution and growth of Arietta
as the winery reached its twentieth anniversary.
Historical Background
Arietta was born as a partnership between the Hatton and Kongsgaard families. Auctioneer Fritz Hatton was working for Christie’s in the mid-1990s when he was asked to help sell a few lots at the Napa Valley Wine Auction. It didn’t take long for Hatton to strike up a friendship with John Kongsgaard, with whom he shared a deep passion for classical music going back several decades. Among other things, Hatton is a concert-level pianist, while Kongsgaard’s interest in music spans composition to hosting an annual festival that draws some of the most highly respected artists in the world.
The Hattons and Kongsgaards soon formed a partnership. The new Arietta label would focus on Bordeaux reds, while the Kongsgaards’ winery specialized in Chardonnay and Syrah. John Kongsgaard made the wines, Fritz Hatton’s job was to sell them, and Kongsgaard’s wife, Maggy, took care of the business. In 2005, after a decade of working together, the families agreed to dissolve their partnership. The Hattons bought out the Kongsgaards, who took the proceeds of their sale and purchased the Atlas Peak ranch where they live today. Andy Erickson, John Kongsgaard’s hand picked successor, took over winemaking duties at Arietta in 2005. Since then, the Arietta range has grown to include a number of selections.
I tasted all of the wines in this complete retrospective with John Kongsgaard and Andy Erickson in October 2016 at Arietta. It is the rare producer who wants to show a complete survey of their work. Most owners and winemakers would prefer to cherry pick the gems. Over the arc of time though, we all have our ups and downs. Not all wines can be outstanding. That is a given. But complete verticals really do afford the taster a unique perspective on the evolution of a winery. Perhaps most importantly, there are almost always surprises. Some wines don’t develop as well as expected, while others turn out far better than originally thought.
Some of the revelations were wines from vintages like 2011, 2008 and 1998, none of them highly regarded at the outset, especially 2011 and 1998. Conversely, I was disappointed with a number of Arietta’s older wines. I suspect overly lavish oak is to blame for the way some of the early vintages have aged. I have also noticed that, when young, the wines seem to go through periods of openness, and especially closure, that can be quite dramatic and frustrating. Some of that may be because many wines feature Merlot, a variety winemakers in Napa Valley often curse for its unpredictable and moody personality when young. With a few years in the bottle, though, the wines really blossom. Once again, I have to stress how well wines from lesser years showed in this tasting.
